Accessibility | The Style and Accessibility Guide

accessible color contrast

admin — Mon, 26 May 2025 12:56:25 +0000

accessible color contrast

Proper color contrast is important so text and and other content in color such as graphics is visible to those with color vision deficiency and low vision even when those colors are not visible to the user as intended.

Large text and logos including large text should have a contrast ratio with the background of no less than 4.5-to-1.

Examples:

This green text has a contrast ratio of 4.55-to-1 against a white background.

This blue text has a contrast ratio of 8.59-to-1 against a white background.

Small or regular sized text should have contrast ratio of 7-to-1 against the background.

Example: This black text against the white background has 21-to-1 contrast ratio.

For graphics and other elements, your contrast ration should be no less than 3-to-1 between each part of the element, including text, and the background.

Example:

In the above sample pie chart, here’s how our colors stack up for color ratio:

Blue to green: 4.33 to 1
Blue to white: 6.68 to 1
Green to white: 1.54 to 1

The green to white contrast fails.

To ensure that there’s a better contrast between the green and white segments, we added a 3 point black. Here’s how our colors stack up to black:

Blue to black: 3.14 to 1
Green to black: 13.63 to 1
White to black: 21 to 1

When picking colors, attempt to pick the best colors in contrast with each other, but also consider using outlines to help produce better contrast when many colors are used and there is a contrast failure, such as with the green in our example. Check color ratios using a color contrast checker.

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how to add emphasis

admin — Sun, 20 Apr 2025 10:51:35 +0000

how to add emphasis

Avoid using italic or bold text to convey emphasis. This will not be read by screen readers. In audio or video, emphasis is conveyed through change in tone of voice, facial expressions, or gestures. Consider describing these changes in text. Or simply use the word emphasized. Examples:

The new bill will negatively affect your rights, she emphasized, her voice rising sharply.
He emphasized that the day shelter was open to everyone, anyone who needs a hot meal, no questions asked.
Their face was red and eyes were puffy from crying after receiving the news: the new law had been signed by the Governor. A slap in the face, they emphasized.

If absolutely needed, use the correct HTML tags for emphasis, which provides a visual emphasis only:

the tag to mark emphasis around a word or phrase.
the tag to mark strong emphasis around a word or phrase

Examples:

The new bill will negatively affect your rights, she said.
This will render as:
The new bill will negatively affect your rights, she said.
He said the day shelter was open to everyone, no questions asked.
This will render as:
He said the day shelter was open to everyone, no questions asked.
A slap in the face, they said.
This will render as:
A slap in the face, they said.

Use the and tags sparingly. They do not add emphasis for those who use screen reader technology. The preference should be to describe emphasis using words.

For social media posts:

Use words in complete sentences to convey emphasis.
Avoid using emojis.
Do not capitalize an entire word to convey emphasis. A screen reader may read this as an abbreviation or acronym

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how to apply Easy English to journalism

