Abstract

GARCIA-PRIETO, Victoria  and  PONTE, Cristina. Media pluralism and social inclusion: the accessibility of RTP children and youth programming for minors with disabilities. OBS* [online]. 2020, vol.14, n.4, pp.21-41.  Epub Feb 28, 2022. ISSN 1646-5954.  https://doi.org/10.15847/obsobs14420201656.

This article investigates the accessibility of Rádio e Televisão de Portugal (RTP) children's and youth programming on linear and online television, both in its live broadcast and on-demand. The accessibility of content for minors is essential for the enjoyment of fundamental rights on an equal footing, to achieve the social inclusion of this group and as a reflection of media pluralism and the public service character of television. Furthermore, subtitling, audio description and sign language are also highly valuable learning tools for children and young people with visual or hearing disabilities. The study is based on a bibliographic and documentary analysis of the regulatory framework that dictates how accessible television programming should be in Portugal. Based on the legislation, it analyses its implementation in RTP children's and young people's programming through a content analysis; discusses the results through qualitative interviews with the RTP itself, the Entidade Reguladora para a Comunicação Social (ERC) and the Federação Portuguesa das Associações de Surdos (FPAS); and contextualises the situation of accessibility of children’s contents of RTP in the current international context by comparing it with public television channels in the United Kingdom and Spain. Conclusions suggest that the accessibility of RTP content aimed at children and young people is insufficient to guarantee their accessibility on an equal footing and must be improved, although highly positive initiatives can be seen in the implementation of the Língua Gestual Portuguesa (LGP).

Keywords : subtitling; audiodescription; sign language; deaf people; sight loss; Língua Gestual Portuguesa.

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