Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Pronunciation of al Qaeda Difficult for Americans

Aired August 27, 2002 - 08:57   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

JACK CAFFERTY, CNN ANCHOR: The war on terror has required all of us to learn lots of new words, and some of them aren't easy. Here's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Americans may know who the enemy is, but they don't necessarily know how to pronounce it.

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: There are al Qaeda...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Al Qaeda...

CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: Al Qaeda...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda...

MOOS: For nearly a year, we've been bombarded by the name in headlines, with trips off the tongues of anchors...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda guys...

MOOS: And experts, some of whom combine al Qaeda with al Qaeda.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the link to al Qaeda.

MOOS: No wonder folks are confused.

(on camera): How do you pronounce this?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda.

MOOS (voice-over): You say..

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda.

MOOS: I say...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Al Qaeda.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tomato or tomato.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You like tomato, and I like tomato. Potato, potato, tomato, tomato. Oh, let's call the whole thing off.

MOOS: But there's no calling off this subject, so might as well learn the right way to say it.

AHMED AL EISSAWI, PROFESSOR, NYU: Al Qaeda.

MOOS: Ahmed Al Eissawi teaches Arabic, and agrees this word doesn't come easy to Americans.

AL EISSAWI: We have a letter, it's called the qaaf, and when you try to pronounce this letter, qaaf, qaaf, from here.

MOOS: Saying it is hard enough.

DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, "LATE SHOW": From al Qaeda training camps...

MOOS: But even Letterman would have trouble with these letters.

(on camera): But this is the beginning of the word, right?

AL EISSAWI: Yes, al Qaeda.

NORM GOLDSTEIN, STYLEBOOK EDITOR, AP: The spelling is the tough part because it's a transliteration, which means that you have to translate letters from a different alphabet.

MOOS (voice-over): Norm Goldstein edits the "Stylebook" for the Associated Press. The AP spells it one way, the "New York Times" another.

Remember how President Bush the elder used to pronounce the name of his nemesis?

GEORGE BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: ... to drive Saddam from Kuwait by force.

MOOS: Well, President George Bush Jr. has conquered the name, if not the man.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Saddam Hussein is a threat.

MOOS: Now Americans are faced with another threat.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, Osama.

MOOS: But wait, the FBI's Most Wanted poster spells Osama with a "U."

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Osama bin Laden.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Usama? Why would they call him Usama?

MOOS: That's how he was known in intelligence circles long before September 11, so that's how he's listed in law enforcement data banks.

(on camera): And how do you pronounce his name? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED)

UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: Osama bin Laden.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is a bad (EXPLETIVE DELETED)

MOOS (voice-over): But though our pronunciation may be off...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Al Qaeda.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda?

MOOS: We all know what we're talking about. The word actually means "the base," as in military base. Notice I've managed to avoid saying it throughout this piece.

AL EISSAWI: Say it to me. I am a teacher.

MOOS (on camera): Got you.

AL EISSAWI: So, say al Qa...

MOOS: Qa.

AL EISSAWI: Al Qa, qa, qa.

MOOS: Qa, qa, qa.

AL EISSAWI: Al Qaeda.

MOOS: You say...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Al Qaeda...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I say al Qaeda.

MOOS (voice-over): Al Qaeda, al Qaeda. Makes you want to reach for the Alkaseltzer.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com