根據(jù)Ofcom的調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),在過(guò)去一年中,超過(guò)三分之一的青少年在網(wǎng)上遭到仇恨言論,這些言論大多是包含種族、性別、性取向、性別認(rèn)同的侮辱言論。
測(cè)試中可能遇到的詞匯和知識(shí):
discriminatory差別對(duì)待的[d?'skr?m?n?,t(?)r?; d?,skr?m?'ne?t(?)r?]
consuming behavior消費(fèi)行為
nasty下流的;骯臟的['nɑ?st?]
legislation立法;法律[led??s'le??(?)n]
tolerated可接納的[?t?l?reitid]
harassment騷擾;煩惱['h?r?sm(?)nt]
By David Bond
One-third of British children aged 12-15 have encountered sexist,racist or discriminatory content online,according to a new survey that reveals how children are spending more time on the internet than watching television.
The report by the UK media watchdog Ofcom says that for the first time the internet has overtaken TV as the most popular media pastime for children.
The report,published on Wednesday,says children aged 5-15 spent an average of just over 15 hours on the internet each week compared with 13.5 hours watching TV. The amount of time this age group spent using the internet increased by one hour and 18 minutes in the past year.
The shift in behaviour is being driven by the explosion of smartphone use and an increase in the number of devices available to children. Even younger age groups are consuming more digital media with a third of pre-school children aged 3-4 owning their own tablet or games console.
But the increase in time spent online has been accompanied by a new insight into the number of young people who say they have seen so-called“hate speech”on the web.
The media regulator concluded that 34 per cent of 12-15 year olds had seen something“hateful on the internet”directed at“a particular group of people,based on,for instance,their gender,religion,disability,sexuality or gender identity”.
In addition,one in five of the same age group and one in 10 children aged 8-11 said they had seen something online in the past year they“found worrying or nasty”.
The report’s findings may place social media and tech groups such as Facebook,YouTube and Snap under renewed pressure to introduce stricter rules to oversee the use of their platforms by children.
Messaging services such as Snapchat and Instagram are hugely popular with teenagers while Ofcom’s report found that 74 per cent of children aged 5-15 used YouTube. The research group eMarketer says 80 per cent of 12-17 year olds have a Facebook account.
From 2018 EU legislation will force all users of social media under the age of 16 to obtain parental consent before going online.
But while some technology groups have controls in place to monitor children who use their services,some rely on cookies to track underage users or on children telling the truth about their age.
Ofcom’s report said the majority of children reported negative experiences online. Meanwhile,nearly all parents of 5-15 year olds said they managed their children’s internet use in some way — through technical tools,talking to or supervising their child,or setting rules about access to the internet and online behaviour.
The NSPCC,the children’s charity,nevertheless described Ofcom’s findings as“very worrying”.“Every child has the right to feel safe online and hate posts should not be tolerated by social networks or any other website,”it said.
Jane Rumble,Ofcom’s director of market intelligence,said:“Children’s lives are increasingly digital,with tablets and smartphones commanding more attention than ever.”
A YouTube spokesperson said children under age 13 were not permitted to have an account and that it had developed a standalone app for children that was a“more controlled experience”.
“Bullying,harassment and hate speech have no place on the YouTube platform and we have clear policies against harassing and hateful content,which we remove when it’s flagged.”
1.What is the nature of Ofcom as mentioned?
A. media company
B. media watchdog
C. research group
D. commonweal organization
答案(1)
2.How many hours did 5-15-year-old children spend averagely each week last year?
A. 13.5 hours
B. 13 hours and 42 minutes
C. 15hours
D. 16 hours and 18 minutes
答案(2)
3.Who should introduce stricter rules to oversee the use by children according to report?
A. the British government
B. parents
C. social media and tech groups
D. media supervision
答案(3)
4.How many years old children will be limited by their parents from 2018?
A. 12-15
B. under 13
C. under 16
D. 5-18
答案(4)
(1) 答案:B.media watchdog
解釋:Ofcom是英國(guó)的電信監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu),而不是調(diào)查公司或公益組織。
(2) 答案:B.13 hours and 42 minutes
解釋:5到15歲的孩子平均每周使用在電腦上花費(fèi)15小時(shí),比去年增加了1小時(shí)18分鐘。
(3) 答案:C.social media and tech groups
解釋:像Facebook,YouTube這樣的社交媒體科技公司面臨新的壓力:引入更加嚴(yán)格的規(guī)范監(jiān)管孩子們?cè)谄淦脚_(tái)上的使用行為。
(4) 答案:C.under 16
解釋:法案將在2018年生效,它規(guī)定所有16歲以下的孩童要想使用社交網(wǎng)站及其消息應(yīng)用,必須首先征得父母的同意。