Fact · Transcription
The Minnesota Historical Society guide says the first draft of an oral history transcript should be a nearly verbatim copy of the interview.
Checked against its source on October 17, 2026
In the source's own words
“One rule of thumb is that the initial draft of the transcript should be a nearly verbatim copy of the recorded interview.”
Transcribing, Editing and Processing Guidelines, Minnesota Historical Society, Oral History Office, Minnesota Historical Society, 2001, Section 1, Introduction.
Open the original- What it measures
- The guide separates the transcription step from the editing step, so that an editor can decide what to clean up later.
- What it does not show
- A house guide from one oral history office. The guide also says practice varies across oral historians.