Closed-Captioning for Hearing Impaired Now Available on LDS Satellite Telecasts

Many Church satellite telecasts and videotapes are now available with closed captions to aid the hearing impaired.

With the aid of a decoder, members with impaired hearing can now read what they cannot hear. The decoder allows dialog to appear on the screen.

The Church first used closed-captioning during its 1986 General Women’s Meeting and during three sessions of last October’s general conference. Many future satellite broadcasts will have closed captions, and priesthood leaders will be informed of them in advance.

In addition to the satellite broadcasts, the Church’s Curriculum Department is providing closed captions on many programs available on videocassette, including such films as “Mr. Krueger’s Christmas,” the six-tape scripture series titled “The New Media Bible,” and “The First Vision.”

To assist members with impaired hearing, the Church will share the cost of decoders with local units. To qualify for Church financial participation, branches, wards, or stakes must have hearing-impaired members who attend regularly and who use closed-captioned decoders in their homes. For information about ordering decoders, contact the Church Purchasing Division, 50 East North Temple Street, Salt Lake City, Utah 84150.

Decoders allow hearing-impaired members to read dialogue coded into many Church telecasts and videotapes. (Photography by Michael M. McConkie.)