Why closed captioning will soon suck

I use closed captions constantly. I have no problem hearing the TV set; I just enjoy having the printed word accompanying the action, and it gives me more freedom to multitask (a point to consider next time we're on the phone).

Joe Clark is a righteous authority on captioning, and all other issues related to accessibility -- giving the disabled the same access to TV, movies and other entertainment as you or I enjoy. So when he sounds the alarm that closed captioning in the U.S. is about to go to Hell, you pay attention.

Media Access Group at WGBH – which, according to another source, never earned more than 3% to 4% profit margins – simply wasn’t making enough money to satisfy WGBH managers. Now, keep this in mind: The operators of a large nonprofit organization forced the gutting of a nonprofit operation allegedly because it wasn’t earning enough money.

As a result, the biggest and oldest and, in my opinion too, BEST provider of closed captions is effectively kaput.  WGBH also closed its  New York office in the last round of cutbacks driven, it seems, by the increasing age and declining size and wealth of its audience.

Stepping into the void are cut-rate firms, according to Joe. "The recent history of accessible media is one of a race to the bottom," and this won't help things.

Read his full jeremiad here, and then share your own captioning experiences in the comments.