After lockdown streaming, disabled audiences were shut out again

Faculty Associate Magda Romanska reflects on the return to in-person arts programming after COVID-spurred digitization, noting that some audiences - particularly disabled people - found themselves once again shut out from cultural happenings. Arts funding agencies, Romanska argues, must prioritize digital access as a means of accessibility. 

"The television industry’s initial resistance to captions offers a poignant precedent: what was once fought as a costly disability accommodation has now become a standard feature on every streaming platform, benefitting not only hearing-impaired viewers but also language learners, non-native speakers and anyone watching the shows in a noisy environment."

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