NEWSrelease

News from Sesame Workshop, Sony Wonder, and the National Captioning Institute

July 1, 2005

Sesame Street DVDs Accessible To Blind Children

Millions of children who are blind or have low vision now have the opportunity to fully experience one of America's most beloved children's programs on DVD.

New York – Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind Sesame Street, along with Sony Wonder and The National Captioning Institute (NCI), announce the introduction of audio description on Sesame Street DVDs to make these programs accessible to children who are blind or have low vision.

NCI’s Described Media division will describe three new Sesame Street DVDs scheduled to be released later this summer and this fall. “Friends to the Rescue” will be released on August 2. “All Star Alphabet” will be available on September 6. “Elmo Visits the Doctor” debuts on DVD on October 4.

“We are thrilled to introduce audio description to our upcoming home video titles”, says Heather Hanssen, Director of Video Business Development, Sesame Workshop. This technology will enable our videos to be accessible to millions of blind and low vision children. Sesame Workshop has always been committed to bringing Sesame Street’s rich content and beloved characters to all children with the hopes of fostering a love of learning. With descriptions, visually impaired children will have the opportunity to “see” the images through the descriptions of the visual elements and therefore be able to embrace the full educational value of these DVD’s”.

Christopher Gray, President of the American Council of the Blind, praised the development. “Sesame Street has been a leader in children’s television for so long and I applaud their taking the lead in adding description to their DVDs. Now whenever they want to pop in a DVD, blind kids can follow along and enjoy the antics of all the Sesame Street characters.”

Sesame Street descriptions are not only for those who are blind or have low vision. All children can appreciate and benefit from the carefully selected words and phrases used to describe the visual elements of the program. The descriptions allow children to enhance their vocabulary and articulation skills as well as improve their understanding of word associations. In addition, descriptions allow parents and other family members who are visually impaired to enjoy these videos along with the children.

"Sony Wonder is very excited to offer video description on Sesame Street DVDs. This feature will bring the content to "life" for children who are blind or vision impaired - allowing them to fully embrace the total experience of timeless, entertaining and educational programming", Alan Fergurson, Senior VP, Video Sales & Distribution, Sony Wonder.

Description provides access to television and prerecorded video programming for people who are blind or have low vision, an estimated audience of over 12 million Americans. This detailed process provides concise and vivid descriptions of a program’s visual elements enabling viewers to “see” colors, costumes, settings, facial expressions, gestures and actions. Description writers carefully select words that bring lasting images to life that not only enable those who are visually impaired to enjoy televised or recorded programs, but also enhance the experience for all program viewers. Selected descriptions are added during pauses in the dialogue within the program without disrupting the original soundtrack.

“NCI is excited to partner with Sesame Workshop to add descriptions to these Sesame Street DVDs. This technology, coupled with closed captions and the educational content of the programs, will help contribute to the development of sophisticated language skills for all children,” stated Jack Gates, President and CEO, NCI Operations.

Sesame Workshop is a nonprofit educational organization making a meaningful difference in children’s lives around the world. Founded in 1968, the Workshop changed television forever with the legendary Sesame Street. Today, the Workshop continues to innovate on behalf of children in 120 countries, using its proprietary research methodology to ensure its programs and products are engaging and enriching. Sesame Workshop is behind award-winning programs like Dragon Tales and Sagwa, The Chinese Siamese Cat, and ground breaking multi-media productions in South Africa, Egypt and Russia. These are among many Workshop endeavors recognized for their deep understanding of children’s developmental needs and the most effective ways to address them. As a nonprofit, Sesame Workshop puts the proceeds it receives from sales of Sesame Street, Dragon Tales and Sagwa products right back into its educational projects for children around the world. Find the Workshop online at www.sesameworkshop.org.

Sony Wonder is the children's and family division of Sony BMG Entertainment.

With offices in the Washington, DC metropolitan area; Burbank, CA; Dallas, TX; and London, England, the nonprofit National Captioning Institute is the global captioning leader, supplying the highest-quality closed captioning, audio description and related services for broadcast and cable television, home video and DVD, and government and corporate video programming.

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PRESS CONTACTS

Ray Hammerman/Sesame Workshop
(212) 875-6434
ray.hammerman@sesameworkshop.org

Jay Feinberg/NCI
(703) 917-7600 (V/TTY)
(703) 917-9853 (fax)
jfeinberg@ncicap.org

 

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