StenoCaptions, LLC, captioner Emily Nicholson, RPR, an NCRA member from Staten Island, N.Y., was featured on CBS Mornings during a segment with U.S. Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania. Nicholson previously captioned for the Senator on CBS’ The Late Show with Stephen Colbert last year.
JCR | How many times have you captioned for Senator Fetterman on a major network like CBS? How does it feel to fluctuate in terms of your audience for different jobs, millions, to hundreds, to individuals?
Emily Nicholson (EN) | This is my third time captioning for Senator Fetterman for a television show, and each time I was captioning individually for him, sending my captions wirelessly to an iPad set up in front of him. When captioning for an individual compared to a larger audience, one notable difference is that I am not usually taking down what the individual using the captions says. When captioning for a larger audience, everything that is spoken is captioned.
JCR | When it comes to being a professional captioner, what is something you wish someone would have told you when learning the profession?
EN | How important it is to connect with people in the field for guidance and support. I was really fortunate to have mentors such as Joshua Edwards, RDR, CRR, CRC, and Wendy Baquerizo, the owners of StenoCaptions, who really provided invaluable preparation and insight when I first started providing CART services. It is very important to have people in the profession who you can go to with questions, who can offer advice, and who you can engage in meaningful conversations about the profession with.
JCR | How often do you practice?
EN | I often practice once or twice a week, usually event-specific preparation. When preparing for an event like this one, I reviewed clips from CBS Mornings and practiced to them so I would be familiar with the speakers.
JCR | Has having a U.S. Senator request captioning helped make professional captioning more mainstream in terms of awareness and accessibility?
EN | Yes. I believe Senator Fetterman speaking about his use of captions and how helpful it has been for him emphasizes how important it is to ensure that content is made accessible to all individuals. This advocacy plays a pivotal role in making captioning more mainstream and promoting inclusivity.
JCR | When a person or organization requests your services, are there certain preferences you notice they require? Like slang or abbreviations?
EN | I haven’t had any requests specifically to use an abbreviation or slang, although sometimes there are preferences for the background and text color or font sizes. I have also had requests to turn on “classic invert” on my iPad, which reverses the colors of the display. Some organizations will give abbreviations or acronyms they know will be used ahead of time, which is really helpful.
JCR | In terms of setup, what is the difference between working with a national network like CBS and other places?
EN | In terms of setup, wherever I am working that day, I always need to make sure there is a table, chair, an outlet nearby, and that I am close enough to be able to hear. At CBS I asked for a direct audio feed that allowed me to hear clearly since I was set up a little farther away than usual.
Emily Nicholson, RPR, is a captioner based in the greater New York metropolitan area. She can be reached at emilynicholson1102@gmail.com.
