TV interpreting in Germany:

the television broadcasting company

ARTE in comparison to public
broadcasting companies1

Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz/Germersheim

Abstract

TV interpreting is a special form of interpreting for several reasons. Not only the challenges
interpreters are faced with, but also the expectations towards their performance as well as
the technology involved differ greatly from conventional conference interpreting.
Unlike public broadcasting companies in Germany, the European culture channel ARTE
(Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne) works with interpreters on a regular basis
and has its own language service. A comprehensive survey was conducted amongst TV
interpreters working both for ARTE and other broadcasters. Additionally, editors and TV
interpreters from public television in Germany were questioned. These studies as well as
insights gained from ARTE staff paint a clear picture of interpreting for public television
in Germany and highlight the differences between ARTE and other broadcasting
companies.

Introduction

Whether it be at press conferences with athletes at major sporting events or the

Olympic Games, entertainment shows such as “Wetten, dass...”?, talkshows such
as “SternTV” and “Kerner” or the televising of US President Obama’s inauguration,
interpreters are needed whenever non-German-speaking guests/persons appear

1 Translated from German by James A. Turner.

TV interpreting in Germany 99
and speak on the media of television in German-speaking countries in order to
make communication possible first of all between the persons conversing on the
television screen, but also above all with the audience sitting in front of their TV
sets at home.
The term “media interpreter” has now arrived in Germany, as media
interpreting – which in this article is limited to live interpreting for television
programmes of all kinds – constitutes a special form of interpreting in many
respects. It can also be viewed as a new occupation in the age of globalisation (cf.
Riccardi 2000: 83).
Even though only a relatively low number of interpreters work for television, it
is especially their interpreting which reaches the largest group of recipients, thus
having a major impact on the image the public has of interpreters. For Jürgen
Stähle, an experienced TV interpreter who works inter alia at ARD, ZDF and ARTE2
and has been awarded the Adolf Grimme Prize3, simultaneous interpreting on
television is the showcase of the profession (cf. Stähle 2009: 55). A similar view is
expressed by Ingrid Kurz, also a TV interpreter for many years, working mainly
for ORF4: “Ein Millionenpublikum [bekommt] ein unmittelbares Bild vom Beruf
des Dolmetschers ins Haus geliefert [Millions of television viewers gain direct
insight into the profession of interpreters]” (Kurz 2000: 89). She assumes that
good interpreting enhances the standing of the profession (cf. Kurz 2000: 90).
Vice versa this means that poor interpreting, in which the audience demand for
a “satisfactory product” (Lerke 2010) is not met, has a negative impact on the
image of the profession. This is confirmed by commentaries in various
newspapers on the (poor) Arab-German interpreting on 10 February 2011
broadcast on ZDF’s Heute-Journal, covering President Mubarak’s address to the
Egyptian people5.
In contrast to countries like Italy and Austria, where there have been numerous
publications on TV interpreting since 1990 (summaries can be found in Straniero
Sergio 2007; Kurz 2003, 2007; Pöchhacker 2007), there is a relative dearth of
information on it in Germany. Only recently has the topic been addressed more
intensively, especially in the form of academic theses and dissertations at
universities (cf. Elsagir 1999; Fünfer 2009; Lerke 2010). Interpreters themselves
have remained more or less silent on the topic to date with the exception of
interviews with Sybille von Mühlmann (2002) or the “close-up inside” Vom
Übersetzen zum Simultandolmetschen by Jürgen Stähle (2009).
All publications emphasise that television interpreting is of a rather impersonal
nature all its own. This is attributed among other things to the group of
recipients: on the one hand there are the on-screen users, who communicate with
each other on various topics with the interpreter acting as a mediator between

2 ARD, Arbeitsgemeinschaft der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten der

Bundesrepublik Deutschland; ZDF, Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ARTE, Association
Relative à la Télévision Européenne.
3 Prize awarded annually to major contributions to television broadcasting and
production.
4 ORF, Österreichischer Rundfunk.
5 Cf. <http://www.main-netz.de/nachrichten/kultur/kultur/art4214,1527953>.

