Broadcasting, perhaps the greatest invention of the last century, has come a long way; and the BBC is one of the most important and trusted broadcasters in the world today.
The British Broadcasting Company was established in 1922. Four years later, it changed its name to the British Broadcasting Corporation, better known as the BBC. It was not the world's first radio station. There had already been public radio broadcasts in Britain before 1920.
From the beginning the BBC was a public service radio, but also an independent operator. In the early days of BBC radio, there was not a lot of news on the radio. There were music, drama, discussions and children's programs; but news was not broadcast until after 7 p.m., to avoid competition with the newspapers!
In 1936 the BBC began the world's first television service. Only a few thousand people in London could receive those first flickering images. Nevertheless, people liked what they saw, and as the number of transmitters increased, more and more people went out to buy new television sets. In 1937, tennis was broadcast from Wimbledon for the first time. Then in 1938, football's Cup Final could be seen, live, by hundreds of thousands of people for the first time ever. Since 1946, the BBC has become one of Britain's most famous institutions. Today it has several national television channels, lots of radio channels and a growing number of international services.
(Adapted from https://linguapress.com)
Question 39: What is the passage mainly about?
A. The development of the BBC B. The limitations of the BBC
C. The founder of the BBC D. The aims of the BBC
Question 40: The word "established" in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to ________ .
A. shared B. heard C. formed D. moved
Question 41: According to paragraph 3, all of the following programs were broadcast on BBC radio EXCEPT ________
A. music B. tennis C. discussions D. drama
Question 42: According to paragraph 4, which of the following was the reason why more people bought new TV sets?
A. Tennis was broadcast for the first time.
B. There was an increase in the number of transmitters.
C. They could receive the first flickering images.
D. They could see football's Cup Final.
Question 43: The word "it" in paragraph 4 refers to ________ .
A. Britain B. channel C. the BBC D. service
