Preparing Your Interview Transcripts

This section guides you through the process of transforming traditional interview transcripts into structured CSV files that can be used with the Oral History as Data platform.

Key Steps

• Clean your transcript text (remove formatting artifacts, normalize for web display)
• Create a CSV with columns: speaker, words, tags, timestamp
  • The only required column is words
• Each row = one paragraph on the page
  • Break up overly long rows!
• Save as CSV
• Important! the filename must match the objectid in your metadata
  • A mismatch between filename and objectid is the most common problem users run into! (More below)

Transcript CSV Structure

Your transcript CSV files can include the following columns (in any order). Note that the only required field is words!

1. speaker: The person speaking in this segment (optional)
2. words: The text of what was said
3. tags: Your thematic codes for this segment (optional, but enables visualization)
4. timestamp: Timecode reference for audio/video syncing (optional)

The first row of your CSV file should contain these column headers.

Using Tags for Visualization and Analysis

Tags are thematic codes that enable powerful visualization and filtering features in your oral history site. When you add tags to transcript segments, they become:

• Color-coded segments in the interactive visualization
• Filters that users can apply to explore specific themes
• Tools for pattern identification across interviews

Creating Your Tag Vocabulary

Before tagging transcript segments, establish a consistent vocabulary:

1. Review your transcripts to identify common themes (10-20 tags is usually sufficient)
2. Create a filters.csv file in your _data folder with two columns:
   • tag: The short term used in transcripts
   • description: Brief explanation of what the tag represents

Example filters.csv:

tag,description
highlight,Highlight
between,working between media to advance writing process
early,writing before widespread computer usage
paper,using paper in the writing process
files,usage and organization of computer files
revision,revision
software,the use of software and/or code for writing

Tips for Effective Tagging

• Keep it simple - aim for 10-20 primary tags
• Use consistent formatting: lowercase terms, avoid special characters, use singular forms
• Be selective - tag only the most relevant segments
• Be consistent across all transcripts in your collection

Example Transcript Format

Here’s how a typical transcript segment looks:

Timestamp Format

The timestamp field accepts several formats:

• 00:00 - Minutes:Seconds
• 0:00:00 - Hours:Minutes:Seconds
• 00:00.00 - Minutes:Seconds.Milliseconds

CSV Naming Convention

Name your transcript CSV files to match the objectid in your metadata spreadsheet. For example, if your metadata contains an interview with objectid smith_john, name the transcript file smith_john.csv.

This naming convention is crucial because it connects your transcript files to the CollectionBuilder-CSV metadata system, allowing the platform to automatically link the right transcript with the right metadata entry.

Sample Files

For sample transcript files that demonstrate the proper format, see our example trancripts.

More Help

• Step-by-step transcript tutorial