100 Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

them, interpreting both in the foreign language and the mother tongue, and on
the other hand viewers as off-screen participants in communication, i.e. a virtual
audience with whom interpreters have no contact whatsoever, even if they act as
mediators between this group and the on-screen participants (cf. Mack 2002: 205f.)
– but generally only from the foreign language into the mother tongue in order
to produce an interpretation which sounds as similar as possible to a news
presenter. As the publications cited in the foregoing suggest, additional factors
also contribute to the special nature of interpreting on television6: the special
working conditions/technical aspects (cf. Mack 2002: 208), the high demands
placed on quality (cf. Kurz 2000: 94f.), the need to complete the interpretation at
the same time as the original (cf. Kurz 1997: 197), no influence on what is being
shown on the TV, brief spoken passages and thus in most cases the impossibility
of accustoming oneself to the style of the speaker. The task of TV interpreters and
the whole dilemma they face has been aptly summed up by Sergio Viaggio (2001:
30):
[…] he is expected to be a consummate mediator with the psychomotor reflexes of the
conference interpreter, the cultural sensitivity of the community interpreter, the
analytical keenness and background knowledge of the journalist and the rhetorical
prowess of the seasoned communicator.

What is television interpreting like on public television in Germany? What

demands do broadcasters and interpreters place on media interpreting? In view
of all this, what makes interpreting high-quality? Where do changes need to be
made? These are some of the questions explored in the following. As a result of its
special profile, the cultural broadcasting company ARTE plays a key role in the
analysis as does the question as to whether and how work at ARTE differs from
work at other media companies such as the broadcasting companies ARD, ZDF
and PHOENIX.

1. The broadcaster ARTE

As a result of the excellent contact between the School of Translation,

Interpreting, Linguistics and Cultural Studies at the Johannes Gutenberg
University of Mainz/Germersheim and interpreters at ARTE and its Language
Service, this broadcaster is the focus of attention in this article. By the same token,
its situation is of course unique and is in some respects not representative of
interpreting on television in Germany. For this reason, attention is also devoted
to ARD, ZDF and PHOENIX.
In spite of the special requirements and the growing importance of TV
interpreting, only ARTE7, which is headquartered in Strasbourg, has its own

6 A comprehensive overview of these special aspects is provided in Mack (2001).

7 “ARTE is a European cultural television channel targeting audiences from different
cultural backgrounds, in particular French and German” (<http://www.arte.tv/fr/
2197470.html>).

TV interpreting in Germany 101

Language Service to date. The fact that the broadcasting and working languages
are German and French not only means that two language versions are needed for
each broadcast, but also for programme and administration texts as well. Internal
meetings also have to be interpreted if need be, and the Internet site is
multilingual. This means a considerable amount of language and cultural
mediation, requiring a professional, systematic approach in order to ensure the
desired high quality. It was for this reason that the Language Service was set up
right away when the broadcasting company was founded. It is integrated into the
company headquarters in Strasbourg and performs not only translating and
internal company interpreting, but also organises and assists in the work with
free-lance language mediators who among other things are used for TV
interpreting (cf. Völker in Fünfer 2009).
The TV channel ARTE only uses self-employed TV interpreters. A total of 1,066
programmes were interpreted in 2008 (corresponding to 1,435 interpreting days)
(cf. Völker in Lerke 2010). Since it began televising in 1992, four main different
models of TV interpreting have developed at ARTE: (1) simultaneous spontaneous
interpreting of a live broadcast; (2) live-on-tape interpreting, entailing the
simultaneous spontaneous interpreting of a programme which will be broadcast
at a later stage; (3) interpreting of previously recorded programmes, which offers
the possibility of later corrections; (4) simultaneous interpreting of a live
broadcast on the basis of scripts previously translated by the interpreters. New
forms of interpreting have been added to this, such as the interpreting of Internet
chats or videos (cf. Völker in Fünfer 2009). In contrast to public broadcasters in
Germany, ARTE regularly uses TV interpreters, even if the number of spontaneous
live interpreting performances is on the decline there. Live interpreting is used
for televised festivals, e.g. broadcasts of the Berlinale or the Cannes International
Film Festival, and at major media events such as presidential elections or royal
weddings. Interviews with teleconnected guests, studio guests and live broadcasts
with correspondents are also spontaneously interpreted live (cf. Krone 2006).

