A Note on Accessibility

As a Deaf creative who grew up in a Deaf artistic family, in a world designed for hearing people, there’s one thing that I can affirm: the Deaf Community is often an afterthought, either intentionally or unintentionally. Within the podcast industry, it’s sacred to discover an authentically accessible podcast that is engineered, designed, and created with an accessibility lens for approximately over 400 million of Deaf and Hard of Hearing people globally.

Having full access to art and entertainment means not having to fight for our access to experience what hearing people experience in their everyday life. Accessibility in arts and entertainment begins with a single step and once that step is taken, it goes a long way in this new digital age of transformation, growth, and inclusion for everybody with all communities on board. There’s nothing about us without us.

Working with a team of brilliant creatives on this endeavor has been nothing but incredible. We discussed about what an accessible podcast could look like, explored perspectives from our very own Deaf community members (this couldn’t be made possible without every single one of you: Leila Hanaumi, Jeremy Lee Stone, Meeya Tjiang, Ravi Vasavan, and Felicia Williams!), and delivered a beautifully crafted, well-thought podcast meant to be seen and felt, without having to prioritize audio. This podcast’s visual experience is the first of many. Not only will this be a model for others, this will also elevate the industry to continue prioritizing accessibility to the next level.

JamiLee Hoglind, Accessibility Consultant