2006年VOA标准英语-Liberian Journalists Struggle to Escape Cy

By Franz Wild
Monrovia
05 May 2006

Rose Ville, a supporter of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf from the Unity¹ Party, listens to election results on the radio   
  
Earlier this week Liberia was sited as an example of great progress on World Press Freedom Day. But working conditions are still tough and many journalists resort to corruption² to keep themselves afloat. For VOA,  Franz Wild visited a radio station in Monrovia to find out what it is like to be a journalist in Liberia.

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To enter Sky FM's offices on Monrovia's thronging³ Broad Street you have to walk by its thundering generator⁴, which throbs⁵ away 24 hours a day to keep the station's electricity supply going.

David Targbe is the director of news at Sky. He says while having press freedom is a step in the right direction, Liberian journalists are still struggling.

"The challenges here are very great," he said.  "We are working under extremely difficult circumstances. There is a lack of requisite⁶ facilities. There is a lack of requisite benefits as a journalist. And there is a lack of equipment to make sure that our broadcasts are made easier."

Targbe's office is a desk in a separated area of the lobby. He does not have a computer and has to write all his scripts out by hand. Sky does not supply any phones, so he has to make any calls from his own cell phone. Useful numbers are scribbled⁷ onto the wall next to his desk.

Targbe says that this lack of equipment means that the quality of their output suffers dramatically.

"The problem we have is that we always have poor quality of sound," he noted⁸.  "The kind of facilities and tape recorders we use are substandard. We use cassettes. When the guests are on air it does not always sound that good. And we always get bad feedback on that from our listeners. They complain that our news is good, but our sound quality is bad. That is embarrassing for us as a station."

Raymond Zarbay trains Liberian journalists with the U.N. He says journalists here have equipment problems, but also need to develop their techniques.

"Technique and equipment are both problems," he explained.  "They have a lot of analogue⁹ equipment here and there is a need for them to have some digital equipment so that they can keep up with the kind of work we are doing with them."

At Sky FM Targbe earns about $100 a month.  Other journalists at the station earn about half that. These low salaries lead many journalists to look for other sources of income.

Corruption within the media is rife¹⁰. Politicians will pay for positive coverage¹¹.

"There are a lot of independent newspapers, but this independence can be influenced by money coming from politicians or other invisible hands," he explained.  "A politician calls you and tells you to come and see him in his office. He asks you to write a piece for him and gives you an envelope. That influences your work as a journalist. This is the point where the issue of ethical¹² standards comes in."

Targbe is certain this was especially the case during last year's elections, when many candidates were paying vast sums of money in the hope that this would increase their chances of being elected.

He says many journalists made a small fortune over the election period.

"There was a lot of cash running around," he added.  "There was a lot of cash for journalists who were willing to get the cash and for those who were willing give their favorite politicians good coverage. In fact, after the elections some journalists bought cars. Some are now building their homes, because they have accumulated a lot of money."

Targbe says this corruption will characterize Liberian journalism¹³ as long as journalists remain underpaid. The only other option is to join an international media organization, which can pay higher rates.

1 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

2 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

3 thronging   

v.成群，挤满( throng的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Architects from around the world are thronging to Beijing theacross the capital. 来自世界各地的建筑师都蜂拥而至这座处处高楼耸立的大都市——北京。 来自互联网
• People are thronging to his new play. 人们成群结队地去看他那出新戏。 来自互联网

4 generator   

n.发电机，发生器

参考例句：

• All the while the giant generator poured out its power.巨大的发电机一刻不停地发出电力。
• This is an alternating current generator.这是一台交流发电机。

5 throbs   

体内的跳动( throb的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• My finger throbs with the cut. 我的手指因切伤而阵阵抽痛。
• We should count time by heart throbs, in the cause of right. 我们应该在正确的目标下，以心跳的速度来计算时间。

6 requisite   

adj.需要的，必不可少的；n.必需品

参考例句：

• He hasn't got the requisite qualifications for the job.他不具备这工作所需的资格。
• Food and air are requisite for life.食物和空气是生命的必需品。

7 scribbled   

v.潦草的书写( scribble的过去式和过去分词 )；乱画；草草地写；匆匆记下

参考例句：

• She scribbled his phone number on a scrap of paper. 她把他的电话号码匆匆写在一张小纸片上。
• He scribbled a note to his sister before leaving. 临行前，他给妹妹草草写了一封短信。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 analogue   

n.类似物；同源语

参考例句：

• The gill of a fish is the analogue of the lung of a cat.鱼的鳃和猫的肺是类似物。
• But aside from that analogue standby,the phone, videoconferencing is their favorite means of communication.除了备用的相似物电话，可视对话是他们最喜欢的沟通手段。

10 rife   

adj.(指坏事情)充斥的，流行的，普遍的

参考例句：

• Disease is rife in the area.疾病在这一区很流行。
• Corruption was rife before the election.选举之前腐败盛行。

11 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

12 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

13 journalism   

n.新闻工作，报业

参考例句：

• He's a teacher but he does some journalism on the side.他是教师，可还兼职做一些新闻工作。
• He had an aptitude for journalism.他有从事新闻工作的才能。