Diploma in Journalism Pre-entry Test 2010-2011

Candidates name: .. Date:... College/centre where test is held:.. This is a two-hour test. It is recommended that you divide your time as follows: 1. 2. 3. English News Writing Current Affairs 55 minutes 40 minutes 25 minutes

To be completed by examiners: ENGLISH QUESTION 1 ENGLISH QUESTION 2 ENGLISH QUESTION 3 ............................ ............................ ............................

ENGLISH TOTAL NEWS WRITING TOTAL CURRENT AFFAIRS/ GENERAL KNOWLEDGE TOTAL TOTAL MARKS

............................ ............................ ............................ ............................

1. ENGLISH (55 marks)

Time recommended: 55 minutes

Please answer all three questions, using the information given in the following report on pages 3 and 4. QUESTION A (30 marks) This report for a local newspaper, the Oveston Guardian, contains a number of errors in use of English (for example, in spelling, punctuation, grammar, use of words, etc). Please make any corrections to the copy you think are necessary, writing clearly in pen on these pages. Note: At this stage, do not attempt to rewrite or reduce the passage. (If you disregard this advice, the paper will probably be impossible to mark and you will fail.) QUESTION B (15 marks) Using the paper provided, summarise the report in a maximum of 70 words, in a style suitable for a newspaper. (Using more than 70 words will be penalised severely.) QUESTION C (10 marks) The report omits some areas of information which a reporter might wish to follow up. For example: Community groups: Do they think the campaign has been effective? How did they help? Were they influenced by the newspapers support? Suggest five other points worth following up and, in each case, outline them briefly. Question A (30 marks) THOUSANDS of pounds siezed from drug dealers during a massive police operation will be ploughed back into communities across Oveston. Police promised to reclaim the city form the grip of low-level dealers and the untouchible drug lords living of the profits of crime in our communities when they launched the Dealer a Day campaign During the campaign, backed by the Guardian, police raided hundreds of home shut down drugs factorys, made almost 100 arrests and seized drugs across the city.

Chief Superintendant Peter Clare (NAME CORRECT) today thanked the people of Oveston for their vitall roll during the campaign. He said The people who pedals drugs pedal harm to families. Nobody should have tolerate that. My promises is that if people tell us about drug dealing I will use all our powers to deal with these individuals who bring misary to familys across the district. He added: This campaign have come from the community standing up top criminal behaviour on their doorsteps. They wanted us to take some form action against the drugs menace in thier neighborhood. With the partnarship and support of the Guardian it gave people the confidance to get involved. Now tens of thousands pounds taken from dealers will be used to stop futur criminals from peddling further misary on the street of Oveston. Cars cash and property have been siezed under the Proceeds of Crime Act and already almost 50000 has been recovered that will be used to pay for more policing in communitys. Chief Superintendent Clarke said People are fed up with seeing individual who are not working but living lifestyles clearly funded by crime. The campagn showed we listenned to people and that my officers will do everything to make sure the lives of honist citizens in our communities are made better. Police acted on intellegence and took more than 500 peaces of information given to them by Guardian readers. Each week one of the seven neighborhood police teems carried out one bust a week totting up to a Dealer a Day

Chief Superintendant Clarke said police had to make sure that when they struck, they stuck hard It can take a bit of time and sometimes it takes patience he said. The Dealer Day campaign followed on from the Grasslands operation the biggest of it kind, which resulted in sentences of more 100 years being handed out to drug dealers across the district.. This week the second phase of Grasslands kicked into action as officers raided homes in the north west of the city. Chief Superintendent Clare said this was not the end of the on-going fight to clear Ovestons streets of drugs. New ways of targeting the drug lords and dealers was already being planned. Anyone with any information about drug dealing should call the special police drugs hotline on 02924 333444 or Crimestoppers anonymusly on 0800 555111.

2 NEWS WRITING TEST (25 marks)

Time recommended: 40 minutes

Assume that you are a reporter on a local newspaper. On the following page are some details about opposition to a night clubs plans to introduce lap dancing. The facts are assembled in a disjointed way just as they might be if you had obtained them by interviewing several people at different times. Using the paper provided, write a story of ABOUT 200 WORDS for publication today, either in your newspaper or on its website. You should include at least one quote. The time recommended is 40 minutes.

