The Gist

Unnatural … Pauses in “NPR Voice”

For the … Spiel, a close look at how broadcasters use pauses to sound natural but often accomplish the exact opposite.

Abandon all natural cadence, ye who speak here.

Photo by Matthew Keefe/Flickr

Listen to Episode 365 of Slate’s The Gist:

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On The Gist, should we fear a league of robots taking away our teaching jobs? Slate’s Will Oremus explains why even the smartest teaching tools still need a teacher’s guiding hand. He recently wrote the feature “No More Pencils, No More Books.” For the Spiel, a cadence that many … broadcasters indulge to convey … authenticity.

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