On the surface, transcription looks easy. In reality, it’s an art and a science. And even the most veteran transcriptionists have moments where audio clarity or lack thereof, leads to hilarious misheard words and phrases. Here’s a snippet of some of the funniest transcription bloopers, paired with how they were intended to be heard:
Transcribed: “Touch yourself, R***. Touch yourself.” Actual: “Trust yourself, R***. Trust yourself.”
Unless R*** is a motivational speaker specializing in confidence and self-esteem, this one took an unexpected turn!
Transcribed: “We hosted a meeting with key steak holders.” Actual: “We hosted a meeting with key stakeholders.”
Maybe they were on to something here and we need to start incorporating steaks into our meetings?
Transcribed: “She was diagnosed with old timers’ disease.” Actual: “She was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.”
This is a prime example of why contextual understanding and research are important.
Transcribed: “She became the first female president of our county!” Actual: “She became the first female president of our country!”
It’s amazing how one little letter can change the entire meaning of a sentence.
When there is ample background noise, poor audio quality, or multiple speaker accents, even seasoned transcriptionists face challenges. Other challenges that contribute to transcription bloopers include: low-volume recordings, muffled speech, very rapid speech, or a lot of overlapping speech. When these things are unavoidable, there are a few strategies that ATC’s transcriptionists and production team use to ensure our transcripts are always 99% accurate.
- We meticulously listen to the audio more than once for accuracy and content.
- Our transcriptionists and production team collaborate to cross-check work and weed out potential errors.
- Our transcriptionists are educated researchers when they encounter unfamiliar terminology, names, concepts, etc.
- Our ATC team works closely with one another and our clients to communicate through the duration of the transcription process to confirm and clarify as needed; cutting down on the possibility of misheard words.
It’s true that even while incorporating the above strategies, combined with a seasoned transcriptionist, it still may be difficult to transcribe certain words or phrases. In this case, we recommend our authentication services. A member of our authentication team scrupulously reviews your transcripts word-for-word against the audio, looking at things like accents, homophones, complex terminology, etc. that contribute to the errors mentioned above. it’s an added service to get your transcript that much closer to 100% accurate.
While bloopers are funny, accuracy is critical. And always our top priority. Transcribing the incorrect words can be the difference between an accurate transcript or a costly mistake. Our advice is always to slow down, listen more than once, and of course, don’t forget to laugh when your ears fail you!
