Guidance: Visually impaired and hearing impaired audiences

Editorial Guidelines issues

This guidance note relates to the following Editorial Guidelines:

Accountability
See Editorial Guidelines Section 1 The BBC’s Editorial Standards: 1.7 Accessibility

Introduction

The BBC is committed to being inclusive and accessible to disabled people. For our audiences, accessibility can be central to receiving a high-quality service, therefore it is essential that accessibility is taken into account across all our output.

In addition to the accessibility services we are required to provide in terms of audio-description, subtitling and signing, we should also use production techniques to increase the ability of audiences to access our output.

Around one in 200 of the population is registered blind or partially sighted, the majority of those are aged 75 or older - an age group who are heavy users of the BBC’s services. Just under three million people in the UK have a form of colour blindness [1]. Similarly, hearing loss disproportionately affects older audiences. One of the commonest complaints from audience members is that dialogue cannot be heard properly. People’s ability to comprehend speech falls with age and the number of people aged over 75, over 85 and over 100 is set to rise steeply over the next 20 years.

Key points - visual impairment

As far as possible, we should not only communicate information visually, but key information should also be communicated orally
Factual entertainment shows should give factual information, such as charts and scores, verbally as well as with graphics
We should ensure that in labelling graphics, we use clear contrasts so that labels and icons are easily distinguished.
Where information is displayed on screen in graphics, we should ensure that colour is not the only way of understanding the information – for example by using labelling – so that the information is accessible to people with colour blindness.
A useful test to see whether output is accessible for people with colour blindness is to spot check in monochrome.
Images or graphics published on BBC Online should include a brief written description (alt-tag or alt-text), which are read by screen-readers.
Where content is published on BBC Online and includes graphics, the essential information should also be included in the text.
Where the BBC is making new digital content, such as a game or an immersive experience, we should consider whether it could be accessible to visually impaired audiences.
A test to see if audio-visual content is accessible is to listen to the content with your eyes closed to assess whether the essential information is conveyed.

Key points - hearing impairment

The BBC subtitles 100% of its broadcast content. Where we publish films and clips as part of BBC Online content they should include subtitling.
The subtitle must be readable – with a strong contrast between the text and the video – and should not obscure important parts of the video.
Where important information is communicated verbally, it should also be displayed clearly on screen. For example, telephone numbers, addresses and websites
A key area of complaint for audiences is where they are unable to hear clearly speech output – from factual reporting to dialogue in drama. Hearing loss results in a decline in the ability to hear certain or all frequencies. Hearing for high-pitched sounds is usually worse than for low-pitched sounds. This means that low-pitched sounds like traffic, fans and air conditioning or rumbling background effects are more likely to cover up the sounds of speech.
Speech and music may appear distorted or muffled, even when they are amplified. Turning up the volume will not necessarily improve intelligibility and may even exacerbate the problem.
BBC research has highlighted factors that reduce audibility for audiences – speech that is unclear, eg when it is mumbled, delivered quickly, when people are talking over each other or when they are using strong or unfamiliar accents. Speech that is masked by background noise, music or sound effects speech and where audiences cannot see the faces and mouths of the person who is talking.
We should bear in mind people listen to our output on a range of devices and platforms – the audio mix needs to work across all of them.
Audio should be considered at all stages of the production, from planning to the final dub, as a central part of the programme.
The BBC has specialist sound engineers who are experts in maximising the audibility of output – seek their input particularly if you want to use challenging sound sequences.
We should avoid inconsistent sound and dialogue levels between and within programmes. The sound mix should not only balance the sounds within the programme, but also balance the sound levels across the channel so that no one programme differs significantly from another before or after. Where sound levels are inconsistent, audiences end up ‘volume surfing’ repeatedly increasing and decreasing the sound levels to make dialogue intelligible.
Where we are creating new digital content, such as a game or an interactive experience, we should consider whether it could be accessible to hearing impaired audiences.
A test to see if audio-visual content is accessible to those with a hearing impairment is to review content with the sound off to assess whether the essential information is conveyed to those audiences.

More information on accessibility can be found on the following websites:

Visual impairment guidance in full

Conveying Information

Where information is displayed on screen in captions, the key message of the caption must also be communicated orally. For example, where telephone numbers and addresses or details of goods and services are shown, they should be spoken as well. However, in many cases - for instance maps, graphs, explanatory charts and technical illustration - it is inevitable that much of the information in a graphic cannot be conveyed satisfactorily in the limited time available. In these circumstances we should communicate the central message orally.

Content published on BBC Online is accessible to visually impaired audiences through the use of screen readers. Images or graphics published on BBC Online should include a written description (known as an alt-tag or alt-text) that outlines its nature/content. Essential information in a graphic should also be explained in the text.

