VOA标准英语2009年-12-Year-Old Boy Broadcasts 'Positive' News

By Steve Mort
Orlando, Florida
24 September 2009

The news on television and radio sometimes can be dominated¹ by wars and global economic troubles. But one U.S. school student from is trying to change that. Max Jones is making a difference by reporting positive stories on his Internet newscast.

 
Max Jones
Max Jones records an episode² of his weekly online broadcast, "Weekend News Today." Jones reports only happy stories. He says that during tough economic times, the American public needs more than a constant barrage³ of bad news found in most media.

"In these times, people really do need to be inspired and happier than they are because so many things are happening in their lives," Jones said.

By searching online, Jones has assembled a team of teenage reporters in locations around the world.

They file stories from cities such as Chicago, Beijing, Johannesburg and Seoul.

Jones says he hopes to encourage children his age to become more aware of world events. "The world revolves⁴ around them is what they think. But there are other people in the world, so I'm more interested in the other people than I am in myself," he explained.

Although not part of a school project, Max Jones records his newscasts in a studio at Lake Highland⁵ Preparatory School in Orlando.

He is known as being shy at school. But his mother, Kim Jones, says all that changes when he is reading the news. "He does it very naturally, and I'm very very proud of that," she said.

 
Max Jones
Max Jones has other interests such as playing the cello⁶, but he says journalism⁷ is his passion.

He campaigned for the release of U.S. reporters Euna Lee and Linda Ling who were imprisoned⁸ in North Korea. He even received a telephone call from Ling, after she was freed, thanking him for his help.

"I really think that one person can make a difference in the world, just bit by bit," he said.

A popular morning news show on American television inspired Max Jones to start his broadcast.

He now spends about five hours a week working on the program, which he says receives around 5,000 online visits a day.

1 dominated   

受控的 -tive

参考例句：

• As a child he was dominated by his father. 他小时候由父亲主宰一切。
• His personality dominated over the other members of the committee. 他的人格影响委员会的其他成员。

2 episode   

n.（作品的一段）情节，插曲，系列事件中之一

参考例句：

• The episode was a huge embarrassment for all concerned.这段小插曲令所有有关人员都感到非常尴尬。
• This episode remains sharply engraved on my mind.这段经历至今仍深深地铭刻在我的心中。

3 barrage   

n.火力网，弹幕

参考例句：

• The attack jumped off under cover of a barrage.进攻在炮火的掩护下开始了。
• The fierce artillery barrage destroyed the most part of the city in a few minutes.猛烈的炮火几分钟内便毁灭了这座城市的大部分地区。

4 revolves   

v.（使）旋转( revolve的第三人称单数 )；细想

参考例句：

• The earth revolves both round the sun and on its own axis. 地球既公转又自转。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Thus a wheel revolves on its axle. 于是，轮子在轴上旋转。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 highland   

n.(pl.)高地，山地

参考例句：

• The highland game is part of Scotland's cultural heritage.苏格兰高地游戏是苏格兰文化遗产的一部分。
• The highland forests where few hunters venture have long been the bear's sanctuary.这片只有少数猎人涉险的高山森林，一直都是黑熊的避难所。

6 cello   

n.大提琴

参考例句：

• The cello is a member of the violin family.大提琴是提琴家族的一员。
• She plays a melodious cello.她拉着一手悦耳的大提琴。

7 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。

8 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。