Southern accents, Eastern accents, Northern accents and Ebonics

[AKA_DEUCE_1908]

I am from "The Midwest" and we traditionally do not have accents i.e. did you notice that all news anchors kinda sound alike-that's a midwest "accent", but there is a lot of slang terms used, mostly because our families are migrants from the south. i.e. you will probably never meet someone from Wisconsin whose family isn't orginally from Tennessee, Georgia, Miss. etc.
Anyway, in addressing Ebonics, I feel that it is nothing to be ashamed of, nor should we try to exchange it for "proper English" Ebonics is a testimony to the fact that as much as slavemasters tried, African-Americans were able to retain some forms of ancestral dialouge. We were stripped of our histories, families, prides and identies, and to be able to maintain some form of historical speech is a blessing to our people.
However, the reality is that there is a time and place for all things in which we are comfortable with. I find it inappropriate to use heavy slang in an academic or work enviornment. Furthermore, being from the midwest, where accents don't really exist, it is hard to take someone seriously with a heavy southern or eastern accent.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

I am from "The Midwest" and we traditionally do not have accents

"The Midwest" is a very big place and there are lots of accents to be found there.

I repeat, everyone has an accent. Some are more pronounced than others, some are more common than others, but everyone has an accent.

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

Furthermore, being from the midwest, where accents don't really exist, it is hard to take someone seriously with a heavy southern or eastern accent.

Please tell me that this is supposed to be a joke.

Of course, maybe you're not joking. After all, I have trouble taking someone seriously who posts in bright colors.

[AKA_DEUCE_1908]

I'm not gonna stop with the bright colors anytime soon...anyway, the "neutral" or "newsanchor" accent is exactly what I mean, most people in the Midwest, have a neutral accent-it doesn't make us better, but you have to ask yourself why no matter where in the country a newsanchor is reporting, they seem to sound like midwestners...it's not an elite opinion, because my family orginates from Tennesse, Mississippi and Puerto Rico-a gamut of accents...it's an observation

[DSTCHAOS]

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

I'm not gonna stop with the bright colors anytime soon

Good for you.

I'm sure there's a better green you can use, though.

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

...anyway, the "neutral" or "newsanchor" accent is exactly what I mean, most people in the Midwest, have a neutral accent-it doesn't make us better, but you have to ask yourself why no matter where in the country a newsanchor is reporting, they seem to sound like midwestners...it's not an elite opinion, because my family orginates from Tennesse, Mississippi and Puerto Rico-a gamut of accents...it's an observation

There's a "news anchor" accent because of the appearance of accent neutrality and the ability to be easily understood by whomever. However, this is not to be confused with the absence of an accent or that a "Midwest accent" is not easily detected.

[TrojanWoman]

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

Furthermore, being from the midwest, where accents don't really exist, it is hard to take someone seriously with a heavy southern or eastern accent.

I know if you and I were to get on the phone together right now, you would think that I have an accent and I would definitely think you have an accent. Doesn't make either of us right or wrong, just makes us from different parts of the country.

One more thing . . . I don't think that news anchors in Southern California sound like they are from the midwest

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

Oh, you're one of those Internet Smart Asses huh?

Yeah, right. No, I just have a hard time staying quiet when people say silly things.

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

I know what I'm talking about-the places in the Midwest with accents are either further South, or further North. PERIOD.

I assume since you're cutting "further North" from the Midwest, you've decided that Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota aren't really the Midwest. So what Midwest are you talking about? Chicago? Iowa? Nebraska? Ohio? Missouri? I've heard people from all of them with accents.

Originally Posted by AKA_DEUCE_1908

...anyway, the "neutral" or "newsanchor" accent is exactly what I mean, most people in the Midwest, have a neutral accent-it doesn't make us better, but you have to ask yourself why no matter where in the country a newsanchor is reporting, they seem to sound like midwestners...it's not an elite opinion, because my family orginates from Tennesse, Mississippi and Puerto Rico-a gamut of accents...it's an observation

But it's an overgeneralized observation. I have heard plenty of anchors in the South who do not sound like midwesterners.

Everyone who speaks has an accent. An accent is nothing but the way in which words are pronounced. The "newsanchor speak" you keep talking about is more commonly known as "General American" or "Standard Midwestern" (or even "American Broadcast English"). It is an accent; it's just the accent that is perceived to be the most homogenous and free and regional distinctives, but it is an accent -- a way of pronunciation.

Originally Posted by DSTCHAOS

What's the place where the "news anchor accent" stems from? There are a few states that claim they have a neutral accent.

According to The Telsur Project (as reported on The Wiki), it's eastern Nebraska, southern and central Iowa and western Illinois.