Diane Johnson, founder and chief executive officer of Descriptive Video Works, one of the leading providers fro video description services in North America, is proclaiming July 1, 2012 as Independence Day for the nearly 30 million Americans with vision disabilities. July 1, 2012 is the deadline set by the FCC for the top broadcast and cable networks to begin providing a minimum of four hours per week of video described programming – a secondary audio track narration describing the visual elements in each scene that add to a program’s plot or storyline and is inserted between natural pauses in dialogue – creating a more robust television experience for audience with vision disability. Video description could also increase ratings for those networks offering the service.
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“Thanks to the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA), citizens who are blind and low vision of the U.S. are finally gaining the access they deserve to the information, communication and entertainment that most of us take for granted,” said Johnson in issuing the proclamation. “All of us that serve and advocate for people who are blind and low vision are thankful for the access provided by this initiative, and are encouraged by the number of networks and content producers who are stepping up to provide video description beyond the mandated hours. Video description offers people who are blind and low vision an opportunity to learn more about the visual world and provides them with a better understanding and more dynamic television experience, helps them to enjoy a greater social connection through shared entertainment and fosters a stronger sense of independence.”
Shirley Manning, director of Junior Blind of America’s adult program, the Davidson Program for Independence, added, “As an organization that strives to help those who are blind or low vision achieve independence, everyone at Junior Blind of America could not be more pleased that our students will have greater access to televised content through video described programming. We hope this will inspire other platforms, like museums, theaters and other cultural venues to provide similar video description services.”
In 1996, the U.S. Congress required video programming distributors (cable operators, broadcasters, satellite distributors and other multi-channel video programming distributors) to close caption their television programs. This was a great service for some 20 million people who are hard of hearing or deaf in this country, but since closed captioning is text display showing a transcription of the dialogue from a program, it doesn’t benefit people who are blind or low vision
In 2000, the FCC adopted rules requiring certain broadcasters and Multiple Video Programming Distributors (Comcast, AT&T, etc.) to carry a limited amount of programming with video description — an audio track added to the program which provides a rich description of the scene and action taking place in conjunction with the dialogue. But five months later, after an intense lobbying effort, the U.S. Court of Appeals dismissed the FCC ruling on the grounds that the Commission lacked sufficient authority.
On October 8, 2010, President Obama signed the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) into law. The CVAA calls for the top national networks’ (ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC) and affiliates in the top 25 markets and the five top-rated cable networks — Nickelodeon/Nick at Nite, TBS, TNT, The Disney Channel and USA – and the cable and satellite systems with at least 50,000 subscribers that carry them have to provide a minimum of 50 hours per quarter, or roughly 4 hours per week, of video described programming in prime time and/or children’s programming. The FCC set the deadline for compliance for July 1, 2012 and will expand the number of hours of video described programming and increase the coverage areas in an effort to ensure 100% accessibility for people who are blind or low vision by 2020.
At that time, FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyborn said, “In providing video description, America’s blind community will not only be able to enjoy the entertainment that video content providers offer, but they will also be part of the conversation around it. I want to stress this, as I can imagine how left out a visually-impaired child feels when his or her classmates are discussing what happened on a popular show the night before, and to not be a part of that conversation or be able to follow along. The same is true for blind adults, for whom the proverbial water cooler chats about TV shows hold little meaning or enjoyment. This item will assist those individuals in getting even closer to the mainstream when it comes to popular culture, and we are a better and more complete nation for it.”
With the FCC’s mandated July 1, 2012 d
Source: Descriptive Video Works
