密歇根新闻广播 特朗普批评纽约时报

Less than two weeks ago, President Donald Trump¹ launched his latest Twitter attack on the nation's most important newspaper, the New York Times.

"The failing nytimes has disgraced the media world," he tweeted on March 30. "Change libel laws?"

Well, as Trump certainly knows, you'd need a Constitutional Amendment² or a major U.S. Supreme³ Court decision to do that, neither of which is likely. Nor is he probably serious.

He met with Times editors after the election and told them that they probably didn't have to worry, since someone told him that if he changed the libel laws, he might get sued a lot himself. But he does love to attack the New York Times. And for many of his supporters, the Times is the paper they love to hate, the Great Satan of what they call the liberal mainstream⁴ media.

Well, I spent almost the entire day Friday with the man who runs that paper, Executive Editor Dean Baquet. Every year, Wayne State University recognizes a journalistic champion of diversity, someone who has done distinguished⁵ reporting on diversity-related issues, or helped fulfill⁶ our mission of "making America's newsrooms look more like America."

Baquet has done both; a Pulitzer-prize winning reporter, he is the first African-American editor in the Times' history. When I invited him last fall to receive our 2017 Spirit of Diversity award, his response was immediate⁷. "I am deeply honored, and I humbly⁸ accept."

If your vision of a Times editor is of someone who grew up in limousine⁹ liberal luxury and went to an Ivy¹⁰ League school, think again. Baquet was born to a poor family in Louisiana. His mother had only a third-grade education, and there wasn't a single book in the house.

But he got a scholarship, an internship¹¹ at his hometown paper in New Orleans, and never looked back. He was editor of the Los Angeles Times eleven years ago when the owners of the paper, which was then still profitable, demanded the staff be reduced beyond what made sense. His integrity required him to refuse, and he was fired.

Baquet returned to the New York Times, where he became editor three years ago. Presidents have been criticizing the Times for decades. But now, for the first time, his paper is being attacked as a fundamentally immoral¹² merchant of "fake news."

"How do you fight that?" one of my students asked Baquet.

"By telling as many true stories as possible. By doing our jobs," he said. Over lunch, he said he believes what's happening now is actually good for journalism¹³. For one thing, people are paying more attention.

New York Times subscriptions¹⁴ have increased dramatically since the election. At the award ceremony, Baquet said "Journalism right now is more important than it's been in a long time. It's important for journalists today to understand that truth is the most important thing."

That's why, last fall, the New York Times decided¹⁵ to indicate in its news stories when a candidate was openly lying, and to tell readers, to the best of its ability, what is real and true. Baquet is 60 years old, and top editors of the Times have to retire by 65.

But he still could manage to keep his job longer than his best known critic stays in his.

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

3 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

4 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

5 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

6 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

7 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

8 humbly   

adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地

参考例句：

• We humbly beg Your Majesty to show mercy. 我们恳请陛下发发慈悲。
• "You must be right, Sir,'said John humbly. “你一定是对的，先生，”约翰恭顺地说道。

9 limousine   

n.豪华轿车

参考例句：

• A chauffeur opened the door of the limousine for the grand lady.司机为这个高贵的女士打开了豪华轿车的车门。
• We arrived in fine style in a hired limousine.我们很气派地乘坐出租的豪华汽车到达那里。

10 ivy   

n.常青藤，常春藤

参考例句：

• Her wedding bouquet consisted of roses and ivy.她的婚礼花篮包括玫瑰和长春藤。
• The wall is covered all over with ivy.墙上爬满了常春藤。

11 internship   

n.实习医师，实习医师期

参考例句：

• an internship at a television station 在电视台的实习期
• a summer internship with a small stipend 薪水微薄的暑期实习

12 immoral   

adj.不道德的，淫荡的，荒淫的，有伤风化的

参考例句：

• She was questioned about his immoral conduct toward her.她被询问过有关他对她的不道德行为的情况。
• It is my belief that nuclear weapons are immoral.我相信使核武器是不邪恶的。

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。

14 subscriptions   

n.（报刊等的）订阅费( subscription的名词复数 )；捐款；（俱乐部的）会员费；捐助

参考例句：

• Subscriptions to these magazines can be paid in at the post office. 这些杂志的订阅费可以在邮局缴纳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Payment of subscriptions should be made to the club secretary. 会费应交给俱乐部秘书。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。