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UK's hierarchy of accents: 'I thought mine made me sound stupid'

BBC
Summary
Nutrition label

83% Informative

More than a third of over 1,000 university students surveyed said they felt self-conscious about their accents.

47% said they'd had their accent mocked, criticised or commented on in a social setting.

Sociologists say there is a "hierarchy of accents" in the UK , with accents from Glasgow and Birmingham often seen as low status.

Accent bias can affect the impression candidates make in job interviews and how believable witnesses are seen as in the dock.

Sociolinguists say there are some signs of improvement, pointing to the wider range of accents now heard on radio and TV news broadcasts.

There are initiatives set up to raise awareness of accent bias by encouraging people to share their experiences.

VR Score

91

Informative language

92

Neutral language

84

Article tone

informal

Language

English

Language complexity

47

Offensive language

offensive

Hate speech

not hateful

Attention-grabbing headline

not detected

Known propaganda techniques

not detected

Time-value

medium-lived

Source diversity

1

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