Press Conference Interpreting From The Perspective Of Interpretive Theory

As a vehicle for the delivery of information and policies of the government, the development of press conference has been attached more and more importance since the government agencies of all levels vigorously promote its institutionalization in 2003. In China, the regular and standardized news-release system in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is a great success. In addition, during the annual NPC and CPPCC on March, the Chinese Premier of the State Council and the Foreign Minister would meet the journalists, introduce the policies, standpoints and measures of the Chinese government and answer their questions about the concerns of the media and the general public they represent. Such press conferences have not only raised higher demand for interpreters, but also provided a new area of research, that is, press conference interpreting (PCI).Being a sub-category of interpreting, press conference interpreting possesses distinctive features for its unique occasions. In terms of content, in addition to being closely related to politics, diplomacy, economy and other issues concerning the well-being of the general public, the addressors of the press conference are authoritative, and there are two types of audience at the conference—direct audience and indirect audience. In terms of language style, press conference interpreting is characterized by being formal, accurate and euphemistic.Absorbing the research fruits of psychology, neuropsychology and other disciplines, Interpretive Theory formulated the Triangular Model and the procedure of interpreting. With Interpretive Theory as theoretical basis, the author expands the scope of interpreting procedure by claiming that the broad sense of interpreting process can be divided into three stages, including the preparation before the PCI, Interpreting for the press conference and and the interpreter's self-evaluation and field notes after the PCI. The narrow sense of interpreting procedure just refers to the stage of interpreting for the press conference and it is what the interpreting procedure stands for of Interpretive Theory. The preparation for terms, vocabulary and topics that may be covered in the coming interpreting task is crucial to the interpreter, so is the psychological preparation. A careful and comprehensive preparation is a prerequisite for a successful interpreting task and a guarantee for high-quality interpretation. Self-evaluation is a stage where the interpreter retrospects and corrects the imperfection of the interpreting assignment he/she has just finished in order to accumulate knowledge and explore appropriate interpretation. The on-site interpreting is the most important stage and can be regarded as a dynamic and independent process which can be further divided into four steps including listening and receiving of the source language, taking down the main information, processing and remembering of the written-down information in short-term memory and the re-expression in target language. The whol process needs cooperation and coordination of several human organs, such as ears, brain, hands and mouth. Therefore, to have an excellent interpreting performance, the interpreter, in addition to a good command of working language, a comprehensive understanding of traditional and modern Chinese history and culture, must have other required qualifications such as keeping pace with current affairs, having strong political sensitivity and keeping in mind the policies and principles of the Chinese government for the comprehension of the speaker and the rendition of an appropriate interpretation. In this way, the interpreter can present the journalists a better picture of China, enable them to make a positive and objective news coverage, and eventually achievie the purpose of press conference interpreting.