Identifying Contributors

Where contributors are identified by captions, as far as possible they should also be named verbally on their first appearance, or at some other editorially legitimate point. If naming contributors in this way is unduly cumbersome - for instance in short news reports, or compilations of vox pops or political reaction - we should do all we can to ensure that enough verbal information is conveyed for the material to make sense to a visually impaired audience. It is also important to remember that a person’s title or role can be as significant as his/her name as it establishes credentials.

Foreign Language Contributions

If foreign language contributions are subtitled, but not audibly translated, they become inaccessible to people with a visual impairment. Foreign language contributions should normally be translated with a voice in the main programme language in all new BBC programmes.

However there may be exceptional occasions where it is necessary editorially for the voice to remain unchanged. They may arise where, for example, it is important to understand the emotion of a speaker giving personal testimony. In such cases the contribution may be subtitled. However, we should always then consider whether the essence of information in the contribution can be conveyed verbally or orally elsewhere in the programme, or in associated material. Where subtitling is used, the text needs to be readable – with a strong contrast between the subtitle text and the video – and the subtitle should not obscure important parts of the video. See Subtitling, below. Non-dialogue sounds need not be included in translation subtitles.

If an exceptional decision is made to subtitle foreign language contributions in a programme, then it should be considered for audio description. Head of TV Operations, BBC Vision can give advice on audio description and whether it is suitable for particular programmes.

For foreign language acquisitions, rights issues may make it unreasonable for the BBC to broadcast such material with a translation voiced in language different from the original.

Drama, Entertainment and Factual Content

Many drama and entertainment programmes depend on visual impact for effect. It is therefore not always possible to explain verbally what is happening. However, there is often scope in factual entertainment to take account of visually impaired viewers. For example, before commissioning quiz shows, consideration should be given to including verbal descriptions. Similarly, every opportunity should be taken in talk and chart shows to give the factual information verbally as well as with graphics.

Graphics and Text

It may be difficult for some people with visual impairment to make out graphics and text, but there are others for whom they would be intelligible if composed carefully.

Where graphics use colour, we should ensure that colour is not the only way of understanding the information – for example by using labelling and icons – so that the information is accessible to people with colour blindness.
Use colours which achieve a good contrast between foreground and background. The best foreground colours are green, yellow or white.
We should avoid pure blues, reds and mauves.
Use large clear fonts, ideally without serifs and ensure that the text is clearly legible over all backgrounds including during camera panning shots. Use of drop shadow can help increase the legibility of text.
Avoid graphic sequences which are out of step with simultaneous verbal information.
Spot-check in monochrome to ensure graphics are accessible to people with colour blindness.
Graphics published on BBC Online should include a written description (known as an alt-tag or alt-text) that outlines its nature/content.
The essential information published in graphics on BBC Online should also be explained in the text.

Presentation Announcements

Presentation announcers should ensure that all relevant information is conveyed verbally as well as visually.

Promotional Trails

Producers of promotional trails should aim to include verbal reinforcement of any key visual information. Programme trails should provide programme titles, time and day information verbally as well as visually.

Weather

Weather forecasters should convey the information in a consistent manner and avoid switching between verbal and visual cues. For example, they should not start the forecast by describing the weather pattern and then change the presentation style by referring to symbols without also describing them.

Hearing impairment guidance in full

Subtitling

The BBC subtitles 100% of its broadcast content. Most subtitling is produced in advance while some – for example in news – is produced live. There are different kinds of subtitling – open subtitles are burnt into the content, they give greater freedom to the production team and cannot be turned off by audiences. Closed subtitles can be turned on and off by the audience, so that only those who choose to see them will access them. Closed subtitles can give audiences greater freedom to customise them – for example, changing the font style or size.

Where we are publishing films and clips as part of BBC Online content they should include subtitling.

Good subtitles convey to the viewer as much of the experience of watching with sound as possible. The text needs to be readable – with a strong contrast between the subtitle text and the video – and the subtitle should not obscure important parts of the video.

If you are producing subtitles, refer to the BBC Subtitle Guidelines

Conveying Information

Where important information is communicated verbally, it should also be displayed clearly on screen. For example, telephone numbers, addresses and websites.

A test to see if audio-visual content is accessible to those with a hearing impairment is to review content with the sound off to assess whether the essential information is conveyed to those audiences.

Planning where and how you will record your content

A key area of complaint for audiences is where they are unable to clearly hear speech output – from factual reporting to dialogue in drama. Hearing loss results in a decline in the ability to hear certain or all frequencies. Hearing for high-pitched sounds is usually worse than for low-pitched sounds. This means that low-pitched sounds like traffic, fans and air conditioning or rumbling background effects are more likely to cover up the sounds of speech. Speech and music may appear distorted or muffled, even when they are amplified. Turning up the volume will not necessarily improve intelligibility and may even exacerbate the problem.

Sound Engineers are experts in their field and have worked on a wide variety of genres and projects. Ask for their opinion when you want to use challenging sound sequences. Make use of their expertise so you can make an impact in emotive scenes without compromising sound levels and quality.