2. Surveys on TV interpreting in Germany

As there are at present very few publications on TV interpreting in Germany, a

first comprehensive survey was carried out within the framework of a BA
dissertation dealing solely with interpretation for the TV channel ARTE. A
questionnaire with multiple choice and open-ended questions was sent by e-mail
to 41 interpreters who work for ARTE on a relatively regular basis. This was made
possible thanks to the support of the Language Service of ARTE who established
contact with the interpreters. The decision to use a questionnaire was taken
because of the geographical distance to the high number of respondents and in
order to give the interpreters sufficient time to reflect on the questions posed. 18
responses were able to be used in the assessment (cf. Fünfer 2009). Excerpts from
the analysis conducted in 2009 are presented in the following.
In order to learn more about TV interpreting for public broadcasters in
Germany, a field which has been given scant attention up until now, the authors
contacted the Director-Generals of seven major public broadcasters in Germany

102 Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

(ARD, Bayrischer Rundfunk, MDR, PHOENIX, SWR, WDR, ZDF). Responses were
disappointing but contact was made with three editors working at ARD and ZDF
and six TV interpreters who were interviewed by phone in the autumn of 2010.
This method was selected as it seemed appropriate in view of the small number
of interpreters and the time pressure under which the programme editors work,
which was reflected in the few responses. Those interviewed were given
information about the project in advance and a preparatory questionnaire.
The responses provided by the six interpreters working for public broadcasters
in Germany are compared with the answers given by the ARTE interpreters.
Wherever appropriate, the statements are supplemented with the views of the
three editors working at ARD and ZDF. Moreover, the views of two Language
Service staff members of ARTE have also been taken into consideration.
In addition to general questions relating inter alia to the frequency and length
of time of jobs, the interpreters were surveyed about their preparation, technical
aspects, demands relating to quality, expectations and stress factors. The
interviews with the editors ranged across topics such as the selection and
preparation of interpreters, issues relating to target group orientation and quality
assurance.

2.1 Frequency of assignments

As for the frequency of assignments performed by TV interpreters, it would

appear that there are considerable fluctuations on the whole. These relate both to
general as well as individual frequency of assignments. At ARTE it is notable that
some interpreters are used very frequently, i.e. with 60-100 interpreting
days/year, which is due to the interpreting of regular programmes such as
ARTEInfo, in which one or two interpreters are assigned to a television presenter
on a more or less fixed basis. Discontinuation of the programme or a change in
television presenters can at the same time lead to a significant change in the
general or even individual amount of assignments. A majority of the interpreters
who work for public broadcasters (referred to in the following as PB interpreters)
state that they work live as TV interpreters between three and twelve days a year
(cf. interpreting model (1) of ARTE). Two male interpreters stated they worked 40
days. There is one female interpreter who in the past also worked approximately
40 days a year. This volume has dropped considerably since 2010 however and she
indicated that she has assignments on twelve days a year at present. She
attributed this drop to voice-matching, which is gaining in importance for public
broadcasters.

2.2 Recruitment

It is in this connection that the question arises as to the recruitment criteria for
interpreters. At ARTE a search for suitable interpreters is triggered by enquiries
made by the editorial desk in charge of the Language Service, which supports the
interpreting jobs. In selecting the interpreters, the Language Service uses a pool

TV interpreting in Germany 103

of experienced free-lance interpreters and/or who have gone through a casting
procedure which takes place at irregular intervals and in which interpreting skills
and voice quality are tested. The precondition for an assignment at ARTE is first
of all an excellent command of conference techniques. Additional “musts” include
a pleasant voice and a fluent presentation. The Language Service also makes sure
that the voice of the interpreter is appropriate for the person who is being
interpreted. The criteria here are gender, age and voice tone, but also character
traits and temperament, i.e. physical and psychological traits. It is also important,
however, that voices are not overly similar. The voice of the interpreter should
differ from the person being interpreted in order to help viewers readily
understand what is being said (cf. Moreau in Fünfer 2009). Generally speaking,
each person who takes part in a broadcast is interpreted by one respective
interpreter. Television presenters at ARTE moreover often have their own “fixed”
voice in the foreign language (cf. Völker in Fünfer 2009).
In contrast to ARTE, where the Language Service organises the wide-ranging
assignments of interpreters and their recruitment, the editorial desks at public
broadcasters in Germany are responsible for assigning appropriate interpreters
for the various broadcasts. As the interviews with the editors showed, interpreters
are used by public broadcasters especially for talk shows/interviews of all kinds,
major media events such as the funeral of the Pope and for sporting events.
Recruitment often focuses on people who have performed well in the past or who
have been recommended. Interpreting agencies with a good reputation are also
used frequently. If there is enough time, and no interpreters or not enough
interpreters can be found using this procedure, casting events are carried out,
with which broadcasters such as ARD have had positive experience.

