Video and Audio
Video captions help everyone—especially people who are deaf, learning a new language, or in a noisy or quiet environment.
All multimedia content with speech should have accessible captions that are:
- Synchronized to appear at approximately the same time as the corresponding audio.
- Equivalent to the spoken words and other audio information.
- Accessible, or readily available, to those who need it.
Add captions to your videos
Captions Basics
- Captions must be accurate, complete, and in sync with the video.
- Edit auto-captions to fix mistakes for names or special terms. For example: cura personalis.
- Include non-speech sounds like music, laughter, animal sounds, etc., like [Music Playing ....])
Closed Captions (CC)
- Can be turned on/off by the viewer.
- Required for pre-recorded videos.
- Many platforms (YouTube, Stream, Yuja) offer free auto-captions you can edit.
- Other platforms (like Vimeo) let you upload caption files.
Open Captions
- Always visible and cannot be turned off.
- You control the style, but viewers cannot customize.
- Best for Social Media Posts and Reels
Transcripts
- Provide a written version of spoken words plus key sounds and visuals.
- Needed for accessibility when users can’t hear or see the video.
- Use both captions and transcripts for most web videos.
- For audio-only media (like podcasts), a transcript is enough.
Videos without spoken words (and may or may not include background music) need audio descriptions so blind or low-vision users can understand them.
What are audio descriptions? Do I need them?
Some videos have important visuals that the main audio doesn’t explain. Audio descriptions add narration to describe what’s happening on-screen for visually impaired viewers. They are required for videos essential to a student’s campus experience or application (e.g., online classes or recruitment videos).
If you’re unsure, email marcom@udmercy.edu or CETL. Audio descriptions can be purchased from vendors.
Pre-Recorded Video Accessibility FAQs
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What video content needs to be captioned?
All videos that are hosted on Detroit Mercy channels that allow video captioning files to be uploaded must include video, either open or closed, captions.
Promoting or posting someone else’s videos on your channels that are not captioned should be avoided, as it is against the accessibility requirements.
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How do I get captions and upload them?
There are many vendors that will provide caption files for your videos with prices ranging from $1-$3/minute. We suggest . *Make sure that you are ordering CAPTIONS, rather than subtitles or transcripts.
Once you have set up an account with Rev, you will be able to provide them with a link where your video is posted or upload the file. They will return a caption file to you within a few days, which will come as a .SRT file.
- To upload this file to YouTube, follow the .
- To upload this file to Facebook, follow the .
- To upload this file to Vimeo, follow the .
We suggest skimming through your video once it is finished to make sure that the captions are accurate and are synced correctly.
It is possible to , but be aware this is a relatively time-consuming process.
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What about auto-generated captions?
Auto-generated captions provided by platforms like Youtube and Microsoft Stream do not meet user needs or accessibility requirements, unless they are confirmed to be fully accurate. However, it is possible for you to manually edit the captions to correct typos and content.
Example (from W3C) of bad automatic captions (that cause a fire)
Spoken audio:
"Broil on high for 4 to 5 minutes. You should not preheat the oven."
Automatic caption:
"Broil on high for 45 minutes. You should know to preheat the oven."
Live Automatic Captioning Requirements
- Live auto-captions must be provided for all live audio content in synchronized media. See if you need Live Professional Captioning
Can I use Live Automatic Captioning instead of a live captioner or ASL interpreter?
Automated captioning is a separate tool that does not replace live captions, CART, or ASL interpretation. If you need live captioning or ASL interpreting as a disability accommodation, please visit the Office of Equal Opportunity& for more information about which office you should contact.
When planning Zoom or Teams events, accessibility must be considered.
- Always allow automated captions by default.
- Participants should be able to turn captions on themselves without host approval.
- Everyone will be notified when captions are enabled, and each person can choose to use them or not.
- Automated captions help make meetings more accessible, though they do not replace live captioning or ASL interpreters.
This default setting ensures deaf and hard-of-hearing participants can join more easily.
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Teams Automated Captions for Live Events
Teams doesn't save live automated captions. If you'd like a transcript of the meeting, turn on transcription. You'll be able to download the transcript after the meeting.
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Zoom Automated Captions FAQs
Can Zoom automated captions be saved?
This is a separate setting in Zoom. Individual hosts may choose to change this setting for their own meetings but should inform meeting participants before doing so.
Will this produce a transcript?
No, this is a separate setting in Zoom. Individual hosts may choose to change this setting for their own meetings but should inform meeting participants before doing so.
What is the default language for automated captions for Zoom meetings?
By default, English is the only available language for automated captions. Individual hosts can make other languages available for automated captions in their individual Zoom settings. You can change the default language in your individual Zoom account settings.
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Live Professional Captions vs. Live Automated Captions
- Auto-captions (ASR) are not necessarily accurate enough to meet accessibility or legal requirements.
- For compliance and proper accommodations, live professional captioning (done by a trained human captioner) is required.
When required or encouraged by the University
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University-wide events: These events must be live-captioned by a professional captioner to industry standards of accuracy.
Example: Commencement, ceremonies for special honorands, and presidential installations. - School- or College-wide or other larger events: The University strongly urges that industry-standard live captioning be provided by a professional captioner for school-wide or other larger events that are advertised and expected to generate substantial audiences.
Examples: A streamed announcement from a Dean or School-wide streamed lecture series. - Events that are live streamed on a ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø Website: Events of any size that are live-streamed on a third-party platform such as YouTube or Facebook and embedded within a University Website must be live-captioned by a professional captioner.