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Do you speak American? [videorecording] / producer & director, William Cran ; writers, William Cran & Robert MacNeil ; producer, Christopher Buchanan ; a MacNeil/Lehrer & Paladin InVision Production with Thirteen/WNET New York in association with KLRU Austin, Texas.

Cran, William. (Added Author). MacNeil, Robert, 1931- (Added Author). Buchanan, Christopher. (Added Author). MacNeil/Lehrer Productions. (Added Author). Paladin InVision, Ltd. (Added Author). WNET (Television station : New York, N.Y.) (Added Author). KLRU (Television station : Austin, Tex.) (Added Author). Films for the Humanities & Sciences (Firm) (Added Author). Cameraman, Allan Palmer ; editor, Joe Frost ; composer, Paul Foss. (Cast).
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Available copies

  • 3 copies at The Center Library.

Current holds

0 current holds with 3 total copies.

Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Status Due Date
The Center Library 409 73 Cra VIDEO v. 1 144127 Video Available -
The Center Library 409 73 Cra VIDEO v. 2 144128 Video Available -
The Center Library 409 73 Cra VIDEO v. 3 144129 Video Available -

Record details

  • ISBN: 9781421308661 (set : from pub. website)
  • ISBN: 1421308665 (set : from pub. website)
  • ISBN: 9781421308678 ([v. 1] : from pub. website)
  • ISBN: 1421308673 ([v. 1] : from pub. website)
  • ISBN: 9781421308685 ([v. 2] : from pub. website)
  • ISBN: 1421308681 ([v. 2] : from pub. website)
  • ISBN: 9781421308692 ([v. 3] : from pub. website)
  • ISBN: 142130869X ([v. 3] : from pub. website)
  • Physical Description: 3 videodiscs (ca. 60 min. each) : sd., col. ; 4 3/4 in.
  • Publisher: Princeton, NJ : Films for the Humanities & Sciences, [2008]

Content descriptions

General Note: Episode titles from container.
Originally aired on television in 2005.
Includes weblinks.
Formatted Contents Note: [v. 1] Up North -- [v. 2] Down South -- [v. 3] Out West.
Creation/Production Credits Note: Cameraman, Allan Palmer ; editor, Joe Frost ; composer, Paul Foss.
Participant or Performer Note: Reporter: Robert MacNeil.
Summary, etc.: Examines sociolinguistic questions and the dynamic state of American English, a language rich in regional variety, strong in global impact, and steeped in cultural controversy. Episode one discusses linguistic dialect zones, the tension between prescriptivism and descriptivism, the impact of dialect on grapholect, the northern cities vowel shift, the roots of African-American English, minority linguistic profiling, biases against nonstandard speech, and the general perception of the U.S. Midland dialect as "normal American." Looks at hip-hop street talk, IM slang, Pittsburghese, and Gullah and Geechee. Episode two reviews Southern dialects and accents and the influences of French and Spanish on American English. Examines regional differences in vernacular, the steady displacement of Southern coastal dialect by inland dialect, the accents of JFK and LBJ, and the Texas border town of El Cenizo, where Spanish is the official language. Episode three looks at Spanglish, Chicano, Ebonics, and "Surfer Dude." Discusses the implications of voice-activation technology, opinions on the role of Spanish in the U.S., why teens create their own language, gay self-empowerment by redefining discriminatory terms, the oo-fronting sound shift, and whether technology will reinforce or weaken racial and regional stereotypes.
System Details Note: Enhanced DVD.
DVD-ROM player required to access weblinks.
Language Note: Closed-captioned.

Search for related items by subject

Subject: English language > United States.
English language > Dialects > United States.
Genre: Television programs.
Documentary television programs.
Video recordings for the hearing impaired.

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