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Also called: Deaf, hard of hearing, sign language

Hearing & sign

When the web talks, but doesn't show what it's saying.

People hear in many different ways. Some are Deaf and use a sign language as their first language. Some are hard of hearing and rely on captions, lipreading or hearing technology. Others hear well in quiet rooms but struggle in noise.

Many Deaf people see themselves as part of a linguistic and cultural community, not as people missing something. Sign languages are full languages with their own grammar, and they differ from country to country.

The barriers online are mostly about design: videos without captions, support lines that only offer phone calls, and important updates shared only by audio. When content is shown as well as spoken, it works for far more people.

See it for yourself

A short simulation. Then turn on the fix and notice the difference.

Simulation

  • Nadia(missed) the meeting (missed) to Thursday (missed) three, in (missed) big room upstairs.
  • OmarThursday (missed) Should I bring the (missed) reports or (missed) the slides?
  • NadiaJust (missed) slides. And (missed) Karim that the client (missed) short answers.

Hearing loss often means missing some sounds and words, not all of them — which is why captions help so much.

What gets in the way online

  • Videos and livestreams without captions, or with poor automatic captions
  • Customer support offered only by phone
  • Podcasts and audio messages with no transcript
  • Video calls where people talk over each other or turn cameras off
  • Sound-only alerts, like a beep with no visual signal

What helps

  • Accurate captions on every video, reviewed rather than left automatic
  • Live captions built into the browser or operating system
  • Transcripts for podcasts, voice notes and recorded talks
  • Text chat, email or video relay options for support
  • Sign language interpretation for important content and events
  • Removing background music so speech is clearer for people with some hearing

Tools that help

Learn more

Every course for Hearing & sign