The rise of the digital age ushered in a more accessible way to consume and exchange information. For journalists, this comes as a great opportunity for career growth, as well as an easy way to analyze information.
One tool that emerged which capitalizes on this opportunity is Transcription. Along with providing accessibility of information for Deaf and hard-of-hearing persons, transcripts provide numerous other benefits that make the lives of professional journalists easier.
Whether you’re gathering information, conducting interviews, or writing, transcripts of any audio or video content can see long-term net benefits to your career trajectory. These benefits include:
- Providing an Official Record
- Streamlined review process
- Deadlines are Easier to Achieve
- Increases Cost Efficiency
- Assists in the writing process
- Work can be archived for future reference
Provides a record
Keeping track of Interviews, meetings and conferences can be difficult. Transcribing these interactions provides a first-hand, soft copy account which can be easily referred to at any time. You can also ensure that the information being received is more accurate through transcription, as it has been documented directly from the source.
Review yourself
Listening back to content, rather than visually consuming it, does not provide the opportunity for an in-depth analysis of an interaction. For example, if an Interview is transcribed, you can easily assess your performance within the interaction. Is there something you can improve? Did you interrupt at an inopportune moment? Did you not notice something they said? Did you ask all the questions you wanted to? All these questions can be answered through a visual representation of an Interview.
Makes deadlines easier
Manually transcribing videos and audio can be time-consuming, and with quick turn-around times a common characteristic of the Journalistic profession, the last thing on your mind is wanting to type out an entire transcript. Engaging the help of a transcription service means that your video or audio files can be uploaded and transcribed for you quickly and accurately, freeing up your time for more important tasks.
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Cost efficient
Enlisting the help of a transcriber is often extremely expensive. This is due to many companies usually employing an individual to transcribe their work, thus paying them for a position rather than the work they complete. There are several cost-efficient alternatives, including free transcription tools which allow you to take control over your own work, or automatic transcription services which cost as little as $1 per minute.
Online Transcription services
Now that we’ve gone over some of the benefits, it’s time to talk about software. Transcript services aren’t hard to come by online. Gone are the days of typing out audio word by word. Transcription services today allow you to manually upload audio or video files any size or language depending on the services. Here, within a few hours or days, the entire file will have an accurate transcript of all dialogue.
Some useful resources to help you transcribe include:
OTranscribe
OTranscribe can be used straight out of your web browser and is an easy and simple tool for transcription. It lets you control the audio player and text editor on the same web page. OTranscribe allows you to control everything through your keyboard, from transcribing, to rewinding the audio, and placing timestamps.
The FTW Transcriber
The FTW Transcriber is a downloadable transcription software that has features such as automatic timestamps and high audio quality playback. The FTW Transcriber can also be used on Android smartphones and tablets, allowing users to transcribe anywhere, not just at their desktop.
Scribblr.ai
Or, if you’re stuck for time, for a small price of $1 minute you can have your files automatically transcribed with Scribblr.ai. The process is as simple as uploading any audio/video files and in no time, you’ll receive excellent quality transcripts directly back into your inbox for use.
For more information, visit the Scribblr.ai website or start a free trial today.