2.3 Preparation and planning of assignments

With regard to the question as to preparation for the interpreting job, all ARTE
and PB interpreters surveyed unanimously agreed as to the need for such
preparation, although there are considerable differences with regard to the form
and scope of that preparation, as this depends on the respective programme or
the editors in charge.
The interpreters are generally notified about the broadcast and topic as well as
the name of the person who is to be interpreted so that they can conduct their
own research. In the case of entertainment and magazine broadcasts, PB
interpreters in particular usually receive documents with information on the
persons who are to be interpreted as well as a list of possible questions which may
be asked – the same lists which are supplied to the television presenters and
editorial desk. In some cases it is also possible to converse with the guest before
the broadcast. In the case of news and sports events, editors assume that the
interpreter is informed about the speaking style, pertinent terminology and
current developments.
Nevertheless, even at ARTE there are differences depending upon the broadcast,
the way in which it is produced and the manner in which the second language
version is produced. In addition to basic information regarding the individual

104 Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

and the broadcast, the interpreter is if possible provided information on the
script, the moderation texts and given additional information in the form of
dossiers, research material, notes and Internet links. Which material the
interpreter receives ultimately depends on the respective editors, who are
requested to transmit the documents to the Language Service for forwarding to
the interpreters.
If television presenters are to be interpreted, interpreters can contact them
directly via the Language Service in order to become acquainted with the way they
speak and the content of the broadcast. In the case of guests, interpreters are in
some cases able to discuss things with them by telephone directly before the
broadcast. 22% of the ARTE interpreters surveyed lamented the fact that they are
nevertheless in some cases insufficiently informed before the assignment,
however.
The PB interpreters also noted that better preparation would be desirable in
some cases, as an interpreter suggests: “When one has the material and time –
that is half the battle, and this is no different for television than it is for
conference interpreting”.
How much time in advance the interpreters learn about their assignment
depends on the type of programme both at ARTE and at the public broadcasters.
Notification is especially short-term in the case of news programmes, which is
frequently due to unforeseen developments in the world. Sometimes interpreters
are only ordered one hour before the broadcast. But also guests of entertainment
programs and talk shows and thus their interpreters as well are invited on
relatively short notice. In contrast, television presenters at ARTE and other events
such as festivals, galas, presidential elections and sporting events are planned a
relatively long time in advance by all broadcasters. Enquiries to interpreters are
frequently made in the form of an option which can, however, also be cancelled
on short notice. One example here is the World Cup, where the need for
interpreters depends on whether a certain team advances.
Even though TV assignments on public television may last several hours or even
an entire day, the net interpreting time in Germany is usually only between 10
and 20 min. The interpreters are frequently requested to arrive several hours
before the actual beginning of the programme and they spend a lot of time
waiting, whether it be at a press conference whose beginning is postponed again
and again, or at assignments where they have to wait for different interview
partners, i.e. at sporting events such as the Olympic Games. In the interviews
with public television interpreters, it was noted that procedures could definitely
be organised in a more efficient manner, and that several hours of waiting
around, which fatigues the interpreters or contributes to their nervousness,
should be avoided.
The length of assignments at ARTE also varies according to the mode and type
of programme, ranging from a few minutes to over one hour.

