TYT: News Anchor Gets Hate For Pronouncing Words Correctly

[WhoIsNumberNone]

An Arizona news anchor is under fire for pronouncing Spanish words correctly. Viewers objected to the way she rolls her Rs. They also did not like the way she pronounced the city of Mesa. Cenk Uygur, Hannah Cranston (Think Tank), Jimmy Dore (The Jimmy Dore Show), and Brian Unger (NPR) hosts of The Young Turks discuss.

Do you think that this is another example of racism? Should she change the way she speaks to pacify her critics? Let us know in the comments below.

Read more here: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/04/us/latina-arizona-news-anchor-vanessa-ruiz-spanish-pronunciation.html

“An Arizona news anchor defended her pronunciation of Spanish words during English broadcasts, saying she delivers them the way the language is intended to be spoken.

In a broadcast on Monday, Vanessa Ruiz, who works for 12 News here, waded into the running debate over the use of Spanish that has divided Americans in different ways for years, and has been percolating on the campaign trail.

Ms. Ruiz, who was raised in a bilingual household, said some viewers had questioned her way of pronouncing Spanish words. Sandra Kotzambasis, the station’s news director, said viewers were asking why Ms. Ruiz “rolled her Rs.”

In the broadcast, Ms. Ruiz said, “Some of you have noticed that I pronounce a couple of things maybe a little bit differently than what you are used to, and I get that, and maybe even tonight you saw a little bit of it.”

[dhol82]

1. I still remember listening to WBAI years ago

All of the Spanish cities were pronounced emphatically with a Spanish accent. I got annoyed because other cities in the world were not pronounced as a native speaker would. Just seemed wrong to me.

If you are going to do the accent thing, then do it for everybody. I would have no problem with it - I am not a native English speaker. Learned it real quick after we immigrated so I have skin in the game.

[Beartracks]

3. "other cities... were not pronounced as a native speaker would"

That's an interesting point.

I wonder if it's because native speakers from those other far-flung places are not presumed to be part of the viewing audience...

================

[dhol82]

6. Not really sure how many Hispanics were listening to BAI in the 60's

Or 70's.

It just seemed like it was the anarchist faithful that had to pronounce El Salvador and Mexico with proper accents and stresses but didn't give a shit about Paris or Beijing. It was never Moskva or Shtambool just Moscow or Istanbul. Why was that? Their listening audience certainly had had exposure to those places.

[cpwm17]

9. In the 1980's a number of comedians would make fun of reporters that pronouce

Spanish place names as a native Spanish speaker. I think Saturday Night Live did a skit on this also.

I think it's a weird thing to do. Spanish speaking nations call the US los Estados Unidos in the local dialect. It would be weird for them to pronounce the name of our country as we do.

The news anchor is wrong. She should pronounce words as an English speaker would when speaking English.

[Chef Eric]

12. The news anchor is not wrong. Did you read the article?

According to the article, she speaks as a native Spanish speaker only when pronouncing words (and names of places) that are Spanish or that have Spanish origins.

Let's not forget that she works in Arizona. Arizona was once a part of Mexico. Much of it was taken by the U.S. in the Mexican American War. We should be mindful of the land's history, and of the words that were spoken there before English speakers took the land away.

[tblue37]

26. SNL did a sketch about this isue--with Jimmy Smits. nt

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https://screen.yahoo.com/enchilada-000000849.html

[dhol82]

27. That was a great clip

and shows what I was talking about. They could have expanded it with Mike Myers playing a French Canadian and doing a riff on French pronunciation.

[Beartracks]

2. Viewers in Arizona should know better.

I lived in the southwest for a number of years, so proper Spanish isn't an odd thing to me, but here in Oklahoma, when I hear Spanish words pronounced correctly in advertising, for example, it stands out. I imagine many Anglos think of rolled Rs and proper inflection on Spanish words as being kind of elitist, the same way they think it strange if you speak with proper English grammar or don't end sentences with prepositions -- that is to say, they KNOW you're right, but think you're trying to show them up to be ignorant.

