# The woman on NPR? Who uses ? for , ? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 22, 2004, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543 "2004-06-22T01:05:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![harmless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/2acd7d/32.png) [@harmless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmless)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/21 "2004-06-22T17:50:15Z")
I wonder if it’s the same woman my father-in-law’s foster mother was telling us about. They have the same condition that makes thier voices very shaky and it’s hard for them to speak normally. Foster mother was telling us that it’s treatable with some sort of shot (I think she said it was some type of hormone?) but it’s very expensive. I rarely listen to NPR, so I don’t even know if that lady is still on the air. ---
**Author:** ![harmless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/2acd7d/32.png) [@harmless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/harmless)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/22 "2004-06-22T17:51:34Z")
That’s what I get for waiting a half hour to hit submit. :rolleyes: In otherwords: yeah, what **Jurph** said. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/23 "2004-06-22T18:02:43Z")
Like that girl? From American Pie? Who went to band camp? ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/24 "2004-06-22T18:03:43Z")
No, monotone woman is not any of the people you mentioned. I think she may be a local reader. (I listen to KPBS in San Diego.) I’ll try to pay attention next time and see if she says her name. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/25 "2004-06-22T18:10:42Z")
> [@neuroman](#): > > What really drives me bonkers is when someone with a noticeable lisp comes on to announce something. I understand that some people have speech impediments, but fer the love of pete, keep them off the air! Radio guy checking in. The reason why you hear so many people on the air who have a speech impediment is because they used to have a _really bad_ speech impediment, which they spent years and a lot of effort to overcome. It’s an accomplishment kind of thing. Ted Koppel has one (billion = biwyen). Ira Glass has one (that I can’t even listen to). Diane Rehm has a medical condition that causes her to talk the way she does, but she still does it and is widely revered for her interviewing and hosting skills. Lots of famous broadcasters had or have a speech anomaly of some kind. It’s a deep psychological thing. Sort of like “people used to make fun of me because of the way I talked. Now look at me, I’m on the radio/TV.” Yes, sometimes it’s barely noticeable, sometimes it’s painful to hear, but I guess we just have to suck it up and give credit to them for having overcome something much worse. ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/26 "2004-06-22T18:12:31Z")
Hmm, that’s the one I listen to also. I’m trying to rack my brain right now for a monotone woman’s voice. There’s a woman that usually does pledge breaks that might be her - but I think that’s Gloria Penner. And I don’t think she does the little tid bits, because she’s got her own show. But she has kind of an “eh” voice. ---
**Author:** ![DeVena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dec6dc/32.png) [@DeVena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeVena)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/27 "2004-06-22T18:18:01Z")
I haven’t notice the “super model” speak, but there is a woman with the most annoying nasal voice. The longer she talks, the more she sounds like Janice from _Friends_. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/28 "2004-06-22T18:29:31Z")
> [@AerynSun](#): > > Perhaps you haven’t been listening quite as closely as you thought. You seem to be describing [Frank Tavares](http://www.npr.org/about/people/bios/ftavares.html), who is, in fact, a man. Has he had any voice lessions? He enunciates National. PUBLIC. Radio. but I was always mystified as to why the “N.E.E.K.C. Foundation” was at [aecf.org](http://www.aecf.org) and not [neekc.org](http://neekc.org), until I visited the site. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/29 "2004-06-22T18:50:24Z")
> [@plnnr](#): > > Terri Gross, host of Fresh Air. No, Terri is cool. The woman in question is a reporter. ---
**Author:** ![bughunter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@bughunter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bughunter)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/30 "2004-06-22T18:59:50Z")
It sounds to me like **carnivorousplant** is talking about [Sandra Tsing Loh](http://www.k2b2.com/Sandra.html), except that she’s usually on in the afternoons… ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/31 "2004-06-22T19:11:11Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > I was always mystified as to why the “N.E.E.K.C. Foundation” was at [aecf.org](http://www.aecf.org) and not [neekc.org](http://neekc.org), until I visited the site. 😃 I’m pretty impressed with him. Who else could make it so clear that it’s “Lou C. Kerr,” not “Lucy Kerr?” I highly recommend listening to the Oscar quotes - it’s hilarious. I pity the morning guy here at WUNC. He was having a lot of trouble, tripping on words, getting lost in his copy, and so on. And then they make him say “Michael & Laura Brader-Araje Foundation” a lot. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/32 "2004-06-22T19:56:45Z")
I forgot about “the Kaufman Foundation … OF KANSAS CITY”. Glad that it’s made clear it’s not the Kaufman Foundation of Topeka. ---
