[Nfb-krafters-korner] FW: VRS - TVNewsCheck Article: Obama Poised To Sign Video Description Bill

[Dixie]

Doesn't this sound like great news?

 

 


Obama Poised To Sign Video Description Bill
By Kim McAvoy 
TVNewsCheck, September 29, 2010 3:26 AM EDT 
Within two weeks, President Obama is expected to sign into law legislation
authorizing the FCC to adopt rules mandating local TV broadcasters carry
video descriptions for the blind.
The measure, the Twenty-First Century Communications & Video Accessibility
Act of 2010, was adopted by the Senate in August and passed the House last
night.
Once implemented, it would force the Big Four broadcast networks and their
affiliates in the top 25 markets to provide four hours per week of primetime
and children's programming with video descriptions. It exempts live or near
live programming. These requirements will take effect one year after the
bill's enactment.
The nation's top five cable TV networks would also have to provide the
service.
The FCC adopted rules similar to the pending legislation in 2000, but
broadcasters and program producers challenged the FCC's authority to mandate
such a service. A federal appeals court agreed and threw out the rules in
2002.
Congress is also granting the FCC  authority to increase TV stations'
obligations from four to seven hours of video descriptions per week after
four years. And in six years, stations in the top 60 DMAs would have to
comply with the FCC's video description rules.
After 10 years, the FCC would be authorized to extend video description
duties to up to 10 additional DMAs each year until all 210 markets are
covered.
Congress also wants local TV broadcasters to make emergency crawls audible
in the top 60 DMAs.
The description service imposes some costs on program producers and
broadcasters. Some TV stations already have the necessary equipment to
receive the descriptions from their networks and broadcast it along with the
regular audio channel. But others may have to spend anywhere from $10,000 to
$25,000 to pass through the network service. The price tag could go much
higher for stations that have to make infrastructure upgrades.
The legislation also requires closed captioning of online video content and
ensures that smart phones and other digital media devices are accessible to
the deaf and blind.
The measure makes it "easier for the blind and deaf to have access to the
Internet, smart phones, television programming and other communications and
video technologies," says Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), a key backer of the
measure.
"Whether it's a Braille reader or a broadband connection, access to
technology is not a political issue; it's a participation issue," Markey
says. "Two decades ago, Americans with disabilities couldn't get around if
buildings weren't wheelchair accessible; today, it's about being Web
accessible."
The driving force behind the legislation has been the Coalition of
Organizations for Accessible Technology, which includes the American
Foundation for the Blind, the American Council of the Blind and the American
Association of People with Disabilities. The coalition has been pushing for
the legislation for three years.
"Really for the first time blind and vision-impaired Americans will have
equal access to enjoy primetime television programming. We're not going to
have to rely upon others to understand what's going on during nonverbal
parts of shows," says Eric Bridges of the American Council of the Blind.
Bridges says the new law would benefit between 25 million and 30 million
blind and visually impaired Americans.
Copyright 2010 NewsCheckMedia LLC. All rights reserved. This article can be
found online at:
http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/2010/09/29/45730/obama-poised-to-sign-vid
eo-description-bill