TV interpreting in Germany 105

2.4 Equipment

Major differences are evident with regards to the technology and equipment used
at ARTE and the public broadcasters. ARTE interpreters at headquarters in
Strasbourg have three sound-proof interpreting booths, each with three
interpreting workstations available for TV interpreting. Each workstation is
equipped with a monitor and an interpreting console with individual headsets
and a microphone designed for television recordings. The interpreters can adjust
the volume of the headsets individually, switch the microphone on and off
themselves and see the picture being broadcast. There is even a “cough” muting
key. Via an additional channel the interpreters have direct contact with the sound
engineers, who are described as helpful and patient, but make significant
demands on the interpreters in the sense that the interpreters are forced to adjust
their microphones and modulate their voice levels in line with the instructions
of the sound engineers. Thus it is important, for instance, to keep a constant
distance to the microphone. The ARTE interpreters expressed their satisfaction
regarding the equipment at the headquarters in Strasbourg.
There are no special booths exclusively used for interpreting by the public
broadcasters. In the booths used the interpreter has a monitor with an image of
the programme. The interpreting consoles are described by the interpreters inter
alia as “home-made” or “makeshift”. In other words, the equipment and the
operation of the equipment varies from assignment to assignment and
broadcaster to broadcaster, which means that the interpreters have to be flexible
and have an ability to adapt. On the whole, the interpreters depend to a high
degree on the sound engineers and their willingness to take the needs of
interpreters into account. Good communication with the sound engineers is
therefore held to be important. This is in line with statements by the programme
editors who for their part have an interest in close collaboration between the
production team, the sound engineers and the interpreters.
Even if the public broadcasting interpreters interviewed indicated that they
were on the whole satisfied with the technical conditions, two specific
suggestions for improvement were made. One interpreter expressed a desire for
interpreters to have more responsibility regarding technical issues, in particular
the possibility of switching on the microphone and going live oneself. Especially
when the sound engineers “are asleep at the wheel”, i.e. when they fail to switch
on the interpreter’s microphone, more control and autonomy on the part of the
interpreter would expedite and improve their work. It was furthermore suggested
that standard operating consoles such as those used in conference interpreting
be used.
The technical conditions at “field” locations, where the interpreter is for
example in the driver’s cabin of the outside broadcast van or in a lorry standing
next to it, appear to be more problematic both at ARTE and the public
broadcasters. Generally speaking, technical problems tend to crop up more often
in such situations. On the whole, technical problems cannot be entirely
eliminated either at ARTE or the public broadcasting companies, however. These
problems are therefore still considered one of the biggest stress factors in TV

106 Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

interpreting, as the public broadcasting interpreters interviewed have confirmed:
“additional excitement or stress is usually related to the equipment”, but:
Having to depend on the attentiveness of a sound engineer who occasionally switches
the mike on too late is also stressful […]. When the sound engineer is somewhere else,
the first part is sometimes simply lost. That is annoying. It doesn’t happen all the time,
but it does every now and then. That means that you are already exasperated when you
start working and still have to stay calm.

2.5 Skills and abilities

Although technical conditions definitely influence the quality of interpreting, it

is primarily a function of the skills and abilities of the interpreters themselves.
Both the interpreters at ARTE as well as those at the public broadcasters were
therefore asked8 what skills an interpreter who would like to work for ARTE or on
public television should have. The answers provided by the ARTE interpreters can
be divided up into six topical areas. Interpreters accordingly have to have an
excellent command of the source language and target language, have a pleasant
voice and presentation, good or excellent reactions – including in order to be able
to minimize the time lag to the speaker (décalage) – an ability to withstand stress,
the possession of cultural knowledge and on the whole an excellent command of
simultaneous interpreting technique.
In the interviews the PB interpreters in particular emphasise the need for a
smooth, even flow of speech, without fillers or interruptions and a calm, pleasant
voice with clear pronunciation and an intonation and emphasis appropriate to
the situation. In their opinion as well, a short décalage and thus the ability to react
quickly are important, as is a broad general education and curiosity. According to
the interpreters, TV interpreters should be aware that they are “in the limelight”
and feel good in such a situation. Keeping cool is held to be another key trait.
In conclusion one can say that both ARTE and PB interpreters interviewed were
in agreement concerning the skills required for TV interpreting.

2.6 Quality-related criteria

Following the study by Kurz/Pöchhacker (1995) on quality criteria from the

perspective of inter alia persons in charge of television programming, the
questionnaire for the ARTE interpreters (cf. Fünfer 2009) contains a list of five
criteria9, whose importance is rated on a scale from 1 (most important criterion)
to 5 (least important criterion). Respondents were only allowed to use each
number once. This rule was only observed by ten interpreters, however. Four
interpreters evaluated some of the criteria in accordance with the rule, while

8 The questions concerning the skills and abilities were in both cases open questions.
9 Pleasant voice (angenehme Stimme); fluency of delivery (flüssige Wiedergabe); logical
cohesion of utterance (logisch zusammenhängender Text); sense consistency with the
original message (inhaltliche Übereinstimmung); native accent (Muttersprachler).

