A coalition has formed to develop closed-captioning for the hearing impaired on locally produced television programs.
The group is made up of three local agencies: V.I. Black Deaf Advocates,
Work-Able Inc. and the St. Croix Deaf Coalition.
The lack of captioning is not only depriving the hearing impaired of access to local programs such as news and Senate sessions but it could also affect the safety of people who cannot hear hurricane advisories or other emergency warnings, according to the V.I. Independent.
Gwendolyn Powell of V.I. Black Deaf Advocates said the group's biggest obstacle is the high cost of captioning.
“First, we are attempting to generate the seed money through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education,” Powell said. Then the group will ask local businesses to sponsor specific close-captioned programs.
She said closed-captioning benefits not only the hearing impaired but also children learning to read and people who speak English as a second language.
The group hopes to complete the project within three years.