broadcasters

Bob Haas highbob at MINDSPRING.COM
Wed Aug 9 19:00:32 UTC 2000


You know, I find Brokaw damned entertaining, and that's because of his
eccentric speech.  (Since I enjoy it, I won't call it a speech impediment.)
He's a fair journalist, and a good bit easier to take than Baba Wawa.  But
in defense of even that over-inflated idiot, I still enjoy hearing diversity
on the radio or television.  Just because they're network anchors doesn't
mean that they should speak some flawless "standard" English.  And how's
about Rather?  His speech may be fairly "correct" (oh my god, look at all
the scare quotes), but his delivery is more wooden than the collected
members of the Sequoia National Forest.  The best American English you'll
hear on a network newscast is from Peter Jennings, a Canadian.  I think it's
all part of some kinda plot.

> From: Beverly Flanigan <flanigan at OAK.CATS.OHIOU.EDU>
> Reply-To: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Date: Wed, 9 Aug 2000 13:40:58 -0400
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: Re: broadcasters
>
> Yes, I'm sure this is what Frank Abate was referring to (and Imus was
> mocking).  In fact, maybe that's what I was interpreting as glottal
> stops.  But of the 45 or so sounds in English (not 26), that's
> minor--annoying maybe (I admit it), but no more "illegitimate" than a
> Boston broadcaster's r-dropping.
>
> At 10:12 PM 8/8/00 -0500, you wrote:
>> He also has strongly velarized l's, with little if any alveolar
>> closure.  Maybe this is
>> what some perceive as a speech impediment.
>> DMLance
>>
>> Beverly Flanigan wrote:
>>
>>> What do you mean by speech impediment?  Brokaw (from South Dakota, not far
>>> from my Minnesota roots) has a most annoying habit of inserting glottal
>>> stops everywhere, but so does one of our secretaries, from southern Ohio.
>>>
>>> At 01:55 AM 8/6/00 -0700, you wrote:
>>>>> ...In
>>>>> the U.S. national news, I know Brokaw is Canadian.
>>>>
>>>> Peter Jennings is Canadian.  Brokaw is American and has the speech
>> impediment.
>>>>
>>>> Rima
>>>
>>> _____________________________________________
>>> Beverly Olson Flanigan         Department of Linguistics
>>> Ohio University                     Athens, OH  45701
>>> Ph.: (740) 593-4568              Fax: (740) 593-2967
>>> http://www.cats.ohiou.edu/linguistics/dept/flanigan.htm
>
>
> _____________________________________________
> Beverly Olson Flanigan         Department of Linguistics
> Ohio University                     Athens, OH  45701
> Ph.: (740) 593-4568              Fax: (740) 593-2967
> http://www.cats.ohiou.edu/linguistics/dept/flanigan.htm



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