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In England，Australia，Canada and the U.S.media literacy 2 educators have fairly common agreement on a set of principles that are explored as part of media literacy.These include the following concepts：
The old adage，“The Camera Never Lies，”is indicative of the way we have been conditioned to accept the relationship between reality and the representations of reality that the media construct.In a day of virtual reality and computer simulations“seeing is not believing.”All media are carefully assembled，edited，selected and designed constructions.They show us a world but is a selected and often unrepresentative view even though it seems to be true.Learning to distinguish the reality from the reflection is implicit in this concept.
This principle involves the realization that there is a relationship between the way the world is presented by the media and the way we as media consumers perceive that world.Crime is 10 times greater on television than in real life，but many Americans perceive their world to be as violent and threatening as the media constructions.When we have had no direct or immediate experience of the individual，institution，issue，person or place represented，the media tend to mediate.Hence，unless we have been to Australia for example we might perceive it as an odd mixture of“Crocodile Dundee”3 meets“The Thornbirds.”4 For today's students，born and raised in the post-Vietnam era，their knowledge of that war is likely to have been constructed by“China Beach” 5 ，“Tour ofDuty” 6 ，“Rambo” 7 ，“Platoon” 8 and other media constructions.
Put simply，“Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder.”While we may often argue about the“beauty”of the media，the old adage helps us conceptualize the audiences are not passive recipients of media messages.Rather we filter media content and messages through a complex nexus of our own nature and needs including our existing beliefs and value systems.Significantly，different ethnic groups exposed to the same media content，select，reject，recall and comprehend quite different components of the same content.Exploring the different perceptions and perspectives students have about programs offers an important opportunity for young people to understand the differences and commonalities between them.
Putbluntly，the bottom line is the buck.Any real understanding of media content cannot be divorced from the economic context and financial imperative that drives the media industry.While many people lament the rise of tabloidism and“infotainment”，the media industry justifies such trends on the basis that these stories sell.Hence，they are simply giving the public what the public wants.
The same is true in the entertainment media.While opinion surveys frequently show Americans are concerned about media violence，ticket sales and ratings also indicate that programs with high levels of violence also attract audiences.Breaking this cycle clearly involves understanding the dynamics of the market place and a realization that as consumers of media messages we are both part of the problem and part of the solution.
This principle explores the relationship between image and influence，content and consequence.In an era of consumption and materialism for example，how do we raise children to have spiritual values？In an age of AIDS，what happens if the messages about sex provided by the church，school and the family are undermined and contradicted by media messages which promise instant gratification or indulgence without consequences？What is the relationship between the backlash against affirmative action and social and media stereotypes for example about immigrants and welfare mothers？The principle involves exploring the way the media show and shape，reflect and reinforce reality.It involves understanding who and what is portrayed both in quantity and quality，as well as which groups and individuals in our society are left out of the picture.In part it involves understanding who is portrayed by whom，how and why with what effect.
1.This text is taken from Mass Media English，1 th t edition，Higher Education Press，2008.
2.Media Literacy：Media literacy is the ability to sift through and analyze the messages that inform，entertain and sell to us every day.It's the ability to bring critical thinking skills to bear on all media.It's about asking pertinent questions about what's there，and noticing what's not there.And it's the instinct to question what lies behind media productions—the motives，the money，the values and the ownership—and to be aware of how these factors influence content.
