This speaks for its self. Original message...
>AMERICAN EXPERIENCE "THE PRESIDENTS" DOWNLOADS ON ITUNES U ACCESSIBLE TO >EXPANDED AUDIENCE > >Closed Captioning and Video Description Offered as Options > >Boston, MA. September 16, 2008. PBS' American Experience is offering >free downloads of six of its award-winning Presidential biographies >for educational use. As the 2008 election heats up, closed captioned >biographies of Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Lyndon Johnson, >Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, and Ronald Reagan -- more than 23 hours >of programming -- are available on the American Experience "The >Presidents" web site (pbs.org/presidents) and on Apple's on iTunes U, a >section of the iTunes Store showcasing free educational offerings from >WGBH and top universities. > >"Our iTunes U collaboration with Apple is an effective platform for >reaching our existing audience and attracting new viewers," says Annie >Valva, WGBH Interactive's director of Research and Business >Development. WGBH's digital reach is further expanded by the >pioneering work of WGBH's Media Access Group. Annie notes, "Within an >hour of posting one American Experience film to iTunes U we heard from >a user who told us how much he and his wife depend on our captioned >material. Before we even had a chance to upload all the films, the >user wrote back telling us, "I was on a quick plane trip and I was >watching the Carter series on both the outbound and return >flights. . . which I could not complete because of interruptions by >other passengers who wanted to know about the iPhone and especially >the show!" > >Making history in another way, the Roosevelt biography is the first >online video program to be offered as a download with a Descriptive >Video Service® (DVS®) track, which makes video more accessible to >viewers who are blind or have low vision via narration of key visual >elements, inserted into pauses in dialogue. American Experience is >closed captioned and described for broadcast by WGBH's Media Access >Group (access.wgbh.org) for the nation's 36 million viewers with >hearing or vision loss. > >According to Larry Goldberg, director of Media Access at WGBH, "While >virtually all broadcast and cable programs are closed captioned, and >many air with video description as well, only a few programs that >migrate to the web do so with these important access features intact. >We are thrilled that American Experience has succeeded in including a >large audience, numbering in excess of 36 million potential users with >sensory disabilities, in "The Presidents" online initiative. Apple is >to be congratulated for its leadership in making web-based, >downloadable video accessible." > >For more information on access features for web-based video, either >creating captioning and description or making sure these features are >included when video is repurposed for the web, contact the Media >Access Group at WGBH, ><mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>[EMAIL PROTECTED] > >The free program downloads will be available until Inauguration Day, >January 20, 2009. > >ABOUT THE MEDIA ACCESS GROUP AT WGBH >The Media Access Group is a nonprofit service of Boston public >broadcaster WGBH, with offices in Boston and Los Angeles. The Group >includes DVS, which has made television, film and video more enjoyable >to audiences who are blind or visually impaired since 1990, and The >Caption Center-- the world's first captioning agency-- which has made >audiovisual media accessible to audiences who are deaf or hard of >hearing since 1972. The third branch of the Media Access Group, the >Carl and Ruth Shapiro Family National Center for Accessible Media at >WGBH (NCAM), is a research, development and outreach organization that >works to make existing and emerging technologies accessible to all >audiences. Members of the Group's collective staff represent the >leading resources and experts in their fields. > >ABOUT AMERICAN EXPERIENCE > >Television's most-watched history series, American Experience has been >hailed as "peerless" (Wall Street Journal), "the most consistently >enriching program on television" (Chicago Tribune), and "a beacon of >intelligence and purpose" (Houston Chronicle). On air and online, the >series brings to life the incredible characters and epic stories that >have shaped America's past and present. Acclaimed by viewers and >critics alike, American Experience documentaries have been honored >with every major broadcast award, including twenty-four Emmy Awards, >four duPont-Columbia Awards, and fourteen George Foster Peabody >Awards, one most recently for Two Days in October. > >ABOUT WGBH BOSTON >WGBH Boston is America's preeminent public broadcasting producer. More >than one-third of PBS's prime-time lineup and companion Web content as >well as many public radio favorites are produced by WGBH. The station >also is a pioneer in educational multimedia and in access technologies >for people with disabilities. For more information visit wgbh.org. >For more information about American Experience and The Presidents >visit pbs.org/americanexperience > >September 16, 2008 > >Contact >Mary Watkins ><mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>[EMAIL PROTECTED] >Media Access Group at WGBH >617 300-3700 voice >617 300-2489 TTY
