Sign language on television

Sign language on television is the use of a signer for a television programme. The signer usually appears in the bottom corner of the screen, with the programme being broadcast full size or slightly shrunk away from that corner.

Paddy Ladd initiated deaf programming on British television in the 1980s and is credited with getting sign language on television and enabling deaf children to be educated in sign. [cite news | first=Raekha | last=Prasad | coauthors= | title=Sound and Fury | date=2003-03-19 | publisher= | url =http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2003/mar/19/guardiansocietysupplement5 | work =Guardian Unlimited | pages = | accessdate = 2008-01-30 | language = ]

In traditional, analog, televisions, many programs are repeated, often in the early hours of the morning, with the signer present rather than have them appear at the main broadcast time. [ cite web|url=http://www.rnid.org.uk/howwehelp/research_and_technology/communication_and_broadcasting/signing_on_television/ |title=Sign Language on Television |accessdate=2008-01-30 |publisher=RNID ] This is due to the distraction they cause to those not wishing to see the signer.fact|date=January 2008 Some emerging television technologies allow the viewer to turn the signer on and off in a similar manner to subtitles and closed captioning. [ cite web|url=http://www.rnid.org.uk/howwehelp/research_and_technology/communication_and_broadcasting/signing_on_television/ |title=Sign Language on Television |accessdate=2008-01-30 |publisher=RNID ]

Legal requirements covering sign language on television vary from country to country. In the United Kingdom, The Broadcasting Act 1996 addresses the requirements for blind and deaf viewers. [ cite web|url=http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/itc/itc_publications/codes_guidance/sign_language_dtt/introduction.asp.html |title=ITC Guidelines on Standards for Sign Language on Digital Terrestrial Television |accessdate=2008-01-30 ]

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