ITP 2200 Research Project: Popularity of ASL and its Effects on Interpreters

1. The Rise of Popularity of American
Sign Language
and its Effects on the Interpreting
Profession
Elizabeth Rajchart

2. The purpose of this research project is to
discover the different ways American Sign
Language is portrayed in the media, through
various outlets such as movies, TV shows,
and the internet, and the impact of the
popularity on the interpreting profession.
Research was done using newspaper and
internet articles, as well as commentary on
internet videos and interviews with certified
interpreters.

3. In the past few years there has been a
sudden uprising in popularity of American
Sign Language. Through different media
outlets like the TV show Switched at Birth,
or the popularity of ASL videos on youtube,
or the “celebrity interpreter” trend, the
hearing population has a lot more exposure
to ASL.

4. Lydia Callis, interpreter for former New York City Mayor Michael
Bloomberg, attracted a lot of attention for her interpretations during the
“superstorm” Sandy, in 2012. Countless tweets, YouTube videos, and
even entire webpages of photos were published, calling Callis a “Sign
Language Star”, saying she gives “New Yorkers a legitimate reason to
smile”. None of the articles found mentioned the Deaf people she
serves.
“Mayor Bloomberg's new sign
language interpreter...America's
new sweetheart with swagger.”
“Can't stop watching Lydia Callis.”

5. Travis Painter, an interpreter located in Washington DC, was featured
in a Wall Street Journal article, though the journalist failed to interview
any Deaf clients.
A simple search for “Holly Maniatty” brings page after page of articles
about “that awesome Wu-Tang Clan ASL interpreter from Bonnaroo,
yet another article that doesn't specifically mention her Deaf clients.

6. Another area that is becoming more and more saturated
with ASL is the website YouTube. A search for “Sign
Language Lessons” brings over 100,000 hits, and
according to certified ASL teacher Rob Nielson, many are
taught by untrained individuals who teach the language
incorrectly.
One of the biggest controversies in regards to ASL on
YouTube was about a couple named Paul and Tina, who
gained a small amount of fame from YouTube videos they
made of themselves signing popular songs.

7. As written on the website “IMPACT Mind”, where they went
wrong was when
“They decided to keep the limelight on themselves –
instead, they should have looked up Deaf and hard of
hearing entertainers who are trying to do this for a living,
and turned the spotlight onto themselves”.
Not only this, but they began to profit off of their videos that
prominently feature a person who doesn't even have
training in ASL. Many in the Deaf community have called
this “appropriation”

8. How does the popularity of American Sign
Language translate to the interpreting
profession? To fully understand, we have to
look to what many consider the official
beginning of the profession.

9. The concept of an interpreter training program
began in 1964, with the creation of the Registry of
Interpreters for the Deaf. RID was founded after a
workshop to bring a structured foundation to the
education of interpreters. In 1970, RID began using a
system to test sign language interpreters.

10. Since then, the popularity of American Sign Language classes has
grown tremendously.
Enrollment in American Sign Language classes
has grown over 16% from 2006 to 2009
(New York Times)
40 universities offer a bachelor’s
degree in American Sign Language
interpreting, and 78 offer an associate’s
degree.
Since 1995 student
enrollment in American Sign
Language classes has grown
over 2000%
The field is expected to grow 42%
from 2010 to 2020, making it one of the
fastest growing professions in the
country.
(U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics,)

11. One certified interpreter had this to say:
“The increased interest in American Sign Language has its good and bad
points. It’s great that people want to learn more about the language and
culture, and hopefully it means more much needed interpreters for the Deaf
community. But there always seems to be an idea that it’s a simple language,
or not a true language at all. That not only does a disservice to interpreters,
but it really affects the Deaf community negatively. There’s already such a
struggle to preserve their culture and to fight audism, portraying their
language as simply gestures only makes it harder for everyone, not to mention
the lack of respect it shows from people who say they want to learn about
their culture.”

12. It’s very clear that the portrayal of American Sign Language by the
media is at the very least a gross oversimplification. Caroline Solomon and
Jeffrey Archer Miller of the Baltimore Sun elaborate:
“One major misconception is that American Sign Language
is not a real language, but rather a combination of gestures,
pantomime and exaggerated facial expressions. Although
linguists have recognized for decades that signed languages
are every bit as grammatically complex and linguistically rich
as spoken languages, this insight has not reached the masses
— even the more educated masses.“

13. YouTube Videos that incorrectly teach American Sign Language are
destructive in another way—they reduce the important of credentials. Rob
Neilson posted his own video speaking against “teaching” videos, saying:
“ASL is being mangled and abused by
"teachers" who don't fully understand the
language and by "students" who don't make
the effort to learn all the important little
details (or aren't aware that there are a lot of
those "little details"). So is it any wonder that
so many Deaf people (myself included) are
very unhappy with how our language is
being warped?”

14. However, he was met with comments like
● “Who cares if it’s a little wrong, at least they’re
learning.”
● “I can understand the frustration of having to
compete for business with people who post
videos of the same thing you charge for…”
● “They may be teaching vocabulary without
grammar... they may even be teaching incorrect
vocabulary, but is it really doing any harm?”
● “It’s not like people care if you have a degree
anyway”.

15. So how do these misconceptions
affect interpreters? One certified
interpreter commented:
“There’s such a divide still between
the Deaf and hearing worlds. When
people have these misconceptions
of the language, it does nothing but
build barriers.”

16. Caroline Solomon and Jeffrey Archer Miller
of the Baltimore Sun elaborate:
“If the media approach American Sign Language as
entertaining performance art, they are perpetuating a
fallacy. And if the media believe that interviewing
celebrity sign language interpreters obviates the need
to communicate with deaf individuals, then this new
trend is not just surprising; it's distressing.”

17. So how do these events affect the interpreting
profession? More than anything, it gives interpreters
much more responsibility. As interpreters it is our
responsibility to stop this trend. We need to stop
allowing the media to believe that the word of an
interpreter trumps the word of a Deaf person. We need
to learn to once again become that “invisible bridge”,
and step back out of the spotlight.

18. Works Cited
Coscarelli, Joe. "Meet Lydia Callis, Bloomberg's Star
Interpreter." New York Magazine. N.p., 29 Oct. 2012. Web.
Neilson, Rob.. "To all ASL students creating videos to teach
ASL...” Youtube.com. October, 28, 2009 Web.
Elise. “Appropriate Method of Appropriation” IMPACT Mind, 06
September 2014. Web.
Lewin, Tamar. “Colleges See 16% Increase in Study of Sign
Language. www.nytimes.com The New York Times, 10 Dec. 2010
Solomon, Caroline, and Miller, Jeffery A. “Sign Language Is Not
Performance Art”. The Baltimore Sun 2 April 2014