Please turn over

The Reverend Roger Cressey, vicar of St Marys, Oveston, said today: Our church is united with other religious establishments in opposing plans by The Green Light, an established night club in Lawrence Street, to begin the first lap dancing performances in Oveston. Such displays degrade women. We must strive to preserve the Christian ethos of the town. There are enough people already coming into Oveston for its night clubs, most of which are run in a responsible fashion. People who see the need for lap dancing are not the sort of people we want to see coming into the town centre. Our views will be put before the councils licensing and registration committee at their meeting next week when they will be considering the application from the club. Father Malcolm OLeary, priest at St Austins Roman Catholic Church, Oveston, said: Sleazy is the only word to describe this. There are massive moral objections to women abusing their bodies in this way. Its just a step away from legalised prostitution. Councillor William Reynolds, also a Methodist lay preacher, said: Im not a member of the licensing committee but I have already made my views known in no uncertain terms to its chairman. It is an absolute disgrace. Im aware that other clubs in Oveston are awaiting the outcome before deciding to introduce erotic dancing themselves. To grant permission to The Green Light would be the thin end of the wedge. Its not difficult to see there might be additional law and order problems in the town centre although I dont yet know what the police view is on this. Mr Darren Longfellow, proprietor of The Green Light, said: Were prepared to spend a small fortune refurbishing the 12,500 sq ft club to include stages, poles, booths for private dance shows and a number of bar areas. We target a very upmarket clientele and we already have a reputation as one of the best run clubs in the area. The plans for lap dancing will be subject to the approval of the licensing and registration committee but many of your readers will already know that there are similar clubs in nearby towns. While we understand the response that has come from religious organisations in the town, our shows will be high quality, not tacky rubbish. We know that such displays have a great appeal to customers. Weve taken legal advice and can see no justification for a ban.

A 22-year-old lap dancer, who wished to remain anonymous, said: Ive been promised regular work at The Green Light if they get the go-ahead. Our performances may be erotic, but theyre certainly not vulgar. Its a great shame that a lot of stuffed shirts and Holy Joes should try to spoil other peoples fun.

3. CURRENT AFFAIRS AND GENERAL KNOWLEDGE (20 marks) Time recommended: 25 minutes Attempt all the questions. Write your answer on the paper. Do not use a red pen or calculator. You may use the lined paper for making rough notes and calculations. 1. Who is the current Foreign Secretary?

2.

In January 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake caused the confirmed deaths of 230,000 people in which Caribbean country?

3.

Jeff Bridges won it in 2010; Daniel Day Lewis in 2007; Jamie Foxx in 2004; and Jack Nicholson in 1975. What do these four people have in common?

4.

Who is the co-founder and chief executive of Apple, makers of the iPod, iPhone and iPad?

5.

The 2010 Winter Olympics were held in the Canadian ski resort of Whistler and which other Canadian city?

6.

What important economic function does the Bank of Englands Monetary Policy Committee perform each month?

7.

Who is Nicolas Sarkozy?

8.

In April 2010, the President of which European country was killed when the aircraft he was travelling on crashed in Russia?

9.

Which film, released in the UK in December 2009, became the highest grossing film ever?

10.

If a politician has the initials MSP after their name, in which UK political institution do they hold a seat?

11.

What is the name of the BBC business editor who writes a blog which has become a key source of analysis on the credit crunch?

12.

Tesco, Sainsburys and Morrisons. Who completes the big four supermarket companies?

13.

In which province of Afghanistan is combat between British soldiers and Taliban forces concentrated?

14.

Which journalist is the main presenter of Channel Four News?

15.

Who is the manager of Arsenal Football Club?

16.

RoSPA is a leading UK charity. What do the initials stand for?

17.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is based in which city?

(Questions 18, 19 and 20 continue on the next sheet)

For the following questions please refer to the table below on Building Society ISAs opened 1999/00 2008/9. 18. What is the increase in the number of cash ISAs opened in 2008/09 compared to those opened in 2005/06?

19. Compared with those opened in 1999/00, the number of Stocks and Shares ISAs opened in 2008/09 fell by more than 30%. Is this true or false?

20. Which year showed the highest amount of all ISAs opened?

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Building Society ISAs opened from 1999/00 to 2008/09

Cash ISAs Tax year Number opened 4,591 6,018 7,594 8,556 8,789 9,242 9,939 10,387 11,468 11,299 m subscribed 11,575 13,871 16,831 18,391 19,228 20,475 21,823 22,611 25,204 28,049 Avg sub 2,520 2,300 2,220 2,150 2,190 2,220 2,200 2,180 2,200 2,480

Stocks & Shares ISAs Number opened 4,571 5,027 4,054 3,575 2,926 2,673 3,066 3,181 3,246 2,922 m subscribed 16,800 15,808 11,566 9,381 8,266 7,602 9,282 10,430 10,496 9,431 Avg sub 3,680 3,140 2,850 2,620 2,830 2,840 3,030 3,280 3,230 3,230 Number opened 9,278 11,259 11,964 12,487 12,054 12,207 13,005 13,568 14,714 14,221

All ISAs m subscribed 28,431 29,778 28,550 27,962 27,668 28,238 31,105 33,041 35,700 37,480 Avg sub 3,060 2,640 2,390 2,240 2,300 2,310 2,390 2,440 2,430 2,640

1999/00 2000/01 2001/02 2002/03 2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09

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