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“Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio), the Speaker of the House, apologized for a closed-caption gaffe at the Code Talkers ceremony on Wednesday.
As representatives of 33 tribes were being presented with the Congressional Gold Medal, the word “Alcoholic” was displayed on a screen in front of the entire audience. Apparently, the person who was transcribing the event misheard the word “Choctaw.”
“Closed captioning services for all major congressional events are provided by a private company that has no affiliation with the House or Senate. Unfortunately, the individual transcribing today’s event apparently mis-heard the word “Choctaw.” The transcription company was given a list of the tribes before the ceremony, so this should not have happened, and we will make a full inquiry,” Michael Steel, a spokesperson for Boehner, told Indian Country Today in an e-mail.“
Obviously, the Speaker deeply regrets this offensive error by the transcribing service,” Steel added.ICT said it was trying to contact the private company that provided closed-captioning service for the event.”
– Indianz.com, Rep. Boehner apologizes for closed-caption gaffe at ceremony.
“Yesterday during the Code Talker Gold Medal Ceremony, a closed caption screen situated in full view of the entire audience displayed the word “Alcoholic” during the medal presentations to each tribe in attendance.”
– Indian Country Today, A Tribe Named Alcoholic? Closed Caption Gaffe at Code Talker Ceremony.
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Indian Country 52
Indian Country 52 is a weekly project by David Bernie that uses the medium of posters that promote issues and stories in Indian Country.
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