The Agitator

The A.P. reports:

Federal agents are seeking to hire Ebonics translators to help interpret wiretapped conversations involving targets of undercover drug investigations.

Drug Enforcement Agency Special Agent Michael Sanders said the agency recently sent memos asking companies that provide it translation services to help it find nine translators in the Southeast who are fluent in Ebonics.

Ebonics, which is also known as African American Vernacular English, has been described by the man who coined the term as the combination of English vocabulary with African language structure.

Bonus points to the first commenter who knows the relevance of the headline. (And not just that it’s a lyric from “Brown Sugar”.)

Answer:

The Wire reference.

Prez figures out how to listen to the folks who are speaking on the tapped phones, where most of the unit can’t make out what’s being conveyed in the phone conversations. His example of being able to make out phrases is the opening line to Brown Sugar, which he used to hone his ear by listening to it over and over until he could make out the lyrics.