3.Crocodile Dundee：《鳄鱼邓迪》。本片是一部以澳大利亚为背景的电影。男主角保罗·贺根在影片中扮演的一个猎鳄人“鳄鱼邓迪”，是当地的传奇人物。女主角琳达是美国的一位女记者，因为偶然听说邓迪自鳄鱼口中逃生的奇闻，大感兴趣，于是深入落后的沼泽地区采访邓迪遇险的故事，从而产生了一段情缘。最后琳达毅然抛弃了未婚夫，投入了邓迪的怀抱。本片的故事比较简单直接，笑料的设计和表演都比较质朴自然，给观众一种清凉之感，可算作是一部浪漫喜剧。男主角保罗·贺根更是凭借此片夺得金球奖最佳喜剧男主角奖。
4.The Thornbirds：《荆棘鸟》。故事以早期澳洲内陆开发时期为背景，在20世纪上半叶澳洲一个新西兰移民家庭中，麦琪漂亮热情，同神父拉尔夫相爱炽烈，但神父的身份却让两人无法结合，心灰意冷的麦琪终转嫁他人。然而，在命运和内心渴望的驱使下，两人终于再次相遇，带来的却是无可抵御的悲剧。
5.China Beach：《中国海滩》。旧金山市民发掘了中国海滩之美，因为严格说来，它应该是旧金山唯一最适合游泳泡水、做日光浴的海滩了。发迹于淘金时期，这座隐蔽于高耸山崖之下的海角天堂，曾是早期在旧金山湾讨生活的中国渔人们日落而息的营地。每当夕阳西下后，一艘艘简陋的捕鱼舢舨靠岸停泊，水波上船影摇曳、沙滩上萤火闪烁，寂寥的夜空下，不知引发了多少异乡游子的思乡之情。如今，老船不在，中国海滩徒留其名。
6.Tour ofDuty：《霹雳神兵》。本片讲述了美军一个敢死连某排在越南战场上的各种经历。越南战争是美国历史上历时最长的战争，在越战期间，一般美军士兵都要到越南战场服役一年，这些不同种族、不同文化、不同社会背景的士兵不得不远离家乡和亲人，来到东南亚热带地区接受血与火、生与死的战争考验，剧中充满让人震惊的战争场面，向人们展现了战争的残酷无情，揭示了人们对战争的态度和士兵们对自己生命价值的思考。
7.Rambo：《第一滴血》。兰博是一名退伍越战军人，多年在越南战争中洗礼，已无法融入美国社会，重返原居的故乡小镇，又遭小镇警长诸多挑剔及无理指责。他要站起来对抗警长的挑衅，还要对抗警长招来的大批特警。兰博用他在越南常用的军事知识，来对抗这一批人。除了他尊敬的上校，无人、无法律、无武器能阻止他。导演泰德考切夫不但将动作场面的气氛拍得紧张逼人，也将小人物打倒恶势力的寓意拍得大快人心。
8.Platoon：《野战排》。野战排的故事以一个美国士兵克里斯泰勒给祖母写信的形式展开叙述。他在信中向祖母讲述了在越南战场上的经历，其中有他的战友的不同心理表现，有的人已成了战争机器，有的则还保留着理智，不肯滥杀无辜。
1.indicative［ɪnˈdɪkətiv］adj.suggestive；serving as an indication指示的；表示……的：His calmness in face of emergency is an indicative of his success in business.面对紧急情况时的镇静展示了他在生意上的成功。
2.be conditioned to：get used to习惯于；以……为条件：More and more people today are conditioned to get known what has happened and is happening by phone.如今越来越多的人习惯于通过手机获知已经发生和正在发生的事。
3.virtual reality：an image or environment produced by computer software with which a user can interact realistically using a helmet with a screen inside，gloves with sensors（传感器），etc.虚拟现实：How can so many youngsters be caught by the seemingly wonderful virtual world on the Internet？为什么如此多的年轻人会被看似精彩的网络虚拟世界所吸引？
4.simulation［ˌsɪmjuˈleɪʃn］n.the condition of being made to resemble the real thing but not genuinely仿真；模拟；模仿：Exact analysis of statistics will be the key to have a perfect simulation test.完美模拟测试的关键是对数据的精确分析。
5.assemble［əˈsembl］vt.gather together；collect集合；装配；汇编（计算机）：To collect and assemble information is a careful and hard job.收集并组合信息是件细活。
6.unrepresentative［ˌʌnˌreprɪˈzentətiv］adj.not representative非代表性的，不典型的：Your words as a president are just unrepresentative of the people.作为总统，你的话并不能代表民众。
7.implicit［imˈplɪsɪt］adj.implied，not clearly expressed含蓄的；暗示的：Her great anger is implicit in her extremely peaceful face.她异常平静的面容，暗含着极度的愤怒。
8.consumer［kənˈsjuːmə(r)］n.a person who uses a product消费者；用户，顾客：Consumers need to think twice before purchase when challenged by tricky advertisers.消费者面对狡猾的广告商，需要三思而后购买。
9.perceive［pəˈsiːv］vt.to feel；to notice察觉；理解；认知：I perceived that there was some change to his behavior recently.最近，我察觉到他行为上的某些变化。
10.mediate［ˈmiːdɪeɪt］vi.intervene between two parties in a dispute to produce an agreement调解；斡旋；居中：To mediate the disagreement between mothers and wives is always something most men are not good at.大多数男性都不怎么会调解自己的母亲和妻子之间的不和。
11.odd［ɒd］adj.strange古怪的；奇特的：It seems something common that most talents tend to have odd behaviors.大多数天才都行为古怪，这似乎很常见。
12.negotiate［nɪˈɡəʊʃɪeɪt］vt.谈判，商议；协商：The purpose of my visit is to negotiate for a relatively perfect win-win result.我此行的目的就是要通过谈判取得一个相对完美的双赢结局。
13.beholder［bɪˈhəʊldə］n.Looker-on；stander-by旁观者；观看者：Good or not，that largely depends on the eyes of the beholder.好与坏，很大程度上取决于看待事物的人。
14.conceptualize［kənˈseptʃuəlaɪz］vt.to form a concept or an idea of sth.使概念化；想像；构思：Language ultimately enables people to conceptualize the idea in their mind.语言使人们大脑中的想法最终概念化。
