WHO IS HIRING STENO MASK REPORTERS?

[JiLL]

ANYONE?

[Adam D. Miller]

Depends where you are.

[Jennie Ann]

Hi, Jill! Stenomask reporters are prevalent in the Metropolitan D.C. Aarea. I think we have more stenomask reporters in our area than elsewhere in the country, but I may be wrong.

There are quite a few court reporting companies who utilize the services of stenomask reporting method, in addition to stenotype and electronic recording.

Sometimes it is helpful to freelance for a while, gaining experience and knowledge of who's who in the community. You may not receive premium rates starting out, but if you make yourself available, don't cherry-pick your assignments, and are dependable, there will be more work than you can shake a stick at.

It is tough to get your foot in the door sometimes. However, with hard work, you can get there.

[Jennifer Miller]

I'm not sure which state you're in, but there's an agency called Sargent's Court Reporting in PA. They are located all throughout the State of Pennsylvania. I know they have mask reporters, although I'm not sure if they're hiring. You could always give them a call. [phone].

[Kelli Combs (admin)]

n my 9 year career, I have never seen one in California

Every time someone mentioned it to me, I always imagined a Darth Vader effect to it.
you know, the breathing thingy... not sure why.

[Jennie Ann]

LOL! I must admit, the vision of Darth Vader is funny.

The Bobbitt trial is probably one of the most famous proceedings that utilized the stenomask method. I get another visual when I hear the word "Bobbitt." LOL!

Here is a link to the stenomask organization: NVRA

There's a couple firms in D.C. advertising: Classified Ads on NVRA site

Senate and Hill uses stenomask method, in addition to stenotype, for committee and subcommittee hearings.

[Patricia Babits]

When I took the CSR about five years ago, they were letting voice writers test for an experiment. As far as I know, they still aren't being used here, though. I think they all did pass the CSR.

[Kwanna Collins]

Hi Monti. I am still a student and unfamiliar with some of the positions offered in court reporting. What is steno mask reporting?

Thanks

[Kelli Combs (admin)]

I am sorry, since I dont know exactly how "steno mask reporters" operate I will have to leave it to someone else to give you a better input.
I know that instead of typing on a steno machine you speak softly into a mask? not sure how exactly it eventually makes its way into a paper record.

[Jennie Ann]

Before voice recognition technology came to the fore, the stenomask method was an electronic audiotape recording, recorded on two channels.

So, back in the days of audiotapes, a transcriptionist would take the two-channel tape and then place it in the transcriber machine that had been converted to two channels. The transcriptionist then begins typing on a QWERTY keyboard, with headphones hooked into the tape transcriber machine, in order to produce the transcript.

Today, the stenomask technology has gone digital, and they have a sophisticated voice recognition system. They can produce transcripts real time, with the software producing the transcript from their voice. It must be scoped, though, for all untranslates.

[Jennie Ann]

There are three methods of creating a record: stenotype, stenomask, and electronic recording.

Actually, there is a fourth, pen writing, but it is not as prevalent as it used to be. Pen writing used to be quite popular in the '50s. My father put himself through law school as a pen writer, and until about 15 years ago, there was a pen writer who worked in the U.S. House of Representatives producing transcripts.

The stenomask method is an electronic recording on two channels. One channel is the actual live hearing being recorded, and on the other channel is the stenomask channel, where a person repeats every single word spoken by all parties in the proceedings.

There is a toggle switch on the transcriber machine when it comes time to produce the transcript. When you move the toggle switch to channel one, you can only hear the live hearing. When you move the toggle switch to the second channel, you can only hear the stenomask's voice repeating every word spoken. They are speaking softly, sometimes whispering.

They place the stenomask over their mouth, so it is not intrusive to the hearing. This comes in handy if somebody coughs or makes noises, obliterating what is being said, as the stenomasker can repeat the words.

The technology for stenomasking has come a long way. They have developed a voice recognition system, much more sophisticated than "Dragon." The stenomasker develops their own dictionary with brief forms. It is quite effective and can product transcripts efficiently.

The Lorena Bobbitt trial in the Virginia court system had a stenomask reporter. Stenomask reporting is very popular in Washington, D.C., as well as stenotypy and electronic reporting. Though one out of every 100 persons in D.C. is a lawyer, the majority of work here is not legal proceedings. There are numerous large conferences, focus groups, press briefings, think-tank group meetings, speeches, House and Senate committees/subcommitees, et cetera. D.C. is a paper town, and the demand for competent reporters is plentiful.