Tool for journalists: Brain, for finding keywords in your audio interviews

Credit: Image by Deepgram

There are a variety of options available for journalists looking to speed up the transcription process, from desktop transcription tools like oTranscribe and Express Scribe, which let users control audio playback as they type, to paid-for web services such as Scribe, Trint and Pop Up Archive, that convert your audio file into text.

But sometimes transcription isn't necessary, and journalists need to go directly to the part of audio they're looking for to add to their story.

That's where Deepgram's Brain comes in, a speech-to-text search engine that uses artificial intelligence to make searching for key quotes and specific points much faster – and it's free for the first million minutes per user.

The tool groups sounds by phonetics, making it easier to search for phrases by they way they sound, even if they are spelled or transcribed incorrectly.

The idea is that journalists use the tool to find keywords and phrases in lengthy audio files, finding the parts they need, without spending time to accurately transcribe everything.

Get started by creating an account with your email address, before uploading your audio file straight from your computer, or pasting a YouTube URL into the tool. Brain can handle over 30 file types, including mp3, wma and wav, up to 400mb.

We've found the tool works best when the audio is clear, with little background noise or wind muffling the sound. After a few seconds, your file will be uploaded, stored in its representation index, and will begin converting the speech into text – you'll see a progress bar at the bottom of the screen.

Click on your file from the list within your account, and start searching for a phrase in the box at the top of the screen. The tool will go through its index, and jump to the matching phrase and time within the transcription.

You'll see how many times that phrase was used in the audio, along with the exact time code – useful if you're going to be editing the audio for a podcast or social video.

When you want to listen to those phrases or words, press the play button at the bottom of the screen, or the shift button on your keyboard. A red dot will appear above the words to track your location. If you'd like to change any of the words or spellings, use your cursor and keyboard to make any corrections.

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