# What's the story with foreign english speakers being subtitled on American TV? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 5, 2004, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817 "2004-01-05T15:16:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mogiaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mogiaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mogiaw)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/1 "2004-01-05T15:16:59Z")
I saw Ripley’s Believe It or Not last night and it had subtitles for a guy from England. On VH1 when they have foreign english-speaking rockstars etc. on they often subtitle them. Is the American television-watching public that dense that it can’t make out what the people are saying? I suppose I’m more bewildered than angry but i couldn’t think of anywhere else to post this. mogiaw ---
**Author:** ![Mehitabel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mehitabel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mehitabel)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/2 "2004-01-05T15:42:52Z")
Card-carrying American here and I hardly EVER see this. There are some accents, like thick Geordie or Scottish, that occasionally are subtitled in the news, but mostly it’s people like Yasser Arafat or somebody whose English is not quickly decipherable. It’s a huge country and we simply don’t hear those sort of accents very often; Brits who travel around the US all seem to be doing the BBC English thing, at least in front of us. I understand that some movies are re-dubbed with less strong accents for the American market, but I don’t know how commonplace this is. ---
**Author:** ![gluteus\_maximus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f17d59/32.png) [@gluteus\_maximus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gluteus_maximus)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/3 "2004-01-05T15:48:41Z")
Blame [Robert Carlyle](http://www.pg.ru/train/images/image10.jpg)… and the “Americanized” versions of _Harry Potter_. ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/4 "2004-01-05T15:57:18Z")
I’m sorry, could someone explain to me what that Mick in the OP is getting at? Can’t make heads nor tails of it. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![presidebt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c37758/32.png) [@presidebt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/presidebt)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/5 "2004-01-05T16:14:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mehitabel \* > \*\*Card-carrying American here and I hardly EVER see this. \*\* I’m in the States too and I’ve been seeing more and more of what the OP describes lately. I wish I could remember what I was watching, but just a couple of weeks ago I saw some Australian guy talking with subtitles. He seemed to be speaking clearly enough for me, so my first thought was wtf?? If I think of it, I’ll come back and post. ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/6 "2004-01-05T16:15:29Z")
I couldn’t get through _Life of Brian_ without subtitles – I wasn’t getting more than half of the dialogue, which sucked. But I CHOSE to turn them on, I didn’t assume that ALL Americans would need to. ---
**Author:** ![Rube\_E.Tewesday](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f0a364/32.png) [@Rube\_E.Tewesday](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rube_E.Tewesday)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/7 "2004-01-05T16:35:11Z")
I can’t think of a specific example, but I know I’ve seen this, too. Yet they never subtititle those bull riders, who make Boomhauer sound like Gore Vidal. “Dang ol’ bull …mumble mumble mumble…eight seconds…mumble mumble mumble…tell ya what” ---
**Author:** ![WILLASS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/54ee81/32.png) [@WILLASS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WILLASS)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/8 "2004-01-05T16:59:14Z")
I know that ‘Trainspotting’ was subtitled in the States and that is pretty understandable (my Grandad came from Glasgow and I never understood a word he said!) but I can’t see why anyone without an amazingly strong accent peppered with colloquialisms would require subtitles. It is fairly rare to hear anyone with an exceptionally strong accent on British TV so I would have thought it was a lot less common on U.S TV. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/9 "2004-01-05T17:07:10Z")
Have they finally released _Mad Max_ over here WITHOUT the dubbing into Merkin? I should think we’ve been listening to Mel Gibson long enough to make out what he’s saying when he’s speaking Strine. ---
**Author:** ![Mehitabel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mehitabel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mehitabel)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/10 "2004-01-05T17:20:12Z")
OK, I guess I need to get out more, but I do go to a lot of British and Irish movies and have never seen subtitles in the theater. Of course, maybe the versions I’m seeing have been dubbed already. None of the Van trilogy (THE COMMITMENTS, THE SNAPPER, etc.) or stuff like BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM was subtitled, and neither was GEORGY’S GIRL, although on TV there were some titles for some characters. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/11 "2004-01-05T17:35:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gluteus maximus \* > \*\*Blame [Robert Carlyle](http://www.pg.ru/train/images/image10.jpg)… and the “Americanized” versions of _Harry Potter_. \*\* Why Robert Carlyle? Admittedly, the first _really_ perplexing use of English-to-English subtitles that I ever saw was in _Riff Raff_. (I think the only time I saw it before that was in _The Harder They Come_, which was bad enough.) It’s really hard for me to comprehend how these are useful, but I _have_ met people who claim an inability to comprehend even the lightest of accented English. (My dear old mum, for example, can’t follow _Fawlty Towers_.) Less head-scratchingly, I have a housemate from Taiwan who has a hard time with Scottish and Austrailian accents. At any rate, I’m really glad that we’ve moved over to DVD so subtitles can be toggled on and off – They drive me to distraction, especially when they completely change the phrasing. I’ve seen “Cheers!” “translated” as “Goodbye!” 😕 Are there people out there that would have been completely unable to work out for themselves what was happening? “What a minute, are they parting company for a while, or are have they got beverages concealed in their coats?” Eesh. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/12 "2004-01-05T17:42:51Z")
