Bernard Bierman’s Translation News

I have been clearing out a lot of papers – hence the putting online again of the Geoffrey Perrin articles and one by me – and I came across the October 1995 issue of Translation News, a journal that posted news about the industry from 1989 to 1995 – the October 1995 issue was the last-but-one. That news often concerned the US scene. I encountered Bernie on Compuserve’s FLEFO in the early 1990s. It was an exciting time.

I am glad to say that the New England Translators Association is in the process of putting the whole of Translation News online.

Translation News (TN) was a newsletter published regularly by Bernard Bierman between November 1989 and December 1995. At its peak it had a little over a thousand subscribers and was undoubtedly read by many more. TN specialized in reporting and opinion pieces about issues of concern to translators and interpreters on a national level. It offered an informed glimpse into the inner workings of the major translator trade organizations and was a must for anyone wanting to keep up-to-date with the field. Unlike the various house organs, it never shied away from controversial issues. Taken as a whole, Translation News is a unique and important historical document of translation in the United States just before the Internet began to come into widespread use.

Because of this historical significance, the New England Translators Association (NETA) is pleased to make available the entire run of Translation News in searchable PDF form. We are indebted to Bernie Bierman and Rosene Zaros (the custodian of Mr. Bierman’s translation-related papers) for supplying all of the editions, and to Brand Frentz for contributing six very scarce early editions in mint condition (Vol. I Nos. 2-7, 1989-1990).

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