‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
nytimes.com
‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
1–10 of 42 posts
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#2A result is the suggestion of spontaneous speech and unadulterated emotion. The irony is that such presentations are highly rehearsed, with each caesura calculated and every syllable stressed in advance.
This is actually a major problem with the entire TV and radio age. People who seem awkward or fake in front of a camera are actually normal people. It is simply not natural to talk directly to a camera lens as if it is a person, it is not natural to speak in a folksy way to a generic audience that you cannot see. People who seem natural in front of a camera, are actually slick, well-practiced professionals. Thus in the modern era, all politicians and most public figures end up being essentially actors.
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#3A result is the suggestion of spontaneous speech and unadulterated emotion. The irony is that such presentations are highly rehearsed, with each caesura calculated and every syllable stressed in advance. This is actually a major problem with the entire TV and radio age. People who seem awkward or fake in front of a camera are actually normal people. It is simply not natural to talk directly to a camera lens as if it…
It occurs to me that a decent segment of the public figure that politicians and public figures have acting skills.
Can you expand on why acting authentic, and the authentic seeming the opposite, in front of the camera is "a major problem with the entire TV and radio age"?
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#4I have referred to NPR, for some time now, as the Bureau of Silly Voices (in homage to Monty Python's Bureau of Silly Walks).
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#5I wish it would go away. When they interview they show emotion and drive emotion as well as lead the speaker interviewee.
Please stop. I want to infer my own emotions, not yours NPR. I prefer even speech, one which does not add judgement into the story.
Irksome is when they interview a pathetic subject and start with an apology. Like I'm very sorry for the things I think are awful you're going through, but let's have you explain the awful things in a sympathetic way.
Of course NPR isn't the only one. But they have mastered this technique.
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#6The only thing worse than NPR voice is Shakespearre voice.
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#7The only thing worse than NPR voice is Shakespearre voice.
Vocal fry and upspeak are pretty hard to listen to once they get in your ear.... Lists to BBC presenters...
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#8I have referred to NPR, for some time now, as the Bureau of Silly Voices (in homage to Monty Python's Bureau of Silly Walks).
My favorite part of NPR interviews is when they do it out in the field ... ie walking over a bunch of fallen leaves with the soundguy putting his mic near their feet to pick up the crunch, crunch.
That happens every ... single ... time they do an interview. I mainly just listen to find out what the soundguy did to get a weird sound.
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#9A result is the suggestion of spontaneous speech and unadulterated emotion. The irony is that such presentations are highly rehearsed, with each caesura calculated and every syllable stressed in advance. This is actually a major problem with the entire TV and radio age. People who seem awkward or fake in front of a camera are actually normal people. It is simply not natural to talk directly to a camera lens as if it…
It occurs to me that a decent segment of the public figure that politicians and public figures have acting skills. Can you expand on why acting authentic, and the authentic seeming the opposite, in front of the camera is "a major problem with the entire TV and radio age"?
The problem is not that the genuinely authentic seems unauthentic, it's often just boring and/or clumsy. I've heard some actual impromptu audio from radio hosts and at times they come off as nervous, bumbling idiots (i.e. normal people).
To me, the NPR voice is more like the way I sound in my head, before I open my mouth and begin babbling incoherently.
Re: ‘NPR Voice’ Has Taken Over the Airwaves
#10The only thing worse than NPR voice is Shakespearre voice.
Vocal fry and upspeak are pretty hard to listen to once they get in your ear.... Lists to BBC presenters...
Vocal Fry is reasonably put on, but as an Australian I'm afraid upspeak is something that's the mode of speech for large parts of our population. It's kind of hard to avoid :-)