VITAC's REACT Provides Emergency Television
Captioning
Editor: Regular readers know that the FCC recently adopted
regulations requiring that all televised emergency information be
accessible to people with hearing loss. As far as I know, the only way
to currently fulfill this requirement is through closed captioning.
VITAC, one of the leading captioning companies, has announced a new
service that satisfies these regulations. So if your local television
company is not in compliance with the law, you might want to contact
them and DEMAND access - and you can even tell them whom to contact to
provide the service.
Here's the VITAC press release.
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WordWave, Inc.'s VITAC division, the industry leader in broadcast
captioning announces REACT, a Realtime Emergency Announcement Captioning
Team to help broadcast stations meet the new FCC Regulations adopted on
April 13, 2000, that mandate captioning for emergency broadcasts.
The new FCC rules now require broadcasters, cable operators, and
other multi-channel video programming distributors to make local
emergency information--information about current emergencies that is
intended to further the protection of life, health, safety and
property--accessible to persons with hearing disabilities. REACT gives
local broadcasters an easy and effective way to ensure that all viewers
have access to realtime captioning during emergency announcements and
news coverage.
In 1986, a deaf man lip-read a TV weatherman's report and got one
word--CLOSET. This word saved his life as he sought shelter when a
tornado was about to hit his home. "Realtime captioning can save
lives, and currently many broadcast stations don't provide this kind of
access for severe weather conditions or other civil emergencies,"
said VITAC's President Joe Karlovits. "REACT's services help local
broadcasters comply with the FCC's mandatory emergency captioning to
protect people's lives."
VITAC, the leading broadcast captioner in the U.S., is extending its
expertise to offer this essential service to help save lives in
emergencies. REACT covers the entire United States, but concentrates on
areas most prone to weather disasters, including Texas, Florida,
Illinois, Oklahoma, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, North Carolina and South
Carolina.
REACT provides:
- Coverage of all natural disasters nationwide - Customized
information for a broadcast station in a specific area - A dial-up
number for live captioner availability within minutes of the emergency
at 1-877-NEWS-911
WordWave's VITAC division was founded in 1986 and is the industry
leader in broadcast captioning. VITAC offers complete captioning
services to television network, syndication, cable, video, industrial,
government and educational program suppliers. VITAC captions programming
for ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS, UPN, the WB Network, and numerous cable
television networks including CNN, Discovery Channel, The Learning
Channel, USA Network, Lifetime and Showtime. Each day, VITAC captions
more than 75 hours of programming, including news, daytime dramas,
special news reports, daytime talk and entertainment programs, sports,
primetime and late-night programming. VITAC is responsible for
captioning some of the most watched syndicated programming on
television, including Wheel of Fortune and Entertainment Tonight. Other
customers include major studios such as DreamWorks and Disney as well as
sporting associations like NASCAR, NBA, NHL, NFL and the PGA.
About WordWave, Inc.
WordWave, Inc. is a leading solutions provider for making online
digital media searchable. WordWave was founded in 1997 as LegaLink and
through a series of 19 acquisitions, quickly became the leader in court
reporting, transcriptioning and videography. WordWave acquired VITAC in
January 2000, becoming the global leader in broadcast captioning.
Through its 20 acquisitions, WordWave has become an international
conglomerate with 19 domestic offices and 6 international offices in
Europe, Asia and Australia. WordWave is privately held with venture
backing from Highland Capital Partners and Berkshire Partners. WordWave
is available on the Web at www.wordwave.com. For information call
1-800-662-1466.
Contact: Laura Doty WordWave, Inc. 724-514-4000 press@wordwave.com or
Beth Andrix Monaghan Schwartz Communications 781-684-0770 wordwave@schwartz-pr.com
