WBBH-NBC2 and WZVN-ABC7 were fined $24,000 each by the FCC for not failing to provide hearing-impaired individuals with the same access to critical information as those with unimpaired hearing. The violations have said to have occured during the coverage of Hurricane Charley in August of 2004 when WBBH and WZVN failed to provide on-screen information about a closed causeway and an order for evacuation of an area. Both stations claim this wasn’t critical information and opted not to include any on-screen visuals.
B&C
More TVs Slammed For ‘Impaired’ Coverage
News Press
TV stations fined, failed to inform hearing-impaired
WBBH online
Feds fine NBC2/ABC7 $48,000 for Charley coverage
not that I want to be cruel…
Are stations going to be fined when they don’t broadcast information in spanish, or greek, tagalo or some other language? What will happen if they dont speak slowly for the intellectually challenged? How far does the FCC want to take this stupid topic?
What a bunch of crap!
May be they should go to a hearing impaired shelter or to a friend’s house. Then they can listen or not to whatever they want.
do they broadcast in ebonics too ???? Oh yeah we have the WB and UPN !!
LMAO yo!!! 🙂
Wait!! Let’s us not forget POLITICAL CORRECTNESS!! Thanks Bill, Idont know what sex is Clinton.
this is BS
hearing impaired…a disability…not a language…be blessed you and yours can hear, specially in a time of peril.
Sorry Anon dude. Sign language is a language. Hearing impairment may be a disability, but, so to is the ability to not know if you are in an evac zone and if you need to evac. That is called stupid.
if a person cannot watch the infinate number of sat/rad/and other loops aired during a hurricane coverage and tell where they are within the storm, no amount of sign language will convey it.
Anon . is correct at saying this is BS.
The thought that stations now need to cater to those with “disabilities” is interesting. What about visually impaired? What about those who are dyslexic and see the storm spinning clock-wise? How far should the FCC or any station have to go?
What next? Fining radio stations for not doing enough to help the hearing impaired?
The sick part…is that the station wouldn’t have been fined if they had just continued to play network programming or even color bars for that matter. The station was providing a public service, under emergency conditions, and they get screwed over for doing it.