I have seen this recently as well, usually when the speaker has a thick foreign accent, such as a German WWII vet speaking on the History channel. I suppose that one could find this offensive, but I look at it like this: The number of non-native speakers in the U.S. is significant. It is challenging for a non-native speaker to understand heavily accented speech (just imagine trying to understand poorly-spoken Spanish if that is your second language). My Brazilian wife has confirmed this theory on several occasions: she has a tough time trying to understand accented English even in face-to-face communication. I imagine that they are trying to be considerate to people in their audience who are not native English speakers. In particular, in my neck of the woods (the northeast), we have a very international blend of residents. Oh yes… my wife couldn’t understand a single word of _The Full Monty_. I understood about half of the words. The film really opened up for me when I turned on the subtitles 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/13 "2004-01-05T19:05:01Z")
Although I don’t think that I can remember seeing any instances of what the OP describes on American TV, if it happening, America wouldn’t be unique. Here in Japan most speech by foreigners on TV are subtitled regardless of how clearly the foreigner is speaking. ---
**Author:** ![gluteus\_maximus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f17d59/32.png) [@gluteus\_maximus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gluteus_maximus)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/14 "2004-01-05T19:06:40Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Larry Mudd \* > \*\*Why Robert Carlyle? I’ve seen “Cheers!” “translated” as “Goodbye!” 😕 Are there people out there that would have been completely unable to work out for themselves what was happening? “What a minute, are they parting company for a while, or are have they got beverages concealed in their coats?” Eesh. \*\* > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by gluteus maximus_ > **Blame Robert Carlyle… and the “Americanized” versions of Harry Potter.** Re: Robert Carlyle… it were a _joke_. Although, the first time I watched _Trainspotting_, I couldn’t understand a single word Begbie said. In the version I saw, the only time English subtitles appeared was for this short conversation in the nightclub: > [@](#): > > (Gail & Lizzy) > _What are you two talking about?_ > > (Tommy & Spud) > _Football. What were you talking about?_ > > (Gail & Lizzy) > _Shopping._ I was referring to the _Harry Potter_ books, not the movies. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/15 "2004-01-05T19:11:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dropzone \* > \*\*Have they finally released _Mad Max_ over here WITHOUT the dubbing into Merkin? I should think we’ve been listening to Mel Gibson long enough to make out what he’s saying when he’s speaking Strine. \*\* Yes, at least on DVD. The dubbed track is available as a second audio track, but it defaults to the original. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2004, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/16 "2004-01-05T19:19:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WILLASS \* > **I know that ‘Trainspotting’ was subtitled in the States** No, it wasn’t, not in the release I saw anyway. (Apart from the shopping scene **gluteus maximus** refers to, which was subtitled in the British release as well.) ---
**Author:** ![Road\_Rash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a8b319/32.png) [@Road\_Rash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Road_Rash)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2004, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/17 "2004-01-06T00:06:39Z")
I have been able to understand most British-english shows without effort, even Trainspotting. Benny Hill took some effort. But my primary argument for subtitles on (some) english, Noel Gallagher (from Oasis). ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2004, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/18 "2004-01-06T00:32:56Z")
I’ve seen this done when the speaker is an American with a particularly thick regional accent, too. I think **minor7flat5** hit the nail on the head when he said it was for people for whom English is a second language. ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2004, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/19 "2004-01-06T01:29:32Z")
I began to notice subtitled English speech from other countries about ten years ago, but it doesn’t happen often. These particular young men were Irish. I have also seen some _American_ dialects subtitled in American productions. So don’t feel too offended. One person’s “particularly thick regional accent” is another person’s normal lingo. There is no standard dialect. My husband and I have begun putting the subtitles on as we watch DVDs no matter what the dialect. I had an Aussie boyfriend once who washed his hands in a bison. Strange, don’t you think? ---
**Author:** ![Menocchio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@Menocchio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Menocchio)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2004, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817/20 "2004-01-06T01:30:23Z")
I’m all for it actually. For whatever reason I have a devil of a time comprehending really thick accents (not European ones, so much as Asian, actually). I do my best IRL, but sometimes still worryif I come off like an idiot and/or bigot when I ask my Japanese co-worker to repeat something for the fiftieth time. So yeah, I want subtitles. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-story-with-foreign-english-speakers-being-subtitled-on-american-tv/222817.md?page=2)