About the network they’re talking about? Doh.

Univisión [pronounced: uniβiˈsjon].

These English-language speakers are so willfully-ignorant of other world languages.

So none of these people at microphones studied español in high school, college or at the university level? What happened to world language requirements in the curriculum?

Español is one of the major world languages, but it seems that nearly everyone parked at a microphone these days has never studied the language — or any other world language for that matter other than their precious US English — so they haven’t a clue how to pronounce any words they encounter or spend their entire programme on from español. And they don’t bother to look up anything or ask around. So they try to pronounce words from español as if they’re English words which is really quite disrespectful to español and Latino and Hispano culture. Unfortunately, I’ve come to expect this constant disrespect although I occasionally feel the need to vent about it. I don’t expect anything to change in this regard.

And again, these people don’t even TRY to pronounce words correctly from other world languages. With some of these people, they might want to give some attention to their US English pronunciation as well.

Consequently, I’ve stopped listening or watching English language broadcasts because there are no language standards any more. Nearly everyone parked at a microphone is completely disrespectful of other world languages. They don’t care how they mangle words or mispronounce things. In fact, they often laugh and find it funny that they sound illiterate of other world languages. They don’t even attempt to pronounce words in other world languages authentically and accurately. This is one of the complaints that Latinos and Hispanos have about the English news anchors in Los Ángeles.

And this is the case not just in the US — where one would expect this — but also in the EU at English language networks.

I’ll have a network on and read the texts on screen. But don’t often have the volume on to keep from being annoyed.

One of the political commentators on YT in the US was talking about the español language network Univisión [pronounced: uniβiˈsjon] and the far-right taking it over after the Mob Boss/DJT met with executives at its parent company, Televisa. My friend was watching the programme but made a point of not having me listen to any of it because even though the topic was an español language network, no one on the programme was pronouncing the name of the network correctly. I assume they were not pronouncing the español surnames correctly either. Sadly, nobody took the time to look it up, research it or even ask a friend who speaks español how to pronounce the name Univisión correctly in español. Nor did they think to call a local español consulate in one’s city and ask for the correct pronunciation as I have done on occasion when I wanted to guarantee the accuracy of my pronunciation of a word from another language.

For years, any time Univisión is talked about in the US on an English language programme — including npr/National Public Radio — Univisión is always mispronounced and instead pronounced as if it’s an English word, so they say it: You-nah-vision. That is incorrect. It’s also incorrect in English. To begin with, the “Uni” part is not “You-nah.” It would be “You-knee” because it’s an “i” sound and not a “a” vowel sound. And the “U” is not “You” stupid people! It’s pronounced like the “oo” in the word moon. So they can’t even get it right in fucking English. Question: Why would they try to use an English pronunciation for the name of an español language network? WTF? And these are people who charade as “liberals” and “progressives.” There was a time where “liberals” and “progressives” had standards and cared about trying to pronounce world languages correctly and authentically. Not these days. They don’t give a fuck. That’s why I’ve written before that “liberals” and “progressives” are not what they used to be. They’ve become an empty shell of their former selves.

Maybe I’m spoiled by being in Orchestra Choruses where there are language standards. Whenever the Orchestra or Symphony Chorus was performing a work written in a non-English language, the Chorus Director always brought in a language coach to train the Chorus in the language we would be performing in to guarantee authenticity of the pronunciation of said language. We didn’t want to read in a review of our performance, “their Russian was awful” or whatever the language was. I remember when the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus performed the Brahms’s EDR with the Berliner Philharmoniker, the reviewer of their performance said, “Their German was better than the German from our Choruses here in Deutschland.”

But these days, language authenticity and consistency is mostly non existent. So for example, at DW-TV and other English networks in the EU, they may say Iran correctly (E-ron). But when it comes to the people of Iran, they call them “E-rain-nian(s).” How do they get “rain” out of “ron” or “ran.” There’s such a disconnect. Even when the reporter in Iran says “Iranian” correctly, back in the studio they do not. They keep mispronouncing it. And one person says it wrong and like sheeple they all copy that person. The people of Iran are E-ron-nians. Just say the name of the country “E-ron” and add “nian” to it. Doh.

The only English language speaker I’ve heard come close to pronouncing Univisión correctly is Amy Goodman of DN! and I think that’s because Juan González probably taught her how to say the name of the network correctly. But she says “Columbia” for “Colombia” so she says the name of the country wrong as if she were saying District of Columbia. Note the different spellings.