Grammar and punctuation errors
Punctuation should be added to verbatim transcripts. Differences in punctuation should be scored.
Missing question marks are usually scored BE. The viewer can tell from the word order that a question has been asked. But they have to stop for a moment because the “?” is omitted. This is an interruption. A BE should be scored. A BE is also scored if a period replaces a comma and breaks up a sentence.
There are few complete sentences in play-by-play audio. There may only be an “…” or a “-” between phrases. The meaning is usually not affected. The caption reader does not have to pause to understand.
A missing comma that is included in the verbatim transcript will often make no difference in meaning. So CE may be appropriate to score. Misplaced or missing apostrophes often change the meaning of words. Sometimes a missing apostrophe can be understood. Then it is an interruption and is scored BE.
Spoken audio does not always follow the rules of grammar. Captions with the same incorrect grammar as the verbatim are not errors. Captions do not correct the grammar of the audio. But an edit that corrects the grammar of the audio and retains the meaning is scored CE.
Grammatical errors created by the captions may change meaning. Or they may cause a pause in the viewer’s reading flow. So they may cause BEs or other errors. If the grammatical error is a common usage that does not interrupt reading or change meaning, it may be CE.
Meaning and sounds
Some sounds – like “Uh” and “Um” – are not meaningful words. If they are omitted it does not affect the meaning. If they are in the verbatim transcript, it is scored CE.
But some non-words are meaningful sounds. Their omission from the captions is meaningful. Sounds like [laughter] or [applause] are part of the hearing experience. They should be in the verbatim transcript. Their omission may be OMM or OD depending on the context. If noted or understood from other captions, the evaluator may score the omission as CE.
When sounds cover speech, the missing words are not part of the hearing experience. They will not be in the verbatim transcript. It is not an error when they are not in the captions.
Throw-away words and quips
Quips and banter may be important to the show experience. Light comments may also be meaningful.
Phrases like “You know,” “Thanks for your report,” or “Thanks, Erika” may be included in the verbatim but add no meaning. Omitting them is CE.