15.recipient［rɪˈsɪpɪənt］n.a person who receives sth.接受者：It's very necessary for the message recipient to have a critical thinking and attitude.对信息接受者来说，以批判性的思考和态度对待所获信息是很必要的。
16.filter［ˈfɪltə(r)］vt.to remove impurities过滤；渗透；用过滤法除去：Our brain has to work as a filter to remove something useless when receiving messages and information.在接受信息的过程中，我们的大脑必须像过滤器一样，去除无用的信息。
17.nexus［ˈneksəs］n.a connection，link关系；连结，连系：A person's behavior is a nexus of his own mental direction and the influence from his surroundings.一个人的行为是其大脑联系周围环境的影响并做出指令的结果。
18.ethnic［ˈeθnɪk］adj.（of a social group）having a common national or cultural tradition种族的；人种的：Each person is equal and shouldn't be differentiated by his background or ethnic origin.每个人都是平等的，不应该因其不同的背景和种族来源而被区别对待。
19.commonality［ˌkɑməˈnælətɪ］n.the sharing of a feature or an attribute共性，共同特征：Could you summarize the commonalities of the three people in the recordings？你能总结下录音里三个人的共同点吗？
20.bluntly［ˈblʌntlɪ］adv.frankly，honestly坦率地，直率地：“You have broken the bottom line！”he said bluntly.“你已经打破了底线！”他坦率地说。
21.buck［bʌk］n.North American＆Australian slang，a dollar（美）钱，元：This job could give you a fast buck，so follow us.这份工作会让你轻易地赚到钱，快来吧。
22.imperative［ɪmˈperətɪv］n.a thing that is very important and needs immediate action or attention必要的事；需要：It's all species’imperative to take some measures for a balanced development.都有必要采取一些措施以求所有的物种平衡发展。
23.lament［əˈment］vt.to feel or express great sadness or disappointment about sb.／sth.哀悼；痛惜；对……感到遗憾：We lamented over the death of Yan Su—one of the greatest Chinese artists.对于中国伟大艺术家严肃先生的过世，我们深感痛惜。
24.tabloidism［ˈteiblo'idiəm］n.（disapproving）the style of work of a newspaper with small pages，usually short stories，and a lot of pictures about famous people and is usually thought of less important than other newspapers小报风格；耸人听闻的作风：You needn't totally believe what's reported in these tabloids，that is their trick of attracting more readers，i.e.the typical tabloidism.你没必要完全相信这些小报的报道，那就是它们吸引更多读者的花招，典型的小报作风。
25.infotainment［ˌɪnfəʊˈtenmənt］n.TV programs especially for entertainment and education sometimes娱乐信息节目（兼具教育及娱乐功能的电视节目，电影或书籍）：Sometimes，the audience can still learn something from the exploding various infotainment.有时，观众仍可以从日益增长的五花八门的娱乐节目中学到点东西。
26.dynamics［daɪˈnæmɪks］n.the way in which people or things behave and react to each other in a particular situation人或物相互作用的方式，动态：Today，the dynamics of political change largely influence every aspect of our work and life.如今，政治领域的动态变化很大程度上影响着我们工作和生活的方方面面。
27.materialism［məˈtɪəriəlɪzəm］n.（usually disapproving） the belief that money and physical comforts are more important than spiritual values实利主义；物质主义：The greed and materialism of modern society is a big roadblock to the future of each nation.现代社会的贪婪和物质主义是每个民族未来道路上的一大绊脚石。
28.undermine［ˌʌndəˈmaɪn］vt.to make sth.esp.one's confidence or authority，gradually weaker or less effective逐渐削弱；破坏，渐渐破坏：Spreading rumors tend to be the way to undermine one's fame more quickly and easily.流言的蔓延往往会更快、也更容易破坏一个人的名声。
29.contradict［ˌkɒntrəˈdɪkt］vt.to be so different from each other that one of them must be wrong与……矛盾；与……抵触：We must hold on to our own view even though it may be contradicted by some other wrong ideas.即使是与某些错误的观点相矛盾，我们都必须坚持自己的观点。
30.gratification［ˌɡrætɪfɪˈkeɪʃn］n.a delight满意；喜悦；使人满意之事：When we feel closer to materialistic success，we are keeping farther from the real gratification we actually have been pursuing.当我们感觉接近物质成功时，实际上我们离一直所追求的真正的幸福越来越远
