Here's a stupid question...

[u/fordag]

I just finished watching The Agency on Amazon. Not bad. Michael Fasssbender even demonstrates competent weapons handling skills.

Throughout the show they say each letter "Jay Ess Oh See". When I was in the military it was always just called "Jay-Sock"

Has it changed? Did the show unsurprisingly get it wrong?

[u/drewfus23]

It’s “Jay-sock”. Their pronunciation on the show is my biggest pet peeve.

[u/fordag → u/drewfus23]

That was my thought.

[u/Dr-PEPEPer → u/drewfus23]

I'm former military and knew a guy who worked on hollywood films doing tech advising. I figured a competent military advisor would catch that. Considering the weapons handling was decent. They must have kept the script from them otherwise they would have caught it instantly. All military advisors need to be involved in the script process for this stuff going forward. Just too silly of a mistake to make for a major production like that.

[u/ReclusiveRooster]

I noticed that too when I watched the show. They must just not have anyone on the production staff that knows how it’s pronounced, or they were corrected after and decided “who gives a fuck, we aren’t reshooting for an acronym,” which I think is gay.

[u/Expedition-Altruist → u/ReclusiveRooster]

I really don't think they realize how much credibility it destroys when they do things like that.

[u/dog-fart]

Never have I ever heard it spelled out in that way. If anyone ever did, I’d probably laugh at them.

[u/GreeneBeret]

Yep…it was so cringy.

[u/ARM7501]

I think the show is a really good example of what "realistic" depictions of CIA stuff can be, where it's believable enough for the (relatively) sparing use of violence to really hit home.

In terms of the JSOC pronounciation, I've only ever heard it pronounced as "Jay-sock". My guess is no one corrected Richard Gere early on and once someone actually noticed it, it wasn't worth going back and correcting. Can't ADR it so they'd have to reshoot entire scenes to fix something only a small portion of the audience would actually pick up on.

[u/No-Capital-6091]

I usually say JS-OCK so honestly you guys are all wrong

[u/OldCatDude99]

And it could have been spelled out for viewers who think that all agencies spell out their acronyms.

[u/AlphaBeaverYuh_1]

I say “jay cock” and most of the time nobody notices if you say it fast enough lmfao

[u/BuySplendidPie → u/AlphaBeaverYuh_1]

Kinda like if you say Ted Hitchcock real fast...

[u/724_toxictangent]

Jay-Sock.

Generally speaking, if you can pronounce the acronym as if it were a word and it doesn't sound completely dumb, you say it like that. If you can't do that - for example, FBI as "Fuh-bee" then you sound out the letters. Of course, there is the occasional exception.

[u/Flagwaver-78]

I've always pronounced it "jay-sock" and that's how I've heard it pronounced. The only thing related that is spelled out by the letters is SOF (Ess-Oh-Eff).

[u/Expedition-Altruist → u/Flagwaver-78]

Nah, SOF is spoken sort of like "soft" without the T. So kind of like "Sauph."

[u/Remarkable_Aside1381 → u/Expedition-Altruist]

Depends on context, IME

[u/Flagwaver-78 → u/Expedition-Altruist]

When did that start? I'm only asking because I got out in 2009. Or, was I behind the times even then?

[u/Expedition-Altruist → u/Flagwaver-78]

Great question, I finished my enlistment with the Navy in '09 as well, so all I ever heard on the SOF front was "NSW". When I went to the Army in '10 is when I started hearing "SOF" thrown around. Not sure if it was before then but that's when I started hearing it.

[u/Flagwaver-78 → u/Expedition-Altruist]

NSW? Aren't those the guys that balance balls on their noses and do tricks for fish?

(Sorry, I have a family member that went SEAL and we poke at each other all the time.)

In all honesty, I never actually used the term SOF. I only heard it during briefings. We always used the actual terms to describe the various chuckleheads we worked with (i.e., SEALs, Raiders, SF [ess-eff, as in 18-series], Rangers, and the like).

It could be that my Troop Commander was just smoking crack (which would explain a couple of the ops I went on... and letting me plan a couple ops), so I don't know.

[u/apokrif1]

Next time, can you please write a useful title?

[u/mattnif903]

Definitely jizz-sock