Don’t know about you, but as a copywriter, I’ve always wanted a free transcription service. Now we’ve got one.
I like to have my interviews, consults and video sales letters transcribed for later review and analysis. Normally, I’ll spend several hundred dollars a week for the privilege. But unfortunately, my transcriber’s work load is going to be cut way back, except for the jobs I need her eagle eye accuracy.
What follows could be classified as a hack…
Copywriter’s Free Transcription Service
Use YouTube to Transcribe Your Audio
You can use YouTube to transcribe your audios. How?
Let’s say you have an mp3 audio file. Here’s what you do:
1. Convert your audio file from whatever it is to mp4 format.
2. Uploaded your file as a private YouTube video.
3. And an hour or so later, sometimes the next day, YouTube will transcribe it with a time code.
Pretty nifty. Definitely useful. Here’s the instructional video:
For example, here is the transcription for Obama’s speech from this morning. It’s his speech on the ebola crisis. (No, it’s not perfect, but sometimes good is good enough. And sometimes, time is of the essence.)
Here’s what you get:
0:02
here but billion new this
0:03
and have known this as well as anybody you played a central role
0:07
in our comment in counterterrorism operations you make sure
0:12
our troops pilots get what they need in order to get the job done
0:17
you train forces around the world so countries can take responsibility
0:23
for their own secured the 6th air mobility wing
0:27
is continuously deployed supporting our humanitarian
0:31
and combat operations around around the world
0:34
ready to defend workers is by Eliza
0:39
because
0:42
in uncertain world full a breathtaking change
0:46
the one constant is american leadership
0:49
in a world where technology
0:53
provides a small group The Killers with the ability to do
0:57
terrible harm it is america that has the capacity
1:01
and the will to mobilize the war against terrorists
1:05
including the group in Syria Iraq known as ice our intelligence community
1:12
as I said last week has not yet detected specific plots
1:15
from these tears against America but its leaders have repeatedly threatened
1:18
America and our allies
1:20
and right now these tears pose a threat to the people at the lock
1:24
the people of Syria the broader Middle East including
1:27
and personnel our embassies or consulates our facilities there
1:31
and if left unchecked they could pose a growing threat
1:34
to the United States last month
1:39
I gave the order for military to begin take targeted action against ice
1:43
and since then outbreak pilots and crews
1:47
with your help a good night more than 160 airstrikes against these terms
1:52
because your efforts
1:56
we’ve been able to protect our personnel in our facilities kill
2:00
I saw fighters and given space for Iraqi and Kurdish forces to reclaim
2:05
key territory they’ve helped our partners on the ground break
2:10
ices sieges helped rescue civilians corner
2:13
on a map help save lives
2:17
house innocent men women and children that’s
2:21
what you’ve done going forward as I announced last week we’re gonna
2:28
the great and ultimately destroy us through a comprehensive
2:31
and sustain counter-terrorism strategy weather in
2:36
lock or in Syria these terms will learn the same thing that leaders about kinda
2:41
already know
2:41
we mean what we say. our reach
2:45
is long if you threaten America you’ll find no
2:49
safe haven we will find you eventually the
3:04
but and thus I want to emphasize
3:06
this is not and will not
3:09
be America’s fight along movies we’ve learned over this last decade is
3:16
America to make a decisive difference I want to be clear
3:20
the american forces that have been deployed to Iraq do not and will not
3:25
have a combat mission
3:26
they will support
3:31
iraqi force on the ground as they fight
3:34
for their own country against the stairs as your commander in chief
3:40
I will not commit you and the rest tomorrow and forces to fighting
3:43
in other ground war in rock after a decade
3:49
a massive brown deployments it is more
3:53
affected to use our unique capabilities in support
3:57
partners on the ground so they can secure their own countries futures
4:00
metric only solution that will succeed
4:04
over the long term will usurp power
4:08
we will train and equip our partners we will advise them and we will assist them
4:13
we will lead a broad coalition of countries who have a stake
4:17
in this fight because this is not simply America precisely this is
4:21
the people the region fighting incisal is the world rejecting the brutality a
4:25
vice
4:25
in favor make better future for our children our children’s children
4:29