admin — Fri, 13 Jun 2025 12:31:57 +0000

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how to apply Easy English to journalism
how to apply Easy English to journalism
Easy English has a common set of standards for written information:
short sentences of 5 to 8 words each;
all sentences in active tense;
use of bullet points, rather than paragraphs or lengthy prose;
one idea per sentence;
everyday words of the audience;
use of examples from the life experience of the audience;
lots of white space;
a minimum of size 14 font;
and the use of images to accompany text, surrounded by white space.
The following is an example of a news article reworked into Easy English using the guidelines above. First is the sample news story:
The alternative work day
Nearly 18 percent of Americans work outside of 9-to-5 work day
Feb. 5, 2010
There’s the traditional business day — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. — and then there’s 21st-century business hours. Flex time. Alternative schedule. Evening shift. Night shift.
In fact, 30 percent of American workers work some other schedule than 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with 17.7 percent working outside the typical daytime schedule, according to a 2004 Bureau of Labor Statistics report, the most recent for such data. About 8.4 million people work the night shift.
Nearly every industry has companies that work more than one shift a day, said Bruce Oliver of Shiftwork Solutions, a California-based company specializing in assisting multi-shift companies. These shift-work operations include the traditional 24/7 services like police, fire, hospitals, utilities, manufacturing, mining and transportation. But there are a growing number of industries adopting shift work, such as customer-service call centers, retail establishments, insurance, information-technology monitoring and support centers, hotels, casinos and 24-hour news operations.
With the expansion of the work day to 24 hours, night shifts have become a more visible part of the working world. However, evening shift — a shift between 2 p.m. and midnight — accounts for only 6.8 percent of wage and salary workers and night shift — a shift between 9 p.m. and 8 a.m. — accounts for only 3.1 percent, according to A Time to Work: Recent Trends in Shift Work and Flexible Schedules. The 2007 article by Terence M. McMenamin, an economist at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, examines the 2004 numbers.
Despite a recent decline in the percentage of people who say that they can vary their hours of work, the proportion of workers with this option is more than double that of 20 years ago, McMenamin wrote. Over the same period, the proportion of workers with alternate shifts has remained fairly steady.
Who is the night shift worker
Night-shift workers and other alternative-shift workers come from just about every background and demographic. But there are some differences from their day-shift counterparts.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data, 4.4 percent of Black workers and 3.5 percent of Latino workers worked the night shift, as opposed to just 2.9 percent of Caucasian workers. Numbers stayed nearly even by educational level, with 4.1 percent of those without a high- school diploma and 4 percent of those with some college working a night shift.
Shiftwork Solutions conducted a survey of 20,000 shift workers. It found that about 22 percent were female, while about 78 percent were male. About 19.27 percent were single parents, while an overall 46.8 percent had children of childcare age.
Beyond the numbers, the person must also be able to work the night shift, said Celia Crossley, a Columbus, Ohio, career counselor. She has counseled day- and night-shift workers across many industries using the Birkman Method, which involves personality assessment for behaviors such as organization, productivity and handling stress.
Physically, it’s got to be someone who’s comfortable with that time slot, she said, noting demands on sleep and the lack of exposure to daylight.
But she also noted specific personality traits that benefit a night-shift worker.
Some individuals might like being the janitor on the night shift because they are more comfortable being alone, Crossley said. It might be someone who’s a little more introverted and feels they don’t need as much group interaction.
Night shifts, she explained, tend to staff fewer workers, be absent of upper management and require some autonomy among the workers. That doesn’t mean they wouldn’t play well with a team; it just means they don’t need as big of a team, Crossley said.
Why the night shift
Is it night shift because it’s a 24/7 operation like a hospital, and is it the only shift they could get because it’s their first job in the door? Crossley said.
Oliver said companies use several factors when assigning alternative shifts.
The assignment often begins by asking for volunteers for the least desirable shifts — usually the afternoon and night shift, he said. If there are insufficient volunteers, the organization will assign people to the shifts based on seniority, job skills, experience and other factors. Since seniority is the most commonly used criterion, one could generalize that most night-shift workers on fixed-shift schedules are the least senior or younger members of the workforce.
Several factors determine why people work the night shift, according to the 2004 data. Nature of the job was the most common factor, with 1.247,000 people reporting it as their reason for working the night shift.
Keep in mind that many night-shift workers are not there voluntarily, Oliver said. They work the night shift only because they are on a rotating shift schedule or they were assigned to the shift and they want to stay employed.
Others made the choice. Personal preference was the number-two given reason with 732,000 responses, while Better arrangements for childcare or family ranked third with 626,000 responses.
The same story is then reworked using the guidelines of Easy English. This is the Easy English news sample:
The other work day
Feb. 10, 2010
Most people work during the day.
About 8.5 million American people
work in the evenings.
work at night.
work in the early mornings.
These jobs include
doctors and nurses.
police and firefighters.
factory workers.
janitors.
and many other jobs.
Most night shift workers were
male.
had children.
had only a high school education.
were Black or Latino.
Most night shift workers were assigned to the shift.
Others work night shift because
they want to.
it is better for their family schedule.
A career counselor said night shift workers should
be good at dealing with stress.
be ok working at night.
be physically ok sleeping during the day.
be ok without a lot sunlight.
be ok working alone.
be organized.
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how to apply plain language in journalism

