Just Jolly Accessibility
Accessibility: Making Videos and Audio Accessible
When adding media such as videos, GIFs, and audio files to post, you should ensure that it is accessible to all visitors or viewers.
You can do this by adding alternatives, such as transcripts and captions. This ensures that viewers or visitors on post with disabilities and impairments can access and enjoy the content on your post.
Adding text descriptions to media without sound
If your post contains GIFs or videos that do not have sound, visitors or viewers with sight-related impairments may not be able to access them.
We recommend adding a text description to the piece of media that describes the events that are taking place. For example, the text description of this GIF could be: A GIF of the cat with the sentence "I MISS YOU" flashing across it.
This improves your site's accessibility, as screen readers can "read" the description, and inform the viewer or visitor of the media's content.
Adding text transcripts to audio files
You should attach text transcripts to any audio files you upload to your post. This improves accessibility, as it ensures that visitors or viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing can access and enjoy this content.
You can create a transcript by writing it into a document, and then linking the document under or above the audio file or uploading the document.
Tip: You can link your transcript through text, or with a button.
Adding captions to videos
Adding captions to your videos is a good way to ensure that visitors or viewers with hearing or cognitive impairments can understand and enjoy your content.
Closed captions do not just contain subtitles. They also contain description of sounds that aren't dialogue.
Most videos hosting sites (such as YouTube) have a "Closed Caption" feature, which allows viewers to turn on captions while viewing the video. If you upload your own video, you can add captions with external video editing software, such as Amara. See more closed captioning software options
Tip: We recommend providing captions in multiple languages, as they are also helpful for viewers who may not speak the language spoken in your video.
Adding audio descriptions to videos
Audio descriptions are a type of audio that is added to videos to improve accessibility. They do so by describing events to visitors who have sight-related impairments, and who may be relying on audio to navigate and understand the content on your post.
Audio descriptions are recorded descriptions of visual events that do not make sound, such as movement, facial expressions, and lighting changes. For example, a weather report may include the audio description: "The meteorologist is pointing to the southeast of the country".
Audio descriptions are added between dialogue and other important audio, so the audience can hear them clearly. You can add audio descriptions within the video itself, or by adding an extra audio track.