Did 'Wheel of Fortune' Cheat a Contestant Over an Accent?

[roddma]

Did Wheel of Fortune cheat a contestant over an accent? I do not really know what to think on this one. In some ways, if the 'G' is dislayed the entire word should be pronounced without omitting a letter. It is going to be an incorrect reposnse unless there is an indication to say otherwise.

http://tv.msn.com/tv/article.aspx?news=781630

[Mela99]

That's pretty ridiculous. It shouldn't be a requirement for perfect diction and enunciation.

[Abi]

:? That's absolutely ridiculous!

[Deleted06]

That's pretty ridiculous. It shouldn't be a requirement for perfect diction and enunciation.

What would your take on the word "ask" be? Some people pronounce it correctly, others say "ax."

[Boogalou]

What would your take on the word "ask" be? Some people pronounce it correctly, others say "ax."

Ax is still correct. Pronouncing it ax is an accent just as pronouncing it ask is an accent. There is no one accent that is correct.

[patsymae]

A long time ago on Wheel of Fortune the guy lost the grand prize because he pronounced Milan as My-lan and not Mi-Lahn. There is a Milan in Ohio pronounced MY-an. In any case, I think the guy got cheated.

[Guest Anonymous]

They should pay out to both of them in order to generate some good publicity. (And to do the right thing, but that might not be foremost in their minds).

[BlondeAgent007]

They should pay out to both of them in order to generate some good publicity. (And to do the right thing, but that might not be foremost in their minds).

For some people, "generating good publicity" and "doing the right thing" are synonymous :roll: . Hopefully this is the case here and they get their prizes.

[Guest Anonymous]

For some people, "generating good publicity" and "doing the right thing" are synonymous :roll: . Hopefully this is the case here and they get their prizes.

Yeah, not sure why the eye roll - I would expect many people to do that, but this is a TV company, isn't it?

[Conuly]

What would your take on the word "ask" be? Some people pronounce it correctly, others say "ax."

Both pronunciations ultimately are derived from the word "acsian", which had a variant pronunciation "ascian". While one is more stigmatized today, neither can really be said to be more correct than the other.

In some ways, if the 'G' is dislayed the entire word should be pronounced without omitting a letter

Quick note on phonetics, which most nearly everybody will ignore: The phonogram "ng" represents one sound, not two. People who pronounce that sound in certain contexts as a dental nasal (n) instead of a velar nasal (ŋ) are not "omitting" anything, they are simply using a less common and less prestigious phoneme (sound) when saying certain words. Saying words like walking or talking with a g at the end is itself dialectical and, given that it is associated with NYC accents, it is safe to say it is stigmatized. (Ironically, because we all know that the only people who really speak English correctly are New Yorkers, right? :P )

I am too lazy to find a decent source right now, but I'll drop the Wikipedia link on what is termed g dropping.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G_dropping#G-dropping

[JesusFightClub]

That's completely stupid. It was utterly comprehensible what she said.

Remind me never to go on a TV show, I've got the London glottal stop, Scots phrasing "is it not that you can't" and vernacular shit like "aye", "Och no", "innit". So I suppose I'm not posh enough to win a game show.

Seriously, there wasn't anyone there who didn't know what she said, was there? That was insulting towards that woman, who answered correctly but was penalised on class.

[StarrieEyedKat]

Both pronunciations ultimately are derived from the word "acsian", which had a variant pronunciation "ascian". While one is more stigmatized today, neither can really be said to be more correct than the other.

Quick note on phonetics, which most nearly everybody will ignore: The phonogram "ng" represents one sound, not two. People who pronounce that sound in certain contexts as a dental nasal (n) instead of a velar nasal (ŋ) are not "omitting" anything, they are simply using a less common and less prestigious phoneme (sound) when saying certain words. Saying words like walking or talking with a g at the end is itself dialectical and, given that it is associated with NYC accents, it is safe to say it is stigmatized. (Ironically, because we all know that the only people who really speak English correctly are New Yorkers, right? :P )

I am too lazy to find a decent source right now, but I'll drop the Wikipedia link on what is termed g dropping.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G_dropping#G-dropping

*Is fascinated* I was the girl watching My Fair Lady, wishing they would go into Professor Higgin's/Colonel Pickering's profession more.

[roddma]

No matter their rules, these game shows are ridiculous at times. They should have her back on or pay her something. At th eleast, they could warn someone to pronounce the whole word next time. On Jeopardy, if they forget to answer in the form of a question on Round 1, they will accept one time.

[Conuly]

*Is fascinated* I was the girl watching My Fair Lady, wishing they would go into Professor Higgin's/Colonel Pickering's profession more.

Well, if you want a quick intro, you can do worse than the Language Construction Kit over at zompist.com. It's really for conlangers, not linguists, but unsurprisingly the two overlap.