July 1 is a big day when it comes to video description on television, as stations in 35 additional markets will now be required to carry described programs. NBC, ABC, CBS, and FOX stations in the top 60 television markets are required by law to carry at least 50 hours of described programming each quarter, or roughly 4 hours per week. In addition, the top five cable television networks are also bound by this requirement, meaning most cable systems, regardless of location, are also required to carry described programs. An FCC order released today outlines changes that will take effect in July, including the addition of the History Channel and the removal of Nickelodeon from the top five cable networks. This all means that in addition to new described programming, 35 additional television markets will now receive the described feed. We've included a list of the top 60 television markets as of 2014 below, so you can see if yours made the cut.
Note: The top 25 are currently required to carry described programming:
- New York
- Los Angeles
- Chicago
- Philadelphia
- Dallas-Ft. Worth
- San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose
- Boston (Manchester)
- Washington, DC (Hagerstown)
- Atlanta
- Houston
- Phoenix (Prescott)
- Detroit
- Tampa-St. Pete (Sarasota)
- Seattle-Tacoma
- Minneapolis-St. Paul
- Miami-Ft. Lauderdale
- Denver
- Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne
- Cleveland-Akron (Canton)
- Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto
- St. Louis
- Pittsburgh
- Portland, OR
- Charlotte
- Raleigh-Durham (Fayetteville)
- Baltimore
- Indianapolis
- San Diego
- Nashville
- Hartford & New Haven
- Kansas City
- Columbus, OH
- San Antonio
- Salt Lake City
- Milwaukee
- Cincinnati
- Greenville-Spartanburg-Asheville-Anderson
- West Palm Beach-Ft. Pierce
- Austin
- Grand Rapids-Kalamazoo-Battle Creek
- Las Vegas
- Norfolk-Portsmouth-Newport News
- Birmingham (Anniston and Tuscaloosa)
- Oklahoma City
- Harrisburg-Lancaster-Lebanon-York
- Greensboro-High Point-Winston-Salem
- Albuquerque-Santa Fe
- Jacksonville
- Louisville
- Memphis
- New Orleans
- Buffalo
- Providence-New Bedford
- Fresno-Visalia
- Wilkes-Barre-Scranton-Hazelton
- Little Rock-Pine Bluff
- Richmond-Petersburg
- Albany-Schenectady-Troy
- Mobile-Pensacola (Ft Walton Beach)
- Tulsa
Category: News
I am in top 25 areas for described TV. I also read in in Access World or AFB that TVs will be modified by 2017 so people with vision problems can work menus and remote controls. But how do I activate described TV when it comes live in July? I use Cable Vision and BrightHouse cable carriers. In past I don't think I could access independently menu buttons to select described whether on TV or DVD. I am blind; will I be able to set up described TV independently? FYI I have three TVs all with different remotes and it is a royal pain to remember what remote does what. As a result, I watch TV in my bedroom because I know how to operate, channel change, volume, on off. In order to find out what is on TV at a specific date, time, and channel, I need to go to my PC to look up programming and then I have a file with networks with associated channels. Again a real royal pain. Thanks for instructions or more info for described TV that will be available in July. I watch hours of TV and would love to have described programs. Thank you for all information. Ann Marie Medlar
sonshines Monday, 16-Mar-2015 4:46 PM ET:
Well, the state of Idaho is out of luck so far.
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J.J. Meddaugh is an experienced technology writer and computer enthusiast. He is a graduate of Western Michigan University with a major in telecommunications management and a minor in business. When not writing for Blind Bargains, he enjoys travel, playing the keyboard, and meeting new people.
