ASL mavens-- does the woman doing the signing here seem angry? I'm far from an expert, but...

[TreasonousBastard]

she seems a bit overactive distracting.

[Judi Lynn]

1. Jeez, I noticed her earlier tonight, too. She's really going for broke, isn't she?

I have NEVER seen one of them get so over-involved dramatically with their job. She seems drunk, or something!

It definitely distracts from the Governor, who is being very low-key as she speaks, as the content is intense enough. What the interpreter is doing is simply bizarre, and someone needs to talk to her about it.

I imagine the Governor might want to have a word with her if she sees the video.

Thanks for mentioning this situation. It really bothered me earlier.

(The Gov. also had another woman who did the job during the day in another video, and she was completely normal and appropriate.)

[PatSeg]

2. Ridiculously distracting

This has become more common lately, where the signer looks to be intentionally stealing the show. It is very annoying.

[BusyBeingBest]

3. LOL, I don't know when it became a thing for them to emote and act out what the speaker

is saying, but she was quite the sideshow there.

[lettucebe]

14. To emote and act out has always been a thing

Expressions are a huge part of sign language

[BusyBeingBest]

15. I don't think so--not to this extent. This is really exaggerated.

[Autumn]

16. Expression is a very big part of signing, it always has been. If you have ever been in a group of

people signing the silence is "very loud."

[safeinOhio]

4. I was thinking how much fun it was

to watch her. Kind of think she was really communicating the message.

[North Shore Chicago]

5. She

obviously loves her job.

[GreenPartyVoter]

6. Facial expression is tone of voice. Some signs, like questions that can't be answered yes or no,

require lowered eyebrows.

[mercuryblues]

7. SL interpreters use facial expression to

inject tone into their language. Sign language is a visual language that includes facial expressions. It may seem silly and distracting to you, but it can mean life or death for a hearing impaired person.

For us who can hear, we can tell when she is speaking with seriousness, anger, support, gratitude or compassion by her tone. We don't need to use facial expressions to portray that. Hearing impaired need visual clues to help put her speech into context.

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/11/why-great-sign-language-interpreters-are-so-animated/264459/

[ColoradoBlue]

8. I am not Deaf

but I work for a Center for Independent Living, which helps people with disabilities live more independently. I don't know ASL but I have several Deaf coworkers and have learned a lot from them about ASL. What others have said here is correct. ASL is a different language, with its own grammatical structure and syntax. The interpreter is not literally using a sign for every word the governor is saying. She is listening to the governor and then translating it into a different language, like one might do for French or Russian. In this language, facial expressions are absolutely vital to being able to understand tone, context, etc. Here in Colorado, many people asked why our governor's ASL interpreter wasn't wearing a mask during his briefings. His office explained that if she wore a mask, many things would literally be lost in translation.

Having said that, I don't know how good this particular signer is. Hopefully, one of our Deaf members will chime in.

[Solomon]

9. Lol. I didn't want to be the one to say it. Whitaker definitely needs a new

signer. Not a good look. At all.

[gibraltar72]

10. She is my Governor

She was showing exactly how I feel. How my friends feel. Let's call it her outdoor voice.

[gibraltar72]

11. She is my Governor

She was showing exactly how I feel. How my friends feel. Let's call it her outdoor voice.

[BillE]

12. The interpreter was good

Facial expressions are an important part of ASL. She was clear and easy to understand. The facial expressions set the tone of the speaker and give clear context of the speech.

[Lars39]

13. I thought she did a fine job of conveying the rage of Gov. Whitmer

[cwydro]

17. I agree.

She’s good.