Cross-fertilization between Reception Studies in Audio Description and Interpreting Quality Assessment: The Role of the Describer’s Voice

Abstract

Scholars, such as Braun (2007) and Gambier (2006), have been calling for a cross-fertilization of disciplines concerned with the study of human communication in an attempt to gain a fuller understanding of the complex nature of audio description (AD). The AD script is a hyposemiotic text that uses the aural medium as the sole vehicle for relaying the input derived from visual stimuli, both iconic and verbal. The nonvocal visual and/or verbal input is conveyed as aural output consisting of vocal stimuli (both verbal and nonverbal). As it is the aural medium that is so prominent in AD, one would expect that research in this field would pay more attention to the aural dimension and that it would attract attention from disciplines related to spoken communication and media studies, such as radio broadcasting, television, advertising and film theory. A perusal of the existing literature on media communication reveals the potential of the aural dimension, from the characters’ vocal expression of emotion, to soundtrack, ambient sounds and special effects. While it is true that some scholars have highlighted the critical role of the aural medium in audiovisual products and their translation (Chion 1994; Diaz Cintas et al. 2007; Gottlieb 2005; Matamala 2005; Orero 2005; Salway and Palmer 2007), the true potential of the aural dimension has not yet been fully explored.