This OP story kind of makes me curious just how many Arizonans actually go about their day wondering, "What are all these Mexicans doing here?"



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[NCjack]

17. As much as I try, I can't roll those R's. But I like hearing the news

reporters and others on TV doing it. One of my biggest failures was not learning Spanish.

[madamesilverspurs]

4. Amazing, isn't it?

I live in a state with a Spanish name (Colorado), we have a number of cities and towns and counties with Spanish names. We also have no shortage of voices demanding "Speak English!", and many of those demanding types flat out murder the natural elegance of Pueblo and Buena Vista (they pronounce them Pee-eb-low and Byoo-nee Vista). Then again, I remember many years ago when Walter Cronkite, who ostensibly had a research staff at his disposal, reported on a junta, which he pronounced June-tah; he also referred to Nixon's daughter Tricia as Trixie-ah. Go figure.

[Politicalboi]

5. "She's taking our jobs away"

Damn it, I want the news in American only like Faux.

[tomm2thumbs]

7. sounds like it was the Arizona city name of Mesa that was causing the most annoyance

Mess-uh vs. May-suh

the rolling r's was probably just an add-on to their complaints for good measure

[phylny]

8. I speak English and Spanish,

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although my English is much better. I can understand pronouncing certain words that are Spanish the way you might ordinarily say them in Spanish (pueblo, arroz con pollo, casa, Puerto Rico) but I would draw the line at name of local cities and towns.

For example, here in Virginia, we have some quirky pronounciations. The town of Buchanan is pronounced "buh-cannon" not bew-cannon, Buena Vista is pronounced "BeyUNA Vista" and "Botetourt" is pronounced "BAH-ta-tot." My town of Moneta (which was in the news due to the recent shooting, and was consistently mispronounced) is pronounced "Mo-NEE-ta." I would ordinarily pronounce Buena Vista the "correct" way, but in this area that would be incorrect and I don't.

So an anchor saying "Mehsa" instead of the regional pronounciation would sound too odd to me. Having said that, I can't imagine complaining about it.

[dhol82]

28. I'm always fascinated by pronunciations on NOLA

They know you're a tourist when you ask directions to certain streets in the Quarter.

[phylny]

29. I imagine it's like that everywhere :) n/t

[Fortinbras Armstrong]

10. In Quebec, French speaking radio presenters will pronounce English names and words

With correct English pronunciation, and most English speaking radio presenters will pronounce French words correctly. This is expected of them

[GoneFishin]

11. Change the channel if it's problem.

I don't get the point about Mesa though. I was pretty sure that that "mesa" (table) was pronounced may-sa, not meh-sa.

[Joe Chi Minh]

14. No. Even we Brits find American pronunciation of words in Latin languages

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comical, not to speak of English English. But it's the Anglo-Saxon strain, really. English pronunciation of Latin languages tends to hilarious, even farcical. The lad in our class at school with the worst French accent was called, Shakespeare - which seemed kind of appropriate, somehow.

The Celts don't normally have that problem. But if you want the funniest pronunciation of all, ask a French person to imitate an English person trying to speak French. Well, we laugh at the French trying to speak English - unless it's a female, then we are just enraptured.

By the way, many of you will be more knowledgeable francophiles than me, but for those who aren't and would be ticked, while we think 'coiffeur' is posh, they think the English word, 'hairdresser' is the posh way to say it! That's pretty much a rule, I believe. They also go for odl-fashioned English girls' names, such as Maud and Mildred. They somehow make the names seem attractive! The grass in the other field...

[GoneFishin]

15. This does sound like fun:"ask a French person to imitate an English person trying to speak French"

On a slightly different note, I do think it is cool to hear British actors and actresses switch easily between a British and American accent.

