Podcasts: inclusion and accessibility for the deaf/hard of hearing in Brazil

Introduction: The podcast, a digital audio or video format, stands out for its flexibility and accessibility, allowing consumption anywhere and anytime. Given that communication is a fundamental right, it is crucial to create tools that promote accessibility and cater to the diversity of audiences including the deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) population. Objective: to analyze the accessibility of the deaf community/person with hearing impairment to podcasts/videocasts. Method: prospective, observational, cross-sectional research, carried out from a questionnaire made available in two modalities (written language and LIBRAS) by convenience, remotely by GoogleFforms®, for a mixed group of professionals, students and D/HH. The data were analyzed descriptively. Results: 154 participants, 22.73% of whom were D/HH. The majority (78.57%) know and almost two-thirds (61.69%) use it and consider that the issue should be more debated by specialists (87.01%) or evidence the need to have the presence of a D/HH person in the elaboration teams (95.45%),Corroborating the literature, the data indicate a strong need to think about the inclusion of the D/HH from the beginning of the project design, extending to all stages of construction of the podcast/videocast so that accessibility is concretely achieved. Actions such as the promotion of debates, inclusion of Libras interpreters, subtitles and discussions addressing the topic are essential to reach the deaf public in a broad way. Conclusion: the accessibility of the D/HH to the media remains limited, with content mostly aimed to hearing people. It is essential to invest in the production of podcasts/videocasts in Libras or another form of accessibility, promoting equitable access to information and entertainment and thus ensuring inclusion.

Alves, P.; Gonçalves, C. (2021) Audiovisual acessível: inclusão do público surdo na criação de conteúdos digitais. Revista Comunicação e Sociedade, v. 43, n. 1, p. 23-41.In: https://revistas.acm.org/comsoc

Botelho, F. H. F. (2021). Accessibility to digital technology: Virtual barriers, real opportunities. Assistive Technology, 33(sup1), 27–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/10400435.2021.1945705

Franco, R.; Araújo, M. (2022) Práticas tradutórias em TAVA: a associação de Libras, LSE, AD e audiolegendagem no vídeo de divulgação do XIV SEPESQ. Revista TradTerm https://www.revistas.usp.br/tradterm/article/view/199974.