Outstanding piece concerned with the state of screen reader access to the web. I am not sure I support all the asertions in this post, but plenty of food for thought.
As regular readers will know I recently filed two complaints to UK broadcasters on their failing to provide AD after creating expectation amongst users.
While I had known of the outcome of my complaints through other sources, two weeks after my complaint to Channel 4 and a week after my complaint to the BBC, I have finally had direct responses from both broadcasters.
From: Channel 4
Date: 16 May
Dear Mr Williams, as I am sure you are now aware, due to audience demand we are now audio describing LOST. For all details on our audio described programmes, please see the following link.
http://www.channel4.com/about_c4/signed_programmes.html
—
Viewer Enquiries
From: BBC
Date: 15 May
Dear Dave
Thank you for your email.
Our apologies for the failure of audio description on the programme “The Apprentice”. There was no intention to drop the service, and indeed an audio description track was prepared for this programme. Unfortunately although technical problems were noted before the programme was transmitted, and although we believed we had corrected them, a subsequent review of the tape of the transmitted output revealed them not to have been sucessful.
As the programme was due two repeats, one this weekend on BBC3 and the other, on BBC2 at 7pm on Tuesday 16th May further efforts were made to correct the problems and as far as I can tell, these were successful.
While the outcome of this programme is of course now known, you should be able to watch this repeat without the problems that blighted the original transmission.
I trust this is of help.
regards
—
BBC Reception Advice
Credit should go to both broadcasters for doing everything possible to rectify the problem after the fact. The point remains that problems with AD are not unusual, and the industry needs to up it’s game. The old excuses about users not having the technology and there being no demand simply are no longer true.
“I am not sold on the significance, or indeed novelty, of blogs and pods, but they are with us. Yet equally I believe that the death of print is being overstated, and it is timely to have a little evidence that this is the case.”
“on that different planet called Express, the inhabitants have just three main interests in life – house prices, absurd examples of political correctness and Princess Diana.”
“You could do a cross-check against the spread of Mockney among people whose original dialect was RP and whose original games had been rugby and cricket, not football.”
Brunettes earn less than blondes? What’s that all about?
For the media anorak in me, pieces similar to this are the reason I continue to read the Indy.
I have been pretty bored by the battle of the Apples, but this is amusing.
Not sure if I have blogged this one previously. But the Man Who Fell Asleep never fails to enthrall me. If you are like me and are fascinated by other people’s conversations in public spaces then this will be right up your street.
Speaking of voyeurism, UK Big Brother is back for a seventh series on thursday. I am going to try really hard this year not to stoopp to that. He says.
I have not heard of anyone planning to blog from Germany’s largest exhibition of AT for blind people this year. Although I plan to keep a close ear on Blogsearch and Google News. You can at least click the link above for a list of exhibitor links.