TV interpreting in Germany 107

assigning the same weight to others because they did not feel that they were able
to assign a ranking sequence. Four other interpreters thought that all the criteria
were equally important (cf. Fünfer 2009). The latter were not taken into account
in Diagram 1.
The interviews conducted with the public broadcasting interpreters and editors
did not stipulate such a ranking scale, instead merely requested a “relative”
weighting of fluency, voice and sense consistency10. These three criteria were
selected in order to gain an overall view of the weighting of form and content.
In this analysis we only focussed on the above mentioned three criteria in order
to ensure comparability.

Diagram 1: Assessment of the quality criteria pleasant voice, fluency, sense consistency by
persons in charge of television programming (Kurz/Pöchhacker 1995),
ARTE interpreters (Fünfer 2009), persons in charge of public broadcasting
programming (data collected for the present paper by Andres/Fünfer 2010-
2011) and public broadcasting interpreters (data collected for the present
paper by Andres/Fünfer 2010-2011). Overview of the relative weighting of
the quality criteria. The higher the value, the more important it is.

1. Persons in charge of TV programming (1995) surveyed within the framework

of a study by Kurz/Pöchhacker.
2. Persons in charge of TV programming at public broadcasting television
companies in Germany (2010).
3. TV interpreters surveyed on their work at ARTE (2009). Ranking rules were not
observed.
4.TV interpreters surveyed on their work at ARTE (2009). Ranking rules were
observed.

10 The PB interpreters were asked to weight the importance of content and form, whereby
fluency and pleasant voice were considered as form and sense consistency as content
in order to ensure a better comparability.

108 Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

5. TV interpreters interviewed on their work on public broadcasting television in
Germany (2010). The answers relate to a setting which is of a more political or
informative nature.
6.TV interpreters surveyed on their work on public broadcasting television in
Germany (2010). The answers relate to settings in which priority is assigned to
entertainment (entertainment shows, sporting events).

The assessment by the ARTE interpreters who were only allowed to assign each
weight once and those who in some cases assigned the same weight are not
identical to the results of the study by Kurz/Pöchhacker (1995). While persons in
charge of television programming (1995) emphasised content, the ARTE
interpreters considered the criteria of pleasant voice and fluency of the
presentation to be more important. This could be related to the fact that
interpreters at ARTE are integrated into everyday television production and a
halting presentation over time would be very disturbing. What is not readily
evident from Diagram 1 is that a majority of the ARTE interpreters were of the
opinion that there is a difference compared to conference interpreting
assignments in their weighting of the criteria – thus, they viewed sense
consistency to be more important and the criteria involving the presentation such
as pleasant voice or fluency to be less crucial. A distinction according to setting –
even if within television interpreting and not between television interpreting
and conference interpreting – was also made by the public broadcasting
interpreters (2010), accordingly making different weightings (cf. Diagram 1). It is
interesting that more than 20% of the ARTE interpreters surveyed did not or were
not inclined to assign any weighting. This is mirrored by the weighting assigned
by the public broadcasting editors who ranked the various factors equally, but also
by the public broadcasting interpreters who made a distinction according to the
setting (cf. Diagram 1). It is apparently difficult for all respondents to decide on a
clear weighting. Hence if the interpreters are not able to successfully achieve
sense consistency and fluency of presentation together, and if they are forced as
a result of cognitive overload to make sacrifices of one sort or another, their
decision depends on the genre of the broadcast or the discourse: in the case of an
information programme or political declarations, the content is considered to be
more important than with entertainment programmes or broadcasts of sporting
events in which the “comfort factor” and “consumer capitalism” play a significant
role (cf. Katan/Straniero Sergio 2003: 131). If there are any technical or acoustic
deficits causing the interpreter problems in understanding what is said, there is
a tendency to rely on intuition and, in case of doubt, as one interpreter states in
the survey, “to say something which sounds good in the given situation”.
If one examines the statements made by the public broadcasting editors and
thus those persons in charge of the TV programming (2010) regarding the same
topic in detail, it becomes clear that an orientation towards the target group, i.e.
a presentation which is appropriate for the media and thus a pleasant voice are
considered to be absolutely imperative. The word “pleasant”, which was
mentioned in each of the interviews, is by the same token a rubric for a broad
range of adjectives such as lively, interesting, lovely, credible and clearly
articulated. Fluency in speaking is also part of this. Hesitating noises, so typical of

