Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.

The Imperial Citadel of Thang Long was first built during the Ly Dynasty and then expanded by subsequent dynasties.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word (5) in each of the following questions.

Young college and university students participate in helping the poor who have suffered badly in wars or natural disasters.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word (5) in each of the following questions.

Life expectancy for both men and women has improved greatly in the past twenty years.

New York is not the capital of the USA, _____ is the home of the United Nations.

He forgot ______ promised to cut down on the carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

Dave apologized _____ for forgetting about our appointment.

Can I _____ you a favor? I need a ride to the doctor's office tomorrow morning.

It is said the Robinhood robbed _____ rich and gave the money to _____ poop.

It seems that the thief took _____ of the open window and got inside that way

When I got to 16, some of my friends left school to get a job, but most _____.

Yesterday, we had a discussion _____ different cultures.

_____ the email - supposedly from Boyd's Bank - to be genuine, she was tricked into disclosing her credit card details.

With its thousands of rocks and caves _____ out of the water, Ha Long Bay has won international recognition.

Sarah will be very annoyed if Dave _____ her this evening.

This safe, _____ friendly city is like a paradise for its inhabitants who can enjoy the highest quality of life.

Local authorities should find ways to limit the use of private cars and encourage city _____ to use public transport.

The doctor said to Mr. Black that if he ate lots of fatty food, he _____ increase his chance of developing heart disease.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of primary stress in each of the following questions.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of primary stress in each of the following questions.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation in each of the following questions.

Mark the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation in each of the following questions.

No sooner had I turned on my new PC than there was a strange noise.

If I had known about their wedding plan earlier, I would have been able to make time to attend the reception party.

It was not until after I got home that I realized I had not set the burglar alarm in the office.

The little girl said "Will you help me open the parcel? I can't do it alone".

Due to unforeseen circumstances, our group's scheduled visit to the museum has been called off

A temporary lift has been installing to enable wheelchair access to one of the wonders of the world.

Excavations in some villages on the east bank of the Euphrates River revealed an ancient community that had been laying under later reconstructions of the city of Babylon.

The theory isn't sounding persuasive anymore because it has been opposed  by many scholars.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 What of the following most accurately reflects the author's imply in the last paragraph?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 Which of the following is NOT TRUE about Wise's statements?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 The word scrutinise is closest in meaning to?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 What does the phrase “the latter example" in the fourth paragraph refer to?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 The word "rectified" in the third paragraph is closest in meaning to______.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 After comparing the prices of 800 products with male and female versions, the New York Department of Consumer Affairs __________.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 What does pink-tax exactly mention in the passage?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

Boots has reduced the price of "feminine" razors to bring them in line with men's. The chemist chain says it is just an isolated incident, but campaigners say it is part of a "pink tax" that discriminates against women. Who's right and what's the bigger story, ask Jessica McCallin and Claire Bates. Campaigners against what's been dubbed the "pink tax" - where retailers charge women more than men for similar products - are celebrating after Boots said it would change the price of some of its goods.

Stevie Wise, who launched the petition, was driven by a Times investigation which claimed that women and girls are charged, on average, 37% more for clothes, beauty products and toys. The New York Department of Consumer Affairs had compared the prices of 800 products with male and female versions and concluded that, after controlling for quality, women's versions were, on average, 7% more expensive than men's.

“This is a very exciting response,” says Wise. We are delighted with Boots' decision, but we now need to get them to look at all of their products, not just the ones highlighted in the petition. We hope this decision is just the first of many and we may broaden our campaign to focus on other retailers as well." Wise says that women have been getting in touch with examples of other price discrepancies from lots of companies and says there seems to be a particular problem with toys and clothes. Argos has been criticized for identical scooters that cost £5 more if they were pink rather than blue. Argos said it was an error that had already been rectified and that it would never indulge in differential pricing.

Among the examples sent to Wise was Boots selling identical child car seats that cost more in pink. Another retailer was selling children's balance bikes which cost more for a flowery print aimed at girls than a pirate print aimed at boys. But the latter example  already appears to have been tweaked on the retailer's website, albeit by applying a £10 discount to the flowery version.

When challenged over sexist pricing, both Levi's and Tesco argued that different versions of things could have different production costs even if appearing fairly similar. Prof Nancy Puccinelli says her research suggests that women are much more careful shoppers than men, better able to scrutinise adverts and pricing gimmicks. She wonders if women are perceiving more value in the more expensive products. “If products are separated into male and female sections far away from each other it's harder to scrutinise prices.” Such a situation could either be deliberate or accidental but the campaigners are not convinced.

