The ATA Chronicle - September/October 2021 - 26

AUDIO TRANSCRIPTION
What It Is, What It Is Not,
And Why It Is in High Demand
If you have the right skills, audio transcription can help you diversify
your portfolio. However, there a few things to keep in mind before
you consider accepting an assignment.
By Rafa Lombardino
T
he demand for
transcription services
remains high due to
the increasing amount of
audiovisual content being
developed in a wide range
of industries since the
professional world became
more remote. If you have
the right skills, audio
transcription can help you
diversify your services as a
translator. However, there
are a few things to keep in
mind before you consider
advertising your availability.
Misconceptions
As the name suggests,
audio transcription involves
transcribing the content
of a recorded audiovisual
file. I think it's important
to stress " audiovisual "
instead of simply " audio "
here, because you could be
provided with either an audio
or a video file and be asked
to transcribe the contents of
that recording.
It might seem that
one definition could be
used to cover all types of
transcription, but that's not
always the case. For example,
some clients may request
transcription services when
they don't have an actual
recording. If the scope of
their project involves a
live transcription, that's
something else entirely. So,
26 The ATA Chronicle | September/October 2021
let me start off by explaining
what audio transcription is
not before establishing what
it actually involves.
It's essential to be aware
of some of the common
misconceptions clients have
about transcription services
to be able to position yourself
as an expert and steer them
in the right direction. They
will appreciate this, and it
might just help you down the
road when they're looking for
services you actually provide.
Mistaking Transcription
for Court Reporting: When
a transcription takes place in
court during a live session,
a certified court reporter
(often referred to as a
stenographer) is the one in
charge of this task. A court
reporter is trained to create
a written verbatim record
of the proceedings using a
shorthand writing style called
" stenograpy, " in which they
use a stenotype machine to
type out syllables rather than
each letter of a word. This
cuts down the time required
to type and helps them enter
what's being said into the
record in real time. But this is
not transcription.
Mistaking Transcription for
Live Captioning: The same
is true when clients organize
remote conferences and online
events and need the audio
" transcribed " in real time, or
when major in-person events
with live interviews and
roundtable panel discussions
have a " transcription "
projected onto a large screen
above interviewees and
panelists. In both cases, clients
would need a service called
" live captioning. " And, if live
captions are to be shown in a
language other than the one
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