Communicative Risks Related to Unjustified Use of Borrowings in Modern Media

The article deals with the problem of native speakers understanding of the latest borrowings actively introduced into speech practice by mass media. The authors describe the reasons for the spread of borrowings, and pay special attention to the pragmatic, as well as social-and-psychological factors that affect this process. Based on the results of the pilot experiment conducted by the authors, it was found out that the majority of respondents, who are native speakers of the Russian language, either do not understand the meaning of anglicisms that are frequent in the modern media or only approximately interpret it, which allows the authors to speak about the agnonymy of this vocabulary. The analysis of modern media texts was aimed at selecting borrowed vocabulary for its further inclusion in the questionnaire, followed by a pilot experiment, which focused on interpretation of the meanings of the latest anglicisms used in the media. The accuracy of recipients comprehension of foreign words meaning used in the media varies depending on their age, occupation, and interests. Thus, news addressed to mass audience should not contain anglicisms so as to prevent communicative failures. The authors describe the communicative risks associated with misinterpretation of information presented in the media, and outline ways to overcome the negative impact of borrowings associated with it.