Think about sound before you shoot a frame. Is your location the right choice? What sound problems might there be? Choose your location with sound in mind.

Build in time for a sound rehearsal.
Ideally, use a trained sound recordist but, if you are self-shooting, the BBC Academy website has information on producing good sound.
Choose the right mics for the situation. Separate mics and tracks give you greater flexibility than camera mics. Ensure they are sited correctly. When recording location sound, a boom mic will almost always deliver the best quality sound. Clip mics can be used but they do not capture the sound as well as a boom mic and are often under costumes and may pick up clothes rustle.
If there are two or more actors/speakers in close proximity, ensure the mics aren’t picking each other up as this can cause phase interference and create a muffling effect. You may not be able to rectify this in the edit.

Narration and Dialogue

BBC research indicates that background music and sound effects perform a useful role in helping audiences understand a story. However, loud background sounds, sound effects or music can make it very difficult for someone with hearing loss to understand narration or dialogue.

Is it possible to cut or fade out music or sound effects whilst words are being spoken – particularly if the speaker has a strong accent, is softly spoken or may be difficult to understand for another reason, such as the speaker not facing the camera. If this is not possible, ensure the background music or sound effect is at an appropriately low level to allow the audience clearly to hear the speech.
Seeing people's faces and seeing their mouths move makes them easier to understand. For journalistic content, ensure mouths will not be covered by onscreen graphics when broadcast.
Where we know audiences are likely to find speech less intelligible – for example, if the speaker is talking very quickly, very softly or has a strong accent, we should try to ensure audiences can see the speaker’s face and mouth.
Drama productions need to balance creative story telling with ensuring dialogue is audible. Some audience members will unwittingly rely on lip-reading – so if a character is not speaking to camera, their speech needs to be clear to compensate for the reduced visual cues seen by audience.
Ensure presenters, performers and contributors understand the importance of keeping dialogue clear. Advise them not to tail off or speed up at the end of sentences, to enunciate and to recap salient points where necessary.
Before the final mix, output should be reviewed by someone who is not already familiar with the script to assess whether the speech is audible. Where a line is unclear, it may be possible to replace it with a different take of the same line or to make it clearer by ensuring music or sound effects do not overlap it. It may be necessary to replace unclear dialogue using automated dialogue replacement (ADR) to ensure it is audible.

The BBC Academy has more information about making output audible, including planning recording for factual output and drama.

Final Sound Mix

Ideally, there should be someone at the final sound mix hearing the programme for the first time who can tell you if there’s a problem you’ve missed.

Seek out the advice of the sound engineers who are experts in maximising the audibility of output.

Programme makers should routinely listen to the final version of programmes on typical domestic television speakers and check the audio in mono. Content will be viewed in a variety of different ways – from a large TV with additional speakers to a laptop, tablet and mobile phone – the sound mix should be received well in these different environments.

If possible, with background music and sound:

Question whether background music is necessary and avoid the use of music with vocals.
Choose music that is not too dynamic, i.e. that does not have a lot of short peaks that would interfere with the speech track. Instrumentation can be important - a 'wash' of strings is much less intrusive than a solo trumpet. Certain styles of piano music and percussion can be very difficult to mix satisfactorily with speech.
Be especially careful about the use of background sound when the speaker is not in view and therefore it is not possible to read their lips.
Try to maintain a clear distinction between background and foreground sound.
The loudness of location material is different from sound-booth recordings – even though the peak metering may be the same – so listen to the mix as well as taking account of peak meter readings.
When mixing it is essential to check the mix back via a domestic TV speaker repeatedly and throughout the process, not just at the very end.
For viewers, theme tune music usually sets the sound level for the rest of the programme, so ensure consistency.
The sound engineer/mixer should consider the placing of their programme within the context of mixed genre TV channels and mix the sound accordingly, recognising that continuity announcements and promotions are placed between most programmes.
The sound mix should not only balance the sounds within the programme, but also balance the sound levels across the channel so that no one programme differs significantly from another before or after. Where sound levels are inconsistent, audiences end up ‘volume surfing’ repeatedly increasing and decreasing the sound levels to make dialogue intelligible.

Deaf Children

Deaf children use varying combinations of subtitles, lip-reading, sign language and other visual clues to help them understand television content. The younger the child the more likely they are to benefit from clear visual signposting.

Games are social currency and provide learning opportunities for children. Where we are creating digital content for children, such as games and quizzes, we should take into account the accessibility of the content for hearing impaired children. This includes, for example, having text alongside dialogue and ensuring information is conveyed both audibly and visually.

A test is to see whether anyone new to the game or interactive feature, can navigate it, follow the story and complete the tasks with the sound turned off.

Promotional Trails

Programme trails should provide programme titles, time and day information visually as well as verbally. Trails should also comply with the Best Practice sound guidance.

[1] Information from RNIB and Colour blindness UK

Last updated March 2021

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