Recent appraisals of developing media technologies, such as the Internet, have emphasized their potential to fragment audiences. This fragmentation is presumed to result because the technologies allow and even encourage people to narrow the focus of their media consumption to pursue their individualized news interests and needs. As Katz has argued, such a narrowed focus is problematic for the functioning of modern democracies. Fragmented audiences are unlikely to consume a common diet of news, potentially leaving them underinformed about central issues facing a nation. Individually tailored media use, Katz writes, "seems to be fast displacing national comings-together, and pleasure seems to be pushing public affairs ever more out of sight." Such an environment threatens the very foundation of political systems based on assumptions of citizen awareness and involvement.

It can be inferred from the passage that Katz would be LEAST likely to agree with which of the following statements?

A) When audience fragmentation occurs, individuals' news interests will still tend to include the most important issues facing the nation.
B) The process leading to media audience fragmentation has unhealthy implications for the functioning of a democracy.
C) The ability of people to select sources of news that more closely suit their own interests is facilitating audience fragmentation.
D) There are features of new and emerging media technologies that encourage audience fragmentation.
E) There will probably be news of major importance about which some media users will remain inadequately informed under conditions of audience fragmentation.



Which of the following most accurately presents the passage's treatment of Katz's position?

A) The position is rejected as relying too heavily on unsubstantiated assumptions.
B) The position is considered sympathetically but ultimately rejected as too sweeping.
C) The position is put forward as a compelling hypothesis that stands in need of testing.
D) The position is adopted in modified form after being adjusted to meet objections.
E) The position is accepted without reservation and cited as authoritative support.