admin — Sun, 08 Jun 2025 11:07:46 +0000

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how to apply plain language in journalism
how to apply plain language in journalism
Plain language can be applied to written, audio, and video journalism by using wording, structure, and design appropriately.
Structure
Keep your most important information near the beginning of your story. This is the information most people need to know. Order your information throughout the story in order of what is most important for people to know to least important for people to know, often called inverted pyramid.
Keep your ideas short, usually one idea to sentence, and one or two sentences to paragraph.
When speaking on audio or video, speak slowly and clearly.
Wording
Consider your audience and their literacy level. In the U.S., 54 percent of adults fall below the 6th grade literacy level, according to the National Literacy Institute. Twenty percent fall below a 5th grade literacy level.
Avoid jargon, or explain it where it must be used. If you are writing for a general audience, remember that the vast majority of your audience may not be experts in a particular field you may be covering.
Avoid colloquialisms and slang, or explain them when necessary.
Design
Have closed captioning, transcripts, and sign language (when possible) available for video and audio.
Avoid overcrowding. Keep your visual design simple and easy to follow with sub-headers that give a reader context and places to cognitively land
Keep your audio free of music or distracting background noise.
Keep your video free of a lot of extra graphics or chyrons.
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how to conduct an accessible interview

admin — Thu, 29 May 2025 13:26:04 +0000

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how to conduct an accessible interview
how to conduct an accessible interview
Although some disabilities are apparent to others or some sources may make you aware of their disabilities, many disabilities are unapparent disabilities. These may affect a person’s energy limitations, cognition, pain, vision, or hearing. It is incumbent upon you, the journalist, to create the most accessible opportunity for an interview.
When scheduling interviews, ask if any accommodations are necessary. These may include interpreters, translators, interviews over video, masking around people who are immunocompromised, breaking interviews into multiple short segments, conducting written interviews, offering wheelchair accessible locations, or other options.
Always speak directly to your source. When a source is disabled and a caregiver is present, direct your questions to the source, not the caregiver.
When a translator, interpreter, or personal aide is present, continue to direct your questions to your source rather than the translator, interpreter, or aide. Maintain eye contact with your source. The translator, interpreter, or aide is not your source.
If a source is a wheelchair user or sitting, sit in a chair to meet their eye level and speak directly to your source.
Give your source time and space to answer. Allow for speech and cognitive differences.
If a source has a cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disability, simplify your questions and use plain language. Be prepared to ask your question in several different ways to ensure understanding.
Do not infantilize or assume limitations because of disabilities. Your source may be an expert in their field regardless of disability.
Be professional and avoid patronizing sources with disabilities.
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how to make accessible hyperlinks

