Sentence:
Rate in – Those two words are spoken linking together, and “t” is not released, it is not sounded out, the “t” is pronounced as a glottal stop, and is linked directly to the next consonant, simply put, the two words are pronounced like as one word: /ˈreitn/
Scranton is – Those two words are pronounced exactly the same way as above. Moreover, the second syllable of the first word seems totally lost when linking to the second word. The two words are pronounced as one word: /ˈskræniz/
Background information concerning this
Scranton – This word has two ways of pronunciation as below, and it is pronounced in the audio in the first way.
/-tn/ like /ˈskræntn/
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/scranton?s=ts&ld=1115
or /-ton/ like /ˈskræntən/
http://dict.cn/scranton
And the speaker pronounced this word “Scranton” as /ˈskræntən/ the first time in the vice-presidential debate, and /-tn/ the second time in which the word is linked to the next word, almost had this /tn/ sound wiped-out completely, and pronounced similar to /ˈskræniz/.
Additional information concerning this:
When you have a stressed vowel followed by syllable-final t followed by any vowel and then n, the t is "unreleased t" -- you place your mouth in position for the t and start but do not complete the sound -- followed by syllabic n -- that is, an n sound without any vowel in front of it.
kitten, mitten, cotton, gotten, button, bitten, Latin, satin, glutton, fatten, rotten, gelatinous, scrutiny, mutiny
The same happens when “r” or “l” intervenes, thus:
carton, Horton, Burton, certain, curtain, Martin, Curlton
And the same can happen (optionally) when n intervenes, thus:
mountain, fountain
That sentence "You know what the unemployment rate in Scranton is today" can be found in the video below:
http://bbs.wenxuecity.com/mysj/161991.html