all up we’re going to do this
4:33
below me one thing we have learned is that
4:37
when we do things alone and the country’s
4:41
the people those countries are doing it for themselves
4:45
as soon as we leave restarted
4:50
same problems we gotta do things different this is why we spent the past
4:57
several weeks building a coalition
4:59
aid in these efforts because we’re leading in the right way
5:03
more nations joins overall more than 40 countries
5:09
have at work assistance to the broad campaign
5:12
against ice some nations will assist from the air
5:17
and already France in the United Kingdom a flying with us overrun
5:21
with others committed to join the seven some nations gay
5:26
help us support the forces fighting these terrorists on the ground and
5:30
already Saudi Arabia has agreed to host our efforts to train and equip
5:34
Syrian opposition force Australian Canada will send military advisers
5:39
to run german paratroopers water training
5:42
other nations have helped resupply arms and equipment forces in Iraq including
5:46
the Kurdish best murder
5:48
their nations agreed to strengthen their support
5:52
what’s new government and to do their part in all the aspects
5:56
the fight against nice and our partners will help
5:59
to cut off by some fun and gather intelligence and stem the flow of
6:03
foreign fighters
6:04
into an hour the Middle East meanwhile nearly thirty nations have helped us
6:10
with humanitarian relief
6:11
to help innocent civilians have been driven from their homes whether they are
6:14
Sunni or Shia
6:15
or Christian or busy or any other religious minorities
6:19
yesterday at the white house. I met with an outstanding american leader retired
6:25
Marine general
6:26
john Allen he worked with Iraqi tribal leaders as they fight to reclaim their
6:30
own communities from terrorists
6:32
and he’s gonna service america special envoy to build import made
6:36
this incredible polish I called on congress to make sure
6:41
you got all the authorities resources you need to get the job done
6:44
but the point is
6:48
we cannot do for the iraqis what they must do for themselves
6:53
we can take the place america partners in securing their own region
6:57
and a better future for their own pp we can do it for them
7:03
but this is an effort that called
7:07
america’s unique abilities and responsibilities
7:12
to lead world is more proud
7:16
and more connected it is America
7:20
has the unique capability to mobilize
7:24
against organization guys in a world
7:30
for love broader social challenges
7:34
it is america has the unique capability and know-how to help contain
7:38
and combat a threat like people
7:41
the epidemic in Africa yesterday on top of all the word you doing to help
7:47
I announced a major boost to our response were establishing a military
7:50
command center in liberia
7:52
at the request to their government to support civilian efforts across the
7:55
region
7:55
Major General Darrell Williams commander army forces in Africa arrived yesterday
8:00
he’s already on the ground
8:01
in our armed forces will bring bear unique unrivaled expertise
8:06
in command and control and logistics and engineering
8:09
including creating an air bridge to get health workers and medical supplies in
8:13
the West Africa faster
8:15
obviously in all our efforts and safety for personal main
8:18
a top priority
8:21
in the nation library one person where this news yes there was report to say
8:25
we have been playing together the disease wiped out of our country
8:29
so the coming up US troops will help us get that done we will be had
8:35
and that’s the store across-the-board
8:39
in there is a hurricane if there is a tie from if there is some sorta crisis
8:44
there’s an earthquake there’s a need for a rescue mission
8:49
when the world is threatened me tell
8:54
calls on america
8:57
even countries a complaint about america
9:01
maybe help who they call
9:04
they call us and then
9:09
America calls on you all the servicemen and women here
9:16
and around the world we ask a lot of and any mission involves risk
9:24
any mission separated from their families
9:30
and sending our service members in harm’s way is not a decision I ever take
9:35
lightly is the hardest decision I make
9:37
as president nothing else comes close i doing only when I know the mission is
9:42
vital to the security of this country that we love
…
You get the idea. Good luck with this! And let me know if it works for you!
PS: There’s also a Firefox add-on where you can download captions/transcript that attached to YouTube Videos in a single click. The file is saved in .srt format that can be used by any mainstream video player.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-caption-downloader/
