more on screwy captions

i think computers closed caption typists use must be programmed to enter frequently-used phrases automatically to speed up the job.

bad idea.

yesterday on c-span2 i heard an interviewed author say something like: teheran sees itself as a hedge against american strategy.

but the closed caption said: teheran sees itself as a healthcare provider against american strategy.

i quoted from memory, so i might not've gotten it exactly, but the main difference is what it was, so i think you see what i mean.

the captions very often have mistakes, and the typos often make the dialogue unintelligible to hearing-impaired viewers or even reverse the meaning by adding or omitting a negative.

it doesn't happen just on noncommercial tv. i've seen plenty of ads with messed up closed captions, including political ads.

you'd think sponsors and candidates would want deaf viewers to be able to read their messages, wouldn't you?