| Television has provided information, excitement and | | | | the cost are such variables as how long it takes to |
| entertainment to American families for over thirty | | | | produce those captions as well as how difficult the |
| years, but for many people, the sounds of the | | | | script is. |
| television simply could not be heard. In 1985 | | | | |
| approximately 9% of the American population was | | | | When the program has been prerecorded, the |
| hearing impaired, according to the National Center for | | | | caption has to be timed on when it should appear, as |
| Health Statistics. Today, due to the advent of closed | | | | well as how long it should stay visible so the viewer |
| captioning, hearing impaired or deaf people are able | | | | can read it. It doesn't take as long to caption an |
| to watch and understand what is being said in over | | | | action film as it does other things. It's a different |
| half of prime time shows and even during presidential | | | | process to provide captioning for Raiders of the Lost |
| debates. | | | | Ark than A Man for All Seasons. |
| One organization, founded by the government in the | | | | |
| year 1979, captions over 90 percent of the programs | | | | The Public Broadcasting Service, the Department of |
| that are available. This same group has also done the | | | | Education, and other businesses, provide the |
| subtitles for thousands of movies that are now | | | | necessary funding for certain shows while |
| available on videotape or DVD's. In a survey | | | | foundations and NCI fund other programs. Most of |
| conducted over eighteen hours and across six | | | | the time the funds are split into three parts, with |
| television stations, around 13% of all programming | | | | each organization paying their part to caption the |
| provided closed captioning. Children's shows comprise | | | | program. The smaller size of the closed captioning |
| about one third of these closed captions. | | | | audience has been influenced by two factors: cost of |
| | | | | the decoder and lack of public awareness. When |
| This government organization works with network | | | | decoders were first introduced in 1980, they cost |
| execs, programmers and TV producers to provide | | | | $280. The average is now just about $200. |
| closed captioning for their programming. Easier said | | | | |
| than done in some cases. Some of these network | | | | Grants from foundations or corporations can help |
| heads are just realizing how many people they can | | | | provide decoders for low income deaf or hearing |
| reach through the beauty of closed captioning. It | | | | impaired Americans who might not otherwise be able |
| seems they didn't exactly realize what the hearing | | | | to pay. In larger cities, there are programs that allow |
| impaired needed in order to enjoy television. | | | | people to buy a decoder for as little as $35. Hopefully |
| | | | | one day technology will advance to the point of |
| The audience for closed captions is estimated to be | | | | allowing television manufacturers providing decoders |
| at almost one million, a fact that makes some | | | | in at least one model of television, so that all the |
| executives reluctant to provide subtitles for their | | | | hearing impaired would have to do is buy that model |
| programs. The decoder is necessary to permit | | | | of television. |
| individuals to view the captions, and the above | | | | |
| number is calculated based on 150,000 homes | | | | Hearing impaired Americans are at a double |
| equipped with decoders. And that number is | | | | disadvantage, not only because of their disability but |
| anticipated to go up at least by 30,000 by the end | | | | because there are no obvious outward signs of the |
| of this year. | | | | disability. Those who are hearing impaired are the |
| | | | | most prominent group of disabled citizens within the |
| It's like the old chicken and egg question - the more | | | | US, but because this issue is not as obvious as |
| shows that allow closed captioning, the more viewers | | | | others, they tend to become isolated. The biggest |
| you'll have using closed captioning, and so the more | | | | bonus to closed captioning is it allows a family to |
| shows the networks will decide to close caption. The | | | | enjoy a show together, the hearing impaired enjoying |
| standard cost for closed captioning of a one hour | | | | the show or movie just as much as family members |
| show is between $1,500 and $2,200. Also influencing | | | | who can hear perfectly. |