Digit-al age?
Shooting the breeze with some computer types over a pint the other day, we
went round the pub table saying which bits of kit we currently value most in
our digitally-based work. When it came to me, having heard about various
lovely pieces of software and hardware and so forth, I said, “My fingers and
my ears.”
Sure, I make a living from transcribing audio. So no wonder I value the ability
to hear and type! But it got me thinking about how, despite all the wonders
of new technology, to translate the spoken word into text, without a person
– and their fingers and ears – in the middle of the process, it is all a bit
unsatisfactory.
People want things transcribed for a zillion different reasons. Having a bit
of digital kit to do that for them may entirely fulfil their requirements. I’ve no
argument with that.
Much of what we ‘say’ however is not contained in our words and for a
transcript to show real meaning this fact needs to be engaged with. Pitch,
intonation, pause, stutter, laughter, applause – it all adds to meaning. And
it adds hugely to the sense of the communication going on in any verbal
discourse. We say so much more than we ‘say’.
And in the process of saying stuff, syntax, grammar and vocabulary itself is
turned over, twisted around, is brutally wounded and sometimes left lying
half alive! But this is all part of the fun if you love words since it shows us the
process of reaching for verbal communication and shared meaning between
each other. It’s what makes us human.
A good transcriptionist can deliver in text that sense of discovery of ideas,
representation of thoughts and shared understanding shown through
those half-starts and never-finished utterances. With judicious use of
punctuation, set in place by a breathing, living person, speech can be faithfully
represented. And with thoughtful text breaks, meaning is made clear, even
in the most random of conversations or discussions. A transcriptionist’s skill
in doing this – as much as the ability to put the right digit on the right key – is
central to the ‘art’ of making a transcription.
Also there are all the accents out there. It’s a cliché to talk about English
being central to communication around the world and this becomes really
clear when working for UK Transcription. It would not be unusual to find
yourself transcribing a recording of a Dutch guy and his American PA talking
to their Nigerian client while a Norwegian consultant chips in comments from
down a phone line! Could a piece of software get to grips with all this? English
is global and it absorbs different grammar and vowel sounds as different
nationalities use it.
Then there are all the styles of talking which show so much meaning – fast,
excited; slow and thoughtful; engaged, bored; clear or muffled. Only a living,
breathing, good old human being can truly interpret this. Along with all the
interruptions and cross-talking which can show sometimes more clearly
than anything else the nature of the debate or discussion going on. Is this
a confrontation? A friendly chat? An informative presentation? A broadcast
interview? Style is everything.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m no Luddite. I’m quite happy to talk to my phone,
for instance, and tell it who to dial (despite the beauty and wonder of its
little touch screen) when I can’t be bothered to lift a finger after a long day
transcribing other people’s thoughts and ideas. It’s like Star Trek! Who would
have thought this possible even a few years back? Futurology and having the
imagination to conjure up new ways of using technology to make life simpler,
more interesting, and entertaining, is key in making such sci-fi-esque things
possible in our daily life. And long may it continue!
But I’ll make my own prediction about the future when it comes to audio-to-
text here though: my opposable thumbs, primitive though they are, will be
hitting that space bar, and my trusty fingers will be wearing the lettering off
the keys of my faithful, old, and very basic, qwerty keyboard, for some time to
come!
