Minn. bill tailors campaign ads to hard of hearing
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ST. PAUL (AP) — It doesn’t matter if they’re uplifting or slimy, campaign ads in Minnesota could soon carry a new feature: closed captioning.
The Minnesota Senate has voted to require candidates for state-level offices to include closed captioning on their television or Web site ads. The move is being sold as a way to help deaf or hard-of-hearing voters access the political content.
There would be some ways out. Campaigns could file a statement with Minnesota regulators explaining why the printed text is missing. They also could post transcripts for radio or Internet ads on their Web site.
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And it wouldn’t apply to campaigns that skip public financing.
Democratic Senator Ann Rest says the cost of adding the captioning is less than $100 on a television ad.
The Senate gave preliminary approval to a broader bill containing the measure.
