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03.07.2020 05:08 •  Английский язык

William Randolph Hearst George Hearst, an American businessman and politician, had become a multi-
millionaire after finding gold in California. He invested in a lot of different companies
and projects which further increased his wealth. But not all of his projects were
successful. He acquired a newspaper called the San Francisco Examiner, which, at
the time, was unsuccessful and losing money, as payment for a gambling debt. In
1887, his only son, William, begged his father to allow him to take control of the
newspaper. George wasn’t keen on this idea at first, but William was delighted to
have the opportunity to run a newspaper. He had first become interested in
journalism when he was a student at Harvard University. Now his dream had come
true.
Forty years later, William Randolph Hearst was the richest and most famous
newspaper man in the United States. In fact, it is said that by the mid-1920s one in
every four Americans read one of his newspapers every day. He had made a success
of the San Francisco Examiner, and now he owned twenty daily newspapers and
eleven Sunday newspapers as well as well-known magazines such as Cosmopolitan
and Harper’s Bazaar. He even had his own Hollywood film company and produced
his own films. William Randolph Hearst’s newspapers had become popular because
he had introduced a new style of sensational news reporting which was called
‘yellow’ journalism. All his newspapers published exciting stories about crime with
lots of pictures and large headlines, and many of the stories weren’t actually true.
He also cut the prices of his newspapers to get more and more people to buy them,
and employed some of the best writers in America to write newspaper columns and
stories. It was the beginning of tabloid journalism, and it made William an extremely
important and powerful man in the world of politics and the media.
From the 1920s, William spent more and more time away from the public at his
home in California. He became famous in the United States for being a rich man who
wanted to be alone and who never left his house. He lived in a huge house which
looked like a castle, and he spent millions of dollars building more and more rooms,
and filling the house with European paintings, and surrounding it with animals and
plants from all over the world. It was his way of escaping from the public world, a
world that had never really loved him and had rejected him when he tried to
become a politician. In the early 1900s, William Randolph Hearst had told the world
that he was going to run for President of the United States. He had spent millions of
dollars on political campaigns, had failed to win an election to become mayor of
New York, and had never become President. The man who was once more powerful
than anyone else in America spent the last few years of his life in his mansion with
few friends.

Read the text. Circle the correct answers (a–d).

1 Which of the following events happened last?
a George gave his son a job at a newspaper.
b George started investing in lots of companies.
c George Hearst acquired the San Francisco Examiner.
d George discovered gold in California.

2 When did William first think about having a career in newspapers?
a During the time that he spent at Harvard University.
b While he was studying journalism.
c As soon as his father offered him the job at the San Francisco Examiner.
d While he was working in an office job.

3 What do we find out about the popularity of William Randolph Hearst’s
newspapers in the 1920s?
a About a quarter of the American population read one of his daily newspapers.
b None of his newspapers were as successful as the San Francisco Examiner.
c He owned all the most well-known newspapers in the country.
d Worldwide, one in four people read one of his newspapers or magazines.

4 What was typical of the ‘yellow’ journalism in Hearst’s newspapers?
a The articles were long and detailed.
b They didn’t use many pictures.
c All of the stories were false.
d Many stories were about crime.

5 What does the text say about Hearst’s last home?
a It was an old castle.
b It was too big to live in.
c It was expensive to buy.
d It was full of art.

6 Which of the following events happened first?
a George Hearst acquired the San Francisco Examiner.
b George discovered gold in California.
c George gave his son a job at a newspaper.
d George started investing in lots of companies.

7 How did William feel about starting work at the San Francisco Examiner?
a He was worried about making a success of the newspaper.
b He was very pleased about getting the job.
c He hadn’t really thought about being a journalist before.
d He wanted to start as soon as he had started at university.

8 Which of the following did William Randolph Hearst own in the 1920s?
a the most successful newspaper in San Francisco
b over forty different newspaper titles
c a number of Hollywood magazines
d more daily newspapers than Sunday newspapers