TV interpreting in Germany 109

spoken language, or slips of the tongue, etc., are frowned upon. At the same time,
however, all of the persons interviewed attached great value to an accurate
interpretation of the original. According to the statements made by the public
broadcasting editors, no television broadcaster can afford to have an interpreter
who interprets beautifully, but incorrectly.
The evaluations of the ARTE interpreters from 2009 who assigned all the criteria
the same weight and those of the public broadcasting interpreters and the public
broadcasting editors from 2010 show that the expectations of everyone involved
have converged as a result of close collaboration in Germany, especially over the
last 15 years – possibly as a result of the increase in TV interpreting. This was also
confirmed by the statements made by the interpreters who were interviewed:
The broadcasting companies have become aware of interpreters. Everything depends
on the various individuals involved, however. While in conference interpreting there
are conference sound engineers, the staff at broadcasting companies usually do not
have anything to do with interpreters. Good will and sensitivity to the situation of the
interpreter are therefore needed as well. There is always a sympathetic ear to be found,
however.

The answers provided by the interviewed public broadcasting interpreters and

public broadcasting editors are, however, diametrically opposed to Mack’s
assertion, referring to the situation in Italy, that “Completeness and even sense
consistency with the original seem to be considered as fairly secondary aspects.
As long as the interpreter’s output sounds coherent and plausible” (Mack 2001:
129f.). Apparently there are specific country-related differences. Audience appeal
appears to play an even greater role in Italy than in Germany.

2.7 Stress factors

Statements made by 12 ARTE interpreters who have also worked for other
broadcasters differed as far as expectations at ARTE regarding the quality of
interpreting is concerned as well as with regard to the question as to whether they
believe that the expectations on the part of ARTE are greater than those for other
broadcasters. While some of the interpreters surveyed answered this question in
the affirmative, others did not believe there was any difference, noting that
demands on TV are greater on the whole.
There was greater unison with regard to the assessment of requirements at
ARTE in comparison to conferences. Two-thirds of the persons surveyed stated
that demands at ARTE are greater – with this applying to language, reactions,
speed, pronunciation, voice, voice-leading, but also with respect to factors specific
to ARTE such as reviews by the Language Service or the editors, who apply higher
standards than conference audiences.
The amount of stress in live recordings was also held to be greater than at
conferences: nine out of twelve interpreters who assessed work at ARTE as being
stressful on the whole made explicit statements in this regard. The reasons they
cited corresponded to those put forward in the literature (cf. Kurz 2002b): no
contact with the audience, large numbers of listeners and no possibilities for
corrections. Out of the five interpreters who described work at ARTE as not being

110 Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

stressful, two of these attributed this to a generally constructive working
atmosphere, a familiar work setting, familiar staff and the fact that performance
on a particular day has less salience when there are regular assignments.
For the public broadcasting interpreters, the stress factors include fast and/or
unclear speakers, the brief length of assignments, which makes it more difficult
to “compensate” for a mistake, and dependence on the decisions of others, who
determine when the broadcast goes live and when the microphone is switched
on. Technical difficulties also cause stress. The rapid change in language from the
foreign into the mother tongue and vice versa, the décalage and the need to
“reduce” associated with this were also cited as factors. The fact that the
interpreting can be followed by an audience in the millions, including other
interpreters, is assessed differently by the interpreters. Two interpreters cited this
as a stress factor, while two others stated that they had only perceived this as
stressful at the beginning of their careers. Two interpreters see their work on TV
in a positive light, on the other hand, and as a type of work which is especially fun
as a result of the challenges involved. Their statements align with Kurz’ finding:
“Fernsehdolmetschen ist für einen Konferenzdolmetscher immer spannend und
befriedigend – vorausgesetzt, er mag Streß, verfügt über gute Nerven, geistige
Wendigkeit und Schnelligkeit und besitzt daneben auch ein gewisses
Improvisationstalent [TV interpreting is always exciting and rewarding for a
conference interpreter – as long as he enjoys stress, has strong nerves, a quick and
agile mind, and in addition possesses a certain talent for improvisation]” (Kurz
2002a: 164). Such an attitude is no doubt helpful in coping with stress. And live
interpreting on television means stress, as measurements of interpreters’ pulses
working live on TV in comparison to interpreters at a medical symposium have
confirmed (cf. Kurz 2002b: 200).

