Frequently Asked Questions About Captioning

What is captioning?

Captioning is an accurate textual display of speech, musical descriptions and all other sound effects.  It can be presented for television programs, theatre performances, meetings, conferences, web casts, et cetera, and displayed on televisions, PC displays and data projectors, to name a few suitable devices.

Who uses captioning?

While carefully produced captions can enhance the viewing experience for many audiences, they are particularly of assistance to patrons who are deaf or hearing impaired. High-quality captions enable people with a hearing loss to follow the audible elements of a presentation closely.

Additionally, captions can be of great benefit to people attending conferences, lectures and meetings, as an aid to note taking.

Does it matter if the captions are not displayed at the same time as the speech?

For people with a hearing loss, captions are used to supplement their hearing, often in conjunction with hearing augmentation devices such as hearing aids and hearing loops.  Many people will not read every word - rather they will check the captions when they are unable to hear - so the timing of captions is almost as important as the accuracy of the actual text.