**Author:** ![trupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@trupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trupa)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/33 "2004-06-23T16:02:53Z")
argh, upspeak drives me nuts… They even had a piece about it on the local CBC (_Think of Canada’s BBC_) radio some time ago. Apparently it indicates a need for approval / lack of self confidence in the user, who subconciously uses a questioning intonation to ask for reassurance / positive feedback. They pointed out that this is commonly found in kids, particularly girls, when speaking to adults or in some form of public speaking, like being interviewed on the radio/TV. Most kids grow out of it in middle - late adolescence, but a few people still keep the habit, and speaking under stress can bring out a latent tendancy. I find it still very common over here, where lack of self confidence has been declared the official national Canadian attitude… :rolleyes: When I hear someone interviewed who upspeaks, (most often a woman) I cannot give them the consideration they probably deserve. I just want to scream at the radio, and ususally wind up changing the station to keep the BP down… ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/34 "2004-06-23T17:44:10Z")
> [@trupa](#): > > I just want to scream at the radio, and ususally wind up changing the station to keep the BP down… I keep John Coltrane (well, Regina Carter today) in the CD player for such emergencies. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Excalibre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Excalibre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Excalibre)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2004, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/35 "2004-06-23T23:10:42Z")
> [@Jurph](#): > > You may also be thinking of Diane Rehm, who has a show that follows Morning Edition in some markets; she has a neurological disorder called “spasmodic dysphonia” which causes her vocal cords to contract involuntarily, making her voice very gravelly. Her show is recorded in the studios of WAMU, at American University in D.C., and leans leftward. I find her voice especially grating, but cut her some slack because she can’t help it. Ya know, it always seems to me that NPR has had a very tolerant attitude towards different speech styles and speech impediments. And I like it - a voice doesn’t have to have Carl Kasell’s gravitas to sound distinctive, and so I find I enjoy NPR’s reporters and interviewers. But for God’s sake. I know it’s shallow, and I was already aware that it was a medical disorder, but I just _cannot stand_ Diane Rehm’s voice. I just find it so grating that I cannot listen to her show for the briefest period of time. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2004, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/36 "2004-06-24T02:26:03Z")
> [@Excalibre](#): > > I just _cannot stand_ Diane Rehm’s voice. I found it distracting until I discovered it was due to a medical condition. Maybe it’s guilt. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![jellyblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e480ec/32.png) [@jellyblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jellyblue)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2004, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/37 "2004-06-24T04:11:44Z")
> [@scout1222](#): > > Hmm, that’s the one I listen to also. I’m trying to rack my brain right now for a monotone woman’s voice. > > There’s a woman that usually does pledge breaks that might be her - but I think that’s Gloria Penner. And I don’t think she does the little tid bits, because she’s got her own show. But she has kind of an “eh” voice. Ugh, Gloria Penner has a voice like a bag of nails pureed in a blender. I always think, Why on earth go into radio broadcasting??? Tom Fudge bugs me more though. And don’t even get me started on the Maniacal Punsters on A Way with Words. I cannot listen to them. Don’t they know nonstop punning makes people wish you a rapid demise? ---
**Author:** ![Apricot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bcef8e/32.png) [@Apricot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apricot)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2004, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/38 "2004-06-24T04:32:37Z")
I like Diane Rehm’s voice. It’s soothing. Of course, she’s on at 1 am, so maybe I’m looking for something relaxing. NPR seems to have a lot of thick tongued girls who don’t sound like they belong on the radio. ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2004, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/39 "2004-06-24T05:23:57Z")
Daniel Schorr seems to have a bit of an old speech impediment, but he’s such an old-school Edward R. Murrow type that it doesn’t bother me a bit; I think of it as distinctive rather than grating. ---
**Author:** ![Farmwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8dc957/32.png) [@Farmwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmwoman)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2004, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543/40 "2004-06-24T11:50:38Z")
> [@fishbicycle](#): > > Ira Glass has one (that I can’t even listen to). When _This American Life_ first aired locally, (5 years ago? I remember? Because I was building a house?) I had to make a concious effort to suck it up and listen. Why, oh why? Such compelling content brought to us by what sounds like a geeky teenager doing the show from his mother’s basement in Rochester. Ira! Dinner’s ready! Tell your radio friends to wipe their feet before walking on the carpet! STop swallowing your words, Ira! What’s the impediment he has ‘overcome’? It always sounds like typical lazy speech to me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-woman-on-npr-who-uses-for/251543.md?page=3)