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Article published In: Target
Vol. 38:1 (2026) ► pp.51–83

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A mixed-methods analysis of the translation of quotations in international news dispatches

ORCiD logo with link | University of Turku
ORCiD logo with link | University of California, Berkeley
Published online: 16 September 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/target.24133.huo
Abstract
This article builds on the dynamic field of research on news translation. It presents a mixed-methods analysis of a parallel corpus of news agency dispatches to further our understanding of how news is translated and the factors influencing the translation strategies which are used. It focuses on the translation of quotations in news agency dispatches that are translated from English into French. The results of quantitative and qualitative analyses of a parallel corpus of source and translated dispatches underscore the importance of quotations in news agency dispatches. However, they also show that quotations can be cut as news is translated and what determines whether quotations will be lost or retained in the translation process. The study emphasizes the need for mixed-methods approaches and calls for more comparative research on news translation.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Corpus and methodology
  • 3.Dispatch-level analysis
    • 3.1The presence of quotations
    • 3.2Quotations in translation
      • 3.2.1Typology of the translation of quotations at dispatch level
      • 3.2.2The exceptional case of the addition of quotations
      • 3.2.3The loss and retention of quotations
  • 4.Translation strategies applied to quotations
    • 4.1Preservation and omission of quotations
    • 4.2Substitution and addition of quotations
  • 5.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
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