Letters
Colespeak
Sir: Richard Ingrams (20 August) suggests the use of sub-titles when the BBC's political correspondent John Cole is on the air. This seems but a panacea. The BBC apparently overlooks the development by which its Programmes are 'followed' by hundreds of thousands more outside Britain now that we have cable television. English-born, English-bred, /cannot follow much of what ,Mr Cole 'commentates', but my Dutch 11°Lisemate, familiar with English since the first world war and an excellent linguist, cannot understand a single word he says. What language is he speaking?' he asks me Whenever Mr Cole is "non-articulating' English, and his bafflement is complete. Is broadcasting communication or is it not? Almost as distracting is the apparently encouraged habit of waving the hands (and arms) all over the place, making roly-poly movements with them or jerking them up and down in order, apparently, to make clear what a speaker is expressing so badly with words. Melvyn Bragg ruined an inter- view with subdued and well-behaved William Trevor in this way last April and °! Clare nearly did the same the other night, when questioning Beryl Bainbridge. Are television producers' jobs mere sinecures? Couldn't speech be taught once more in Britain? (With the cable we can compare — and the Germans win every time.) Janes Brockway Van Trigtstraat 53, The Hague,
The Netherlands
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