NPR Segment Highlights Calls for Captioning on Zoom for People with Hearing Loss
Calls for free captioning for people with hearing loss on video platforms like Zoom recently received attention on National Public Radio (NPR). On November 23, HHTM editor and hearing health advocate, Shari Eberts was interviewed on Here & Now, NPR’s midday news program. NPR distributes Here & Now to over 450 stations in the United…
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Petition Seeks Free Captions for People with Hearing Loss on Video Conferencing Platforms
Hearing loss advocate, Shari Eberts, has launched a petition on Change.org, seeking free automatic speech recognition (ASR) captioning for people with hearing loss on video conference platforms such as Zoom and Google. “People with hearing loss have trouble communicating in many situations leading to isolation and loneliness during normal times,” said Shari Eberts, founder of…
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New Global Alliance of Speech-To-Text Captioning Launches Founding Members Campaign
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Global Alliance of Speech-to-Text Captioning, a new 501(c)(6) not-for-profit trade organization, has announced the kickoff of its Founding Members Campaign in preparation for its formal launch. “Captioning has become an integral part of today’s society,” said Steve Clark, stenographer and Manager of Home Team Captions, who is serving as the organization’s…
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AAA and ASHA Issue Suggested Best Practices for Determination of Need for Captioned Phone Services
ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND & RESTON, VIRGNIA — In response to published concerns by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that captioned telephone services (CTS) are being utilized by people who are not appropriate candidates—leading to potential funding deficits of this critical service—the American Academy of Audiology (AAA) and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) have jointly developed proposed…
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FCC Looks to Fully Automate Phone Captioning
On July 18, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) published, in the Federal Register, its intent to allow telephone captioning providers under their Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) to provide captions using fully Automated Speech Recognition (ASR) software. The proposed change is expected save a substantial amount of money by making the role of the human Captioning…
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Facebook Live Now Offering Closed Captioning for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Users
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA — In an effort to expand access to its content, Facebook announced that it will be adding closed captioning to Facebook Live to make videos more accessible to people with hearing loss. According to Facebook, not all Live videos will have closed captions, but publishers can deploy captions for content broadcast on…
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FCC launches pilot program to allow 911 texting; approves real-time captioning app
WASHINGTON, DC—This has been a big week at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for people with hearing and speech disabilities. Yesterday (May 15), the agency officially launched a pilot program in limited parts of the U.S. allowing people to text in emergency messages to 911 rather having to call them in vocally. Two days…
Read MoreAirline fined for not making safety video accessible to patients with hearing loss
WASHINGTON, DC—Few seasoned flyers pay much attention to the in-flight safety video or demonstration that is presented at the start of every commercial flight. However, that doesn’t excuse airlines from presenting them—and in a way that is accessible to passengers who can’t hear. That’s why in September the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) fined Virgin…
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