Session

Social media dominates modern communication, but what does it mean for translators and interpreters? To consider this question, we will look at social media portrayals of a major Japanese news story from the last decade, the case of Haruko Obokata’s STAP cell discovery. Participants will vote on questions for the translator, ranging from nitty-gritty word choices to editorial and ethical issues, as we look at the difficulties in translating the narrative of an animated news story, how it was actually translated, and how we might like to translate it with 20:20 hindsight (the link for audience-interaction will be https://pollev.com/henrysmith458). The subject matter may a news story on cell biology, but no specific scientific knowledge is required: knowing what “a cell” and “You Tube” mean should be more than sufficient advance knowledge! Social media communication has elements of the performance about it, thus making session an excellent opportunity to address IJET’s “Back stage versus On Stage” theme.