Passage 3

Almost every family buys as least one copy of a newspaper every day.Some people subscribe to as many as two or three different newspapers.But why do people read newspapers?

Five hundred years ago,news of important happenings–battles lost and won,kings or rulers overthrown(推翻)or killed–took months and even years to travel from one country to another.The news passed by word of mouth and was never accurate.Today we can read in our newspapers of important events that occur in far away countries on the same day they happen.

Apart from supplying news from all over the world,newspapers give us a lot of other useful information.There are weather reports,radio,television and film guides,book reviews,stories,and of course,advertisements.The bigger ones are put in by large companies to bring attention to their products.They pay the newspapers thousands of dollars for the advertising space,but it is worth the money for news of their products goes into almost every home in country.For those who produce newspapers,advertisements are also very important.Money earned from advertisements makes it possible for them to sell their newspapers at a low price and still make a profit.

21.The phrase“subscribe to”in the first paragraph means“__________”.

A.go to the newspaper stand and buy

B.send their own news stories to

C.agree to buy for a specific period of time

D.become faithful readers of

22.The habit of reading newspapers is __________.

A.widespread B.found among a few families

C.not popular D.uncommon

23.Before the time of the newspaper,__________.

A.bad news traveled quickly and good news slowly

B.few people cared about events that took place in far away countries

C.kings and rulers were often overthrown or killed

D.news was passed from one person to another

24.The author seems to agree that money spent on advertisements is __________.

A.wasted B.not much

C.well spent D.of no use to anyone

25.Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A.Five hundred years ago it took a long time for news to reach other countries.

B.Newspaper advertisements turn people’s attention away from their products.

C.The news that we read in newspapers is mainly about new products.

E.When newspapers are sold at a low price,the newspaper producers will lose money.