There is an opportunity for some companies, argues Olchawski. “The finding shows the power of marketing in our lives, how it shapes our perception of what it means to be a man or a woman. Some companies could choose not to play into this, not to play into the stereotypes and rip women off, but launch products more in tune with moves toward gender equality.”

(Adapted from FELTS Academic Reading Test 6. Section 3)

 Which of the following could be the best title of the passage?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, 13, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

The history of American newspapers begins in the early 18th century with the publication of the first colonial newspapers. American newspapers began as modest affairs - a sideline for printers. They became a political force in the campaign for American independence. After independence, the first article of U.S. Constitution guaranteed freedom of the press. The U.S. Postal Service Act of 1792 provided substantial subsidies: Newspapers were delivered up to 100 miles for a penny and beyond for 1.5 cents, when first class postage ranged from six cents to a quarter.

The American press grew rapidly during the First Party System (1790s-1810s) when both parties sponsored papers to reach their loyal partisans. From the 1830s onward, the Penny press began to play a major role in American journalism and its interests seemed to remarkably surprised the management board in the journal industry. Technological advancements such as the telegraph and faster printing presses in the 1840s also helped to expand the press of the nation as it experienced rapid economic and demographic growth. Editors typically became the local party spokesman, and hard-hitting editorials were widely reprinted.

By 1900 major newspapers had become profitable powerhouses of advocacy, muckraking and sensationalism, along with serious, and objective news-gathering. During the early 20th century, prior to rise of television, the average American read several newspapers per-day. Starting in the 1920s, changes in technology again

morphed the nature of American journalism as radio and later, television, began to play increasingly important competitive roles.

In the late 20th centuiy, much of American journalism became housed in big media chains. With the coming of digital journalism in the 21st century, all newspapers faced a business crisis as readers turned to the Internet for sources and advertisers followed them.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, 13, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

The history of American newspapers begins in the early 18th century with the publication of the first colonial newspapers. American newspapers began as modest affairs - a sideline for printers. They became a political force in the campaign for American independence. After independence, the first article of U.S. Constitution guaranteed freedom of the press. The U.S. Postal Service Act of 1792 provided substantial subsidies: Newspapers were delivered up to 100 miles for a penny and beyond for 1.5 cents, when first class postage ranged from six cents to a quarter.

The American press grew rapidly during the First Party System (1790s-1810s) when both parties sponsored papers to reach their loyal partisans. From the 1830s onward, the Penny press began to play a major role in American journalism and its interests seemed to remarkably surprised the management board in the journal industry. Technological advancements such as the telegraph and faster printing presses in the 1840s also helped to expand the press of the nation as it experienced rapid economic and demographic growth. Editors typically became the local party spokesman, and hard-hitting editorials were widely reprinted.

By 1900 major newspapers had become profitable powerhouses of advocacy, muckraking and sensationalism, along with serious, and objective news-gathering. During the early 20th century, prior to rise of television, the average American read several newspapers per-day. Starting in the 1920s, changes in technology again

morphed the nature of American journalism as radio and later, television, began to play increasingly important competitive roles.

In the late 20th centuiy, much of American journalism became housed in big media chains. With the coming of digital journalism in the 21st century, all newspapers faced a business crisis as readers turned to the Internet for sources and advertisers followed them.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, 13, C, or D to indicate the correct answer of each question.

The history of American newspapers begins in the early 18th century with the publication of the first colonial newspapers. American newspapers began as modest affairs - a sideline for printers. They became a political force in the campaign for American independence. After independence, the first article of U.S. Constitution guaranteed freedom of the press. The U.S. Postal Service Act of 1792 provided substantial subsidies: Newspapers were delivered up to 100 miles for a penny and beyond for 1.5 cents, when first class postage ranged from six cents to a quarter.

The American press grew rapidly during the First Party System (1790s-1810s) when both parties sponsored papers to reach their loyal partisans. From the 1830s onward, the Penny press began to play a major role in American journalism and its interests seemed to remarkably surprised the management board in the journal industry. Technological advancements such as the telegraph and faster printing presses in the 1840s also helped to expand the press of the nation as it experienced rapid economic and demographic growth. Editors typically became the local party spokesman, and hard-hitting editorials were widely reprinted.

By 1900 major newspapers had become profitable powerhouses of advocacy, muckraking and sensationalism, along with serious, and objective news-gathering. During the early 20th century, prior to rise of television, the average American read several newspapers per-day. Starting in the 1920s, changes in technology again

morphed the nature of American journalism as radio and later, television, began to play increasingly important competitive roles.

In the late 20th centuiy, much of American journalism became housed in big media chains. With the coming of digital journalism in the 21st century, all newspapers faced a business crisis as readers turned to the Internet for sources and advertisers followed them.