2.8 Feedback and recognition

Interpreting of live broadcasts at ARTE, according to this broadcasting company,

are always supported by a staff member from the Language Service who, however,
is not able to directly intervene in the work. The interpreting performances are
discussed internally in the Language Service afterwards (cf. Moreau in Fünfer
2009). The interpreters frequently receive feedback on their work, but not always.
The latter is explained by one interpreter as follows: “interpreting is an everyday
matter. It is assumed that everything will go well. Nobody comments on normal
everyday work.” It is only when problems crop up repeatedly that the respective
interpreter is approached following an internal discussion at the Language
Service. The interpreters also usually receive feedback from the editors of the
public broadcasters. How detailed this turns out to be depends on the relationship
between the interpreter and the editors and the time pressure on the staff in
general. One interpreter stated that the editors take the time for a briefing and/or
debriefing of the interpreter approximately one out of every ten assignments.
One interpreter also reported having been passed on the reactions from the
audience. On the whole, the interpreters stated that television presenters and
their contact partners express a lot of appreciation and recognition.

TV interpreting in Germany 111

 The representatives of the public broadcasting companies also consider
feedback to be essential, as this improves the quality of interpreting. Moreover,
they firmly advocate a survey of audiences on the quality of the interpreting on
television in order to recognise the needs of the audience more precisely and to
be able to react more effectively to these. But the interests of the interpreters are
also important to them. A majority of those interviewed stated their interest in a
brochure describing the most important aspects of work with TV interpreters in
a short, concise and cogent manner. International rules such as those issued by
the International Professional Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC) on
TV interpreting do not appear to apply in this context, as none of the TV editors
surveyed were aware of them. This means that they are also unaware of the AIIC
demand according to which “interpreters’ names and reference to AIIC must be
shown – this is not a favor but a right, just as it is for electricians, camera-men
etc.”11. Because with interpreting on public television the exploitation rights are
sold as well, all of the interpreters stated that they thought it would be appropriate
to insert the name of the interpreter or to mention them in the credits, as is
generally the case at ARTE. This had already been recognised and put into practice
as far back as 1994 by Horst Friedrich Mayer, the former Director of Aktueller
Dienst at ORF (cf. Mayer 1994: 11). On the other hand, inserting the picture of the
interpreter, as is sometimes the case with football commentators, is felt to be
going too far by all the PB interpreters. They are even of the opinion that this
would be disturbing in the case of a live insert. According to the statements of
those persons in charge of TV programming, it is in the interest of the
broadcasting company to have good interpreters, as they can definitely boost
ratings considerably. That is why the public broadcasting editors interviewed
were also very willing to mention the name of the interpreter “as a sign of
appreciation and motivation”.

3. Prospects

On the whole, it would appear that both people in charge of television

programming and interpreters have very high expectations regarding the quality
of the interpreting product (on this cf. also Kurz 2000: 94). For this reason a
majority of those interviewed also believe that it would be a good idea to institute
an introductory course on TV interpreting in university studies programmes and
in continuing education courses. TV interpreting apparently requires skills which
differ considerably from those needed in conference interpreting. The interviews
and the ARTE survey reveal that these skills are not solely related to the voice
production as stated by Stähle (2009: 54), but also include a wide range of other
factors. Perhaps it is thus time for educational and training institutes to finally
notice which way the wind is blowing, as Ingrid Kurz suggested more than 20
years ago: “Serious thought will have to be given to the development of training
programs for these new media translators/interpreters to help them meet the
challenges of the future” (Kurz 1990: 173).

11 <http://www.aiic.net/viewpage.cfm/article456>.

112 Dörte Andres and Sarah Fünfer

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