Discovery: The Federation's DMA Mistake Could Severely Impact Star Trek

screenrant.com:

Star Trek: Discovery has toyed with much of the sacred Star Trek canon over its first three and a half seasons, but revelations that were made in «The Galactic Barrier» and the Federation's DMA mistake may have serious consequences. Early in the episode, a group of delegates form to discuss the plan for first contact with the mysterious civilization known as 10-C that created the DMA. Discovery's Dr. Kovich, head of the Federation's intelligence agency, Section 31, fears that those making first contact won't be able to communicate with the 10-C aliens. This comes as a surprise to many of the delegates, as the Federation and Star Fleet use universal translators that translate all languages. But Dr. Kovich reveals that isn't necessarily true, and his admission — and its implications — could drastically change Star Trek lore.

Universal translators have always been one of the ways that Star Trek explains away the difficulties that would present themselves if humanity were truly to explore space and meet new life forms. Along with replicator technology, warp core engines, and holo-technology, universal translators allow many different species and life forms to coexist without difficulty. Everyone miraculously speaks English, eliminating the need for subtitles or awkward translation mishaps. But Discovery has already proven that there are sentient life forms that cannot communicate through the universal translator, such as Ripper, the giant tardigrade who originally taught them to travel the mycelial network in Star Trek: Discovery season 1. According to Dr. Kovich, the Federation and Star Fleet have always known that there are probably life forms that they've yet to encounter or make contact with because of the confirmation