# The morning news is poking fun at itself

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-morning-news-is-poking-fun-at-itself/79848>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 5, 2001, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-morning-news-is-poking-fun-at-itself/79848 "2001-09-05T13:04:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [September 5, 2001, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-morning-news-is-poking-fun-at-itself/79848/1 "2001-09-05T13:04:54Z")

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The newscasters in the L.A. area tend to speak unaccented English – except when they pronounce a Spanish name. Then they make a point to use “correct Spanish pronunciation”. The change from unaccented English to a Spanish accent is usually jarring. The rolling Rs are especially noticeable. “And now we turn to the L.A. political race and contender AnTONio ViaRRRRRRaGOsa.”

This morning, David Cruz – who is Hispanic – used the exaggerated rolling R when pronouncing something, obviously poking fun at the practice. Kelly Mack, his co-anchor, said it sounded as if he were growling.

(Seems to me I saw an SNL skit several years ago that had non-Hispanic newspeople speaking unaccented English until they mentioned an Hispanic name or ordered their Mexican lunch, using Spanish accents – and the Hispanic character couldn’t understand them.)

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**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\
**Post date:** [September 5, 2001, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-morning-news-is-poking-fun-at-itself/79848/2 "2001-09-05T14:39:11Z")

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I remember that SNL skit - Jimmy Smits (I think) was the new guy in the office, and all the other co-workers were ordering Mexican for lunch, speaking in every exagerated and clipped Spanish - TA’-co, buRRRRRRR-REEEEET’—toh, en-chee-LAHHHHHHH’—dah.

Interesting sketch.

Our newscasters here pretty much use standard unaccented English for everything (with the exception of one morning newscaster at a conservative right-wing radio station - he’s sarcastic about everything and everyone’s name ends up with a strange enunciation - part Neil Boortz, part Mike Savage of “The Savage Nation”).

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**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\
**Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-morning-news-is-poking-fun-at-itself/79848/3 "2001-09-06T11:42:11Z")

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I have a beef.

Bifstek, actually.

One of the reporters on a national show has the absolutely beautiful name Soledad. Soh-le-dod’. It means solitud. They pronounce it Soul-a-Dad. Probably something DesMond Wilson would have called Redd Foxx. One of the most annoying and destructive Anglicizations of an Spanish word or name that I can think of.

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**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\
**Post date:** [September 6, 2001, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-morning-news-is-poking-fun-at-itself/79848/4 "2001-09-06T14:41:36Z")

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I’ve always made it a point to use the proper pronunciation of whatever language I happen to be speaking in. Makes more sense and people laugh at you less frequently.