31.backlash［ˈbæklæʃ］n.an excessive or strong contrary reaction or disagreement强烈反对：An unexpected backlash arose soon after the new leader announced that he would do everything to give people a strong economy regardless of anything.当新任领导宣布他会不顾一切带给人们一个强大的经济时，很快就引发了意想不到的强烈反对。
32.affirmative［əˈfɜːmətɪv］adj.being sure that sth.is so positive肯定的；积极的：After a short hesitation，he gave an affirmative answer.短暂的犹豫后，他给了一个肯定的回答。
33.stereotype［ˈsteriətaip］n.a person or thing that confirms to a fixed，usually，standardized mental picture陈腔滥调，老套：Traditional gender stereotypes may be the reason why most of us hardly accept gays or lesbians.传统的刻板性别印象也许是我们中的许多人难以接受男女同性恋者的原因。
34.welfare mother：the mother of dependent children who receives government welfare benefits［美国英语］福利母亲（有孩子但无丈夫供养而接受社会福利救济的妇女）：Welfare mothers are both unlucky and great.福利妈妈们既是不幸的，也是伟大的。
35.reinforce［ˌriːinˈfɔːs］vt.strengthen or support，esp.with additional persons and material or by an increasing numbers or size（尤指在人，物力，数量或大小等方面）加强，加固；强化：Mutual understanding and consideration may largely help to reinforce weak marriage.对彼此的考虑与理解有很大可能帮助稳固脆弱的婚姻。
36.portray［pɔːˈtreɪ］vt.describe graphically or depict in words描绘；扮演；描述：Children in the orphanage are asked to portray the teacher in their eyes.孤儿院的孩子们被要求描述出他们眼中的老师。
Answer the questions based upon text comprehension.
（1）What is the intention of the author when he mentions these film like“Crocodile Dundee”，“The Thornbirds”and so on？
（2）What is the implication of“Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder”？
（3）Which class do you belong to，a passive recipient or an active one of media message？
（4）By this text，how do you think the principle of“Constructions Have Commercial Purposes”is applied in the entertainment media？
（5）What other principles do you think the media should obey in order to improve its literacy？
Fill in the gaps with words and phrases given in the table.
（1）Nowadays，with the fast development of computer skills，most young people's _________seems to be weakened.
（2）The rats_________ ring a bell when they wanted food.
（3）What is_________ in his speech was his criticism for me.（4）They finally_________ a settlement after a two-day negotiation.
（5）Stephen Hawking_________ something wrong was happening to his body，because he just poured most of the wine on the tablecloth when drinking it.
（6）These people do not_________ hunting wild animals as a violent act or something illegal.
（7）The silver jewelry fully expresses the typical feature of_________minority.
（8）The experience_________ his sense of responsibility for and attitude to others’lives.
Translate the sentences into Chinese.
（1）The old adage，“The Camera Never Lies，”is indicative of the way we have been conditioned to accept the relationship between reality and the representations of reality that the media construct.
（2）Crime is 10 times greater on television than in real life，but many Americans perceive their world to be as violent and threatening as the media constructions.
（3）Put simply，“Beauty Is in the Eye of the Beholder.”While we may often argue about the“beauty”of the media，the old adage helps us conceptualize the audiences are not passive recipients of media messages.
（4）Put bluntly，the bottom line is the buck.Any real understanding of media content cannot be divorced from the economic context and financial imperative that drives the media industry.
（5）The principle involves exploring the way the media show and shape，reflect and reinforce reality.