Jack A. Boenau, RMR, CRR, CBC, CCP, FAPR, President
Deanna C. Boenau, RDR, CRR, CBC, CCP

P.O. Box 50653, Sarasota, Florida 34232
941-359-8100
AmeriCaption@comcast.net

What is Realtime Captioning?

Whenever AmeriCaption, Inc. provides realtime captioning services, we are asked a number of questions about it.  Let's start with the basics.

Captions are the words that appear at the bottom or top of your television screen so that you can read what you may not be able to hear.  "Realtime" captioning is done by a stenocaptionist using a steno machine, which you have no doubt seen used by a court reporter.  The software in our computers matches our writing strokes to our personal dictionaries -- often well over 100,000 words, phrases, suffixes and prefixes -- and translates it at speeds often up to 280 words per minute.  The text is overlaid on a video picture.  Sometimes we see captions which appear slightly ahead of the spoken word.  This is prescripted captioning, such as is used in prerecorded television programs or movies.

Some broadcast stations use a newsroom software program which allows the viewer to read the newscasters' script files.  These often contain cue symbols to the anchors and can contain many misspellings and information which is confusing to the reader.  And, unfortunately, when they go to "live" news and weather, there is no script, and thus there is no captioning.
 

Open Captioned vs Closed Captioned

Open captioning means the captions are placed on the screen and cannot be turned off.  This method would be similar to subtitles.  Closed captioning means that the captions are hidden, viewable only when you have your decoder turned on.  Most programming is captioned with closed captioning.
 

Why Can't I See Captions on My TV?

Deaf comedienne Kathy Buckley says, "Because only the Deaf can see captions!"  Funny, but not factual, of course.  In fact, captioning is not only a great benefit to the deaf and hard-of-hearing, but people learning English as a second language, and young children learning to read, are aided by captioning.  And what better way to keep up with the big game in a noisy sports bar or restaurant than by reading the captions!  All you need is a television with a decoder chip, and then go into your Menu or Setup to turn on the decoder to CC-1, and your captions will suddenly appear.
 

Not All TVs are the Same

All televisions manufactured after July 1, 1993, 13 inches and larger, must have a captioning chip built into them.  But not all sets operate the same.  When shopping for a new TV, keep in mind that various makes and models have different features.  You may be able to find one brand that makes turning on the captions easier, such as a one-button operation on the remote control.  Ask the salesman to show you how they work.  And, because many sales people are not familiar with it themselves, make sure that you try it out yourself in the store.
 

What About When I'm Traveling?

Staying in a hotel or motel?  The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is on your side.  Be sure to ask for a room equipped with captioned TVs.  In fact, they should have a certain number of rooms set up with other devices for the hard-of-hearing, like blinking lights for fire alarms, telephones (including TDDs), and vibrating alarm clocks for under your pillow.
 

Speak Up!

Make yourself heard.  If your favorite stations are not providing good captioning service for you, let them know.  Likewise, if they do a good job of providing captioning, including realtime captioning for breaking news and sports and weather, let them know you appreciate it.  They want to know what their viewers need.  And because stations maintain their correspondence with viewers, which may be reviewed for FCC license renewal, your opinions do count.  And don't forget to thank the sponsors!