As we prepare to switch our broadcast signals from analog to digital, it's hard to believe that 30 years ago the biggest advance in the industry was the introduction of closed captioning.  Closed captioning was first developed to assist persons with hearing disabilities.  Captions are closed, meaning a person can choose to see or not see a text output along with the audio output of a show.  This service is also helpful to people who are trying to learn a non-native language.  Closed captions are also used in environments where hearing a television may be difficult.

At JET TV and FOX 66 our newscasts, aside from weather, also have closed captions.  These captions are produced in-house.  As an achor runs the teleprompter, the captions also run.  Weather does not have closed captions because it is considered an open caption segment.  Words and numbers on the graphics are sufficient information to provide a clear picture of the weather to someone without producing verbatim closed captions.

At JET TV and FOX 66 our newscasts, aside from weather, also have closed captions.  These captions are produced in-house.  As an achor runs the teleprompter, the captions also run.  Weather does not have closed captions because it is considered an open caption segment.  Words and numbers on the graphics are sufficient information to provide a clear picture of the weather to someone without producing verbatim closed captions.