Translation: from mediation to gatekeeping and agenda-setting

Abstract

This article considers the concept of mediation with regards to the practice of translation. The first section provides examples from various historical periods. The following sections link translation to the concept of gatekeeping in communication studies. This involves a number of agents, who make decisions concerning what material can be published and in what form. Thus, translations may result from ideological decisions which, as the case study shows, do not generate the expected response on the part of the intended audience. The final discussion introduces the concept of agenda-setting, widely used in communication studies, and is closely related to gatekeeping. Este artículo examina el concepto de mediación con relación a la práctica de la traducción. En la primera sección se ofrecen ejemplos de diferentes periodos históricos. En la siguiente se introduce el concepto de "gatekeeping". Esta función la llevan a cabo diferentes agentes que deciden qué material debe publicarse. Estas decisiones se toman a menudo en base a razones ideológicas que, como muestra el estudio de caso, no suscitan necesariamente el interés de la audiencia a quien van dirigidos los textos. En la última sección se presenta el concepto de "agenda-setting", íntimamente ligado a "gatekeeping".

Language perceptions and use among (TV) journalists in multilingual Belgium: how pragmatic realities affect the idealized benchmark of bilingualism

“…Translation, an essential element of the gatekeeping process (Perrin et al, 2017; Valdeón 2020; 2021) tends to be perceived as part of the job – albeit a strenuous and time-consuming one – of a journalist in a multilingual country, or organisation (Bassnett and Bielsa, 2009). The reporters at RTBF and VRT are ‘journalators’, a term Van Doorslaer (2012) coined to qualify the (abundant) use of individual and invisible translations when preparing journalistic texts.…”

“…Valdeón dubs the role of translation in news production a ‘first-level gatekeeping mechanism’ (2020), involving several agents, who make decisions concerning what material can be published and in what form. Indeed, Valdeón shows that translations may result from ideological decisions, which do not generate the expected response on the part of the intended audience (2021). The Canadian situation exemplifies how translation can play a key role in the gatekeeping process.…”

Mediation in FL learning

“…Mediation is largely seen as a positive force, and the same applies to translation. However, in addition to positive functions of a mediating task, intermediaries can also misuse their skills (Valdeón 2021). Therefore, any teaching framework would do well to implement checks and balances to ensure ethical behaviour.…”

Resolving Constraints in Translating Modifiers in Mungaka Oral Folktales into English

“…According to Bandia (1993), the languages and cultures are non-related, and the translation is mainly from oral texts to written forms and from one language culture to another alien language culture. This has perhaps led to the rather pessimistic stance by some critics that orality cannot be successfully translated into written languages without losing meaning (Nnamani & Amadi, 2015;Joshi, 2018), thereby invalidating to an extent the historical role of translation in mediating between languages and cultures (Murray, 2005;Katan, 2009;Liddicoat, 2016;Valdeón, 2021). Positivists, however, advocate for meticulousness in the choice of translation approaches to guarantee the quality of the translated material.…”