Why High-Quality Transcription is Critical to Monitoring for Sporting Misconduct
Sporting scandals make headlines. But behind the scenes, regulators and governing bodies are carrying out painstaking investigations to try to ensure sports stay clean. Here’s how high-quality transcription services help sports regulators tackle doping, cheating, and other sporting misconduct.
Sports scandals – doping, match-fixing, illegal gambling, fraud, racism, and other misconduct – are as old as the sport itself, from the infamous 1919 World Baseball Series to the financial mismanagement at Saracens Rugby Union Football Club uncovered by Premiership Rugby.
It’s the role of sports regulators and governing bodies to set out the rules and regulations. And while rules are not legally binding, regulations are, and governing bodies work in tandem with the legal profession to enforce them.
Every scandal uncovered is the culmination of months, or sometimes years, of careful investigation. The financial and reputational stakes are so high that these disputes frequently end in court, so the investigation itself must be transparent, impartial, rigorous, and consistent. In other words, watertight.
No matter what an investigation is looking into, the evidence of witnesses, including officials, spectators, and athletes, is crucial. As part of their preparatory work, regulators may record interviews with key individuals before moving on to a formal hearing in which further evidence is heard. Both the preparatory interviews and the hearing proceedings need to be transcribed.
Transcription providers can draw on experience working with police forces, the CPS, financial watchdogs, and government departments to supply highly accurate official written records that are court ready.
Clients can choose from a range of services, from a verbatim transcript capturing every sound to a summary of the key points. Good providers also offer transcripts in different formats as well as foreign language transcription, interpreting, and translation, either in person or via video link.
There are many advantages to working with an experienced transcription company for this type of investigation, including:
- Quality – most good providers are certified to ISO 9001 and have rigorous processes for checking quality and ensuring continuous improvement.
- Capacity – established transcription providers can take on large volumes of work and respond at short notice. They can also return transcripts fast, if necessary.
- Security – leading companies should be used to dealing with confidential material and have externally accredited information handling systems.
Doubts about the rigor of an investigation into sporting misconduct can have serious consequences. For one thing, the findings could be successfully challenged, weakening the regulators’ authority for the future. And if faith in a (usually self-appointed) governing body is shaken, external intervention can follow, as in the case of the Leveson Inquiry, which aimed to hold the British press to account for a perceived failure to regulate itself.
Above all, by working with a provider, transcription services help sports regulators ensure their investigation has integrity. Given how much is at stake, that feels like an open goal.
To find out more about how Appen works with sports regulators and governing bodies contact: enquiries.exeter@appen.com
