Question

    For famous photojournalist Sir Don McCullin, the landscape has changed since the days when dozens of printed pages were devoted to his photo stories, leading him to declare, “Photojournalism is dying.” According to Sir Don McCullin, newspapers and magazines are much more interested in the wealthy, the glamorous and celebrities. They don’t want suffering people in their newspapers. Photojournalism hasn’t lost its way but it’s been conveniently pushed aside. Shrinking editorial budgets, increasing competition and mistrust of the Press are just some of the factors impacting photojournalism. But the power of photography endures and technology is allowing photographers more creative freedom than ever before. The world is hungry for visual storytelling, but will photojournalism survive?

We spoke to photojournalists working in this industry about the state of affairs today, and asked their opinions about photojournalism in the digital age.

Ilvy Njiokiktjien

“Assignments have changed, so people don’t need to go somewhere for months to work on one project. When Don McCullin’s pictures were making it into the newspaper, his images would be the news. Now if I take a picture at Nelson Mandela’s funeral, for instance, there are 300 other photographers there. There are so many images that you are never going to really shoot an iconic image. You’re not the only one there — there are your colleagues and there are people with cellphones. I don’t think a single image will ever lose its power. Single images, to me, are so strong — I can look at a single image and never forget it. But there are new ways of storytelling — with cellphones, with interactive online experiences and virtual reality. Therefore, it’s important to see what matches the story.”

Jérôme Sessini

“I think now we are freer than before because of technology. Besides, we don’t care about the newspapers like people did before. We get free from the newspapers, so we are able to tell stories in the way we want to tell them. In my opinion, pictures can express emotions — I believe more in emotions than in rationality. I don’t want to tell people, ‘this is like this’, or ‘like that’. I want them to first feel something from the pictures, and then ask some questions. They will have to find the answers by themselves.”

Magnus Wennman

“When I started, press photography was a pretty old-school profession, but today it’s completely different. It’s not about the technique any more. It’s about telling stories, and you have endless opportunities to tell stories by means of pictures. If you are engaging in storytelling, I would say your future is very bright. Photojournalism is more democratic. As a matter of fact, nowadays we can see people shooting with their cellphones anywhere. Photojournalism is no longer the privilege of those working at newspapers. The new generation of photojournalists should work in a completely different way. As you see everywhere, visual storytelling is getting more and more important. If you’re good at that, you’re going to survive.”

Daniel Etter

“A lot of people have been declaring that photojournalism is dead and, somehow, it’s still around. It’s still alive, and it’s still kicking — maybe not quite as hard as in Don McCullin’s days, but it’s still important. It doesn’t have the impact it once had, and it will never have that impact again. I always believe photography plays a role, but if there are better ways of telling visual stories, I’m fine with that. The biggest problem we are running into now is how to make others believe us. Look at how really basic facts are in question nowadays. To make our work a reliable source of information is our biggest challenge. I haven’t figured out a way to make news more trustworthy — the only thing we can do is do good work. That means doing research and trying to represent events in a fair way.”

1.What does Ilvy want to say with the example of Nelson Mandela’s funeral?

A.Great news like this is always attractive.

B.Taking a satisfying picture is really difficult.

C.Too many people take up photojournalism.

D.Popularity of cellphones threatens photojournalism.

2.What idea do Sessini and Wennman share?

A.Good pictures are worth all the hard work.

B.It’s better to let the picture itself tell stories.

C.Technology is photographers’ greatest enemy.

D.Photojournalism will be the first to be kicked out.

3.What does the underlined sentence mean?

A.Photojournalism enjoys great popularity nowadays.

B.Photojournalism is really a promising career in the future.

C.Everyone can report news stories using photos taken by themselves.

D.Photojournalism has lost its appeal for those working at newspapers.

4.What does Etter say about photojournalism?

A.It is not as influential as in Don McCullin’s days.

B.It almost died in Don McCullin’s days.

C.It may have an even better future.

D.It actually exists in name only.

5.What can we learn about Etter?

A.His talent was once questioned.

B.He is optimistic about his future career.

C.He will resign from his job sooner or later.

D.He is seeking suitable ways to tell visual stories.

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.C

4.A

5.D

【解析】

这是一篇议论文。据著名的摄影记者唐·麦卡林爵士说，报纸和杂志对富人、魅力人士和名人更感兴趣，他宣称“摄影新闻业正在消亡”。全世界都渴望视觉故事的讲述，在人人都能随手拍摄照片的科技时代，摄影新闻工作还能存在下去吗？业内人士发表了自己的看法。

1.细节理解题。根据Ilvy Njiokiktjien段中的You’re not the only one there — there are your colleagues and there are people with cellphones.及But there are new ways of storytelling — with cellphones, with interactive online experiences and virtual reality.(你不是唯一在场的人——还有你的同事和有手机的人。但是有新的讲故事的方式——用手机，在线互动体验和虚拟现实)可知，此处Ilvy Njiokiktjien是要说由于手机的普及现在人人都能做摄影新闻工作，这一点正在威胁着这个行业。故选D项。

2.推理判断题。根据Sessini的话I want them to first feel something from the pictures, and then ask some questions. They will have to find the answers by themselves.(我希望他们先从照片中感受到一些东西，然后再问一些问题。他们必须自己找到答案)以及Wennman的话today it’s completely different. It’s not about the technique any more. It’s about telling stories, and you have endless opportunities to tell stories by means of pictures.(今天它完全不同了。不再是技术问题了。是讲故事，你有无数的机会用图片讲故事)可推测出，Sessini和Wennman都主张让图片讲述自己的故事。故选B项。

3.词义猜测题。根据划线部分后As a matter of fact, nowadays we can see people shooting with their cellphones anywhere. Photojournalism is no longer the privilege of those working at newspapers.(事实上，现在我们可以看到人们在任何地方用手机拍照。新闻摄影不再是报社工作人员的特权)可知，划线部分意为摄影新闻工作正在变得更民主，也就是说每个人都可以用自己拍的照片报道新闻。故选C项。

4.细节理解题。根据Daniel Etter所说的话It’s still alive, and it’s still kicking — maybe not quite as hard as in Don McCullin’s days, but it’s still important. It doesn’t have the impact it once had, and it will never have that impact again. (它还活着，它还在跳动——也许不像唐·麦卡林的日子那么艰难，但它仍然很重要。它已经不像以前那样有影响力了，而且再也不会有那样的影响力了)可知，Daniel Etter认为现在摄影新闻工作不如Don McCullin那个时期那么有影响力了。故选A项。

5.细节理解题。根据Etter的话I haven’t figured out a way to make news more trustworthy — the only thing we can do is do good work. That means doing research and trying to represent events in a fair way.(我还没有想出一个让新闻更可信的方法——我们唯一能做的就是做好工作。这意味着要去进行研究，并试图以公平的方式叙述事件)可知，Etter还在寻找合适的方式来讲述视觉故事。故选D项。