[Joe Chi Minh]

18. Believe me, it is very very funny. Much funnier than Peter Sellers impersonatng a

London-based, French couturier in some English comedy. I think it might have been The Two-Way Stretch. But his cockney accent was genuine 24 carat*, in a day when I think actors, not unnaturally given the pre-sixties social prejudices, preferred to act upscale, rather than, so wouldn't have wanted to sound too convincing with their 'lower-class', London accent.

Yes, sometimes the differences are fairly subtle, aren't they; noticeable, but subtle. Your toffs and ours tend to sound somewhat similar these days.

*If you grew up in London yourself, as I did, just hearing that in a film was hilarious. An example would be a lad blowing out a match you'd struck after you'd lit a cigarette, guffawing, 'Appy Burpdee!', as happened to me (or it might have been my mate), when we worked in a local factory in the school holidays. It might have been before the 'fag'** was lit.

** completely asexual and consisting of thin paper and tobacco.

I think Churchill liked speaking French with an atrocious accent (and German, where the Nazis were concerned), though you never know with the English; he could have been trying hi s best. We like your American mispronunciations! Like 'Aydolf', Wursesstershire, etc! Mind you, we seem to have gone out of our way to make our spelling as exotically deviant from the way our words sound as possible - while you Americans have rationalized your English spelling. It's particularly notable with Americanized foreign names.

[dhol82]

22. I remember watching a French TV series in the 80's

Particulars are a bit hazy but the character's name was Arsene Lupin. He was a detective in late 19th century France and I am pretty sure he was supposed to be English. He spoke French with an extremely heavy English accent. I found it fascinating.

[Joe Chi Minh]

31. I'd love to have heard it!

[dhol82]

34. Tried to track it down

Sadly, I can't find the one I am thinking of. Not surprising since it was about 40 years ago.

I'll keep looking.

At least I found an old TV series that gives me a good workout for my French listening.

[phylny]

30. That's funny, when I'm watching auto racing, my ears "cringe" when

a British announcer says "MAAzda" instead of "Mahzda."

[Joe Chi Minh]

32. Yes, 'MAAzda' is the posh English pronunciation. But down south, we proles

say CLAAss, and other such words in that way, but not all the ones the toff do. Up north, they say 'Class', like you do. The Roman Catholic mass is pronounced MAAss by the toffs, where where the rest of the country would say, 'Mass. All confusing to outsiders, except that they'd pick up their pronunciation from locals - unless they moved in CLAAssy circles.

[glowing]

13. I guess she Messa up on the Maysah talk....

[randr]

16. There are people who intentionally mispronounce spanish language words

Here in Colorado some people insist on calling Pueblo Peebblo. There are many other examples.

[Beartracks]

20. "Pee-blow"???

[randr]

21. Pe ebb low

[Beartracks]

25. Oh! Sorry. LOL n/t

[Art_from_Ark]

24. Names of French origin are butchered even more

Ever hear of the city of "Day-TWAH"?
How about "Day-MWAHN"?
Bwah-ZAY?
Nouvelle Or-lay-AHN?
San Louie?
I-li-NWAH?
Pah-REE?
And who pronounces the capital of Louisiana as "Baton" (as in "majorette's stick&quot and "Rouge" (as in the cosmetic)?

[Joe Chi Minh]

33. My brother-in-law used to imitate an American actor saying Baton Rouge, but placing

but placing great emphasis on English-style pronunciation of the 'g': a soft 'g', but hard compare to the French. Like stubbing out a cigarette, very determinedly and for a relatively long time. Well, like the cosmetic, I suppose, but lingering on the 'g'. I'll end up writing a book on it at this rate!

[Gothmog]

19. This story makes me sad-this lady was doing her job properly

[Sanity Claws]

23. She is telling people how to pronounce the name of their own city?

Does that mean I'm supposed to ignore the local pronunciation of Missouri because it is not the way it was originally pronounced by Native Americans?
Here in New York, we pronounce Houston (Houston Street) as How-ston. I wouldn't go to Texas and pronounce the city of Houston that way.
Frankly I get the point of the listeners. It makes her sound like an outsider.