admin — Sat, 24 May 2025 11:56:14 +0000

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how to make accessible hyperlinks
how to make accessible hyperlinks
To make hyperlinks accessible, they must include the right information and be distinguishable from the surrounding items on the page.
That means they must both be coded correctly and be styled correctly.
Hyperlinks must include the following attributes:
ref, which refers to your link;
a target, where your link should open, such as in the same tab or in a new tab or window;
and meaningful wording in the link.
First, the hyperlink should navigate to a working link, the ref. Write ref=”http://www.yourlinkhere.com”
Second, decide where you want that link to open. Do you want your link to open in the same tab or a new tab or window?
target="_self", which opens in the same tab.
target="_blank", which opens in a new window or tab.
For example if you are linking to the restaurant the Clam Box of Ipswich in Ipswich, Mass., and you want it to open in a new window, your hyperlink should be written similar to this, where in this example we’ve broken it down line-by-line so you can see each attribute:
target="_blank">the Clam Box of Ipswich This will render as: the Clam Box of Ipswich.
If you are linking to the Iver’s Acres of Clams in Seattle, Wash., and you want it to open in the same tab we’re currently using, your hyperlink should be written similar to this: Iver's Acres of Clams This will render as: Iver’s Acres of Clams.
Third, describe the link in a way that makes sense without context of a surrounded sentence. Remember that a screen reader will read the hyperlink out of context before it reads it in context of the sentence. Let’s take some examples:
Examples of bad hyperlink wording
Find out why not to use click herehere.
Read more about read more here.
Examples of good hyperlink wording
Why not to use click here in links.
Read more links are bad: why?
For those with low vision or other visual stimulus needs, links must:
Be a different, contrasting color that differentiates them from the text around them.
Include a text decoration such as an underline or dotted underline that sets them apart from other text.
May include different styles for different states, such as hover and clicked.
Your hyperlinks must also be navigable by keyboard and by screen reader. This is a global setting, and is usually done for you. Check that you can use the tab key to navigate to each of your hyperlinks.
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how to offset quotes admin — Sun, 20 Apr 2025 11:38:54 +0000 Home Chapters Accessibility how to offset quotes how to offset quotes Quotes must be separated from text that is not quoted in print, audio, and video. In print, think of this as being done by the quotation mark. In audio and video, we think of using the clip of the source speaking. However, it is important to make quotes as accessible as possible to the widest range of audiences. In audio and video, ensure that when quoting a another person, the reporter or broadcaster should say the word quote prior to the quoted material and end the quoted material with the word unquote. This helps specifically delineate where the quoted material begins and ends. In text, to make a quote visible to both those using screen readers and also visual readers, make sure quotes are offset by the proper HTML tags. Instead of using the quotation mark, use the tag. Examples: It was a long day of debates, Sen. Lawrence said. This will render as: It was a long day of debates, Sen. Lawrence said. We are going to take this all the way to the Supreme Court, he said. This will render as: We are going to take this all the way to the Supreme Court, he said. We opened the center to all who need it, the organizer said. This will render as: We opened the center to all who need it, the organizer said. For a pullout quotes and blockquotes within an article, use the tagging. Examples: We're so excited to receive this award for dog training. We started training service dogs 10 years ago as a side project, and never thought it would become a full-fledged organization. Now we're the largest trainer in the tristate area with more than 300 foster-trainers. It's overwhelming, really. This would render this as the following when using the tag. We’re so excited to receive this award for dog training. We started training service dogs 10 years ago as a side project, and never thought it would become a full-fledged organization. Now we’re the largest trainer in the tristate area with more than 300 foster-trainers. It’s overwhelming, really. ← Return to Accessibility User feedback survey Please take a moment to tell use how you use the OAJ Style and Accessibility Guide. Open survey how to write a content warning admin — Wed, 07 May 2025 09:56:44 +0000 Home Chapters Accessibility how to write a content warning how to write a content warning If a content warning is needed before a story, OAJ suggests using an editor’s note format. The editor’s note is placed at the top of the story. Examples for text: Editors note: This story contains descriptions of rape. Editors note: This story contains quotes that use slurs against disabled people. Editors note: This story contains discussions about suicide. Examples for video and audio: A note from our editor before we begin. This story contains discussions about suicide. A note from our editor before we begin. This story contains descriptions of rape. A note from our editor before we begin. This story contains quotes that use slurs against disabled people. ← Return to Accessibility User feedback survey Please take a moment to tell use how you use the OAJ Style and Accessibility Guide. Open survey how to write alt text admin — Thu, 10 Apr 2025 11:45:24 +0000 Home Chapters Accessibility how to write hashtags how to write alt text All images, whether photos or graphics, get alt text assigned to them. Alt text for photos should include the following: When and where was the photo taken. How many people are in the photo. A basic description of the action of these people and any basic relevant emotions or expressions is fine. any important details about the photo such as weather conditions, landmarks, signs, action, etc. Alt text for infographics and other data visualization should include: The image or chart type. The type of data or what’s in the image. The reason for including the image or chart. Alt text for art or drawings should be written in a similar manner to photos, noting that they are showing and what kind of art or drawing. Best practice is less than 250 characters. More detail can be included in a photo or image cutline or other image description included with the image on the web page. Alt text will be coded after the image source, making alt a required part of the tag similar to src. For example: Also see alt text. ← Return to Accessibility User feedback survey Please take a moment to tell use how you use the OAJ Style and Accessibility Guide. Open survey how to write cutlines admin — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 14:42:35 +0000 Home Chapters Accessibility how to write cutlines how to write cutlines A cutline should include the following elements of the photo: Who is in the photo What is happening Where the photo shows When the photo captures Why the people were there; the action occurred; the situation is important; etc. How things came to be. For accessibility, consider using adjectives when describing as you might do for an image description. The caption may also include a quote. Captions are in present tense, complete sentences, and should be limited to less than three sentences, except when there is a compelling reason. The following is an example: Photo by Stacy Kess, staff photographer An unidentified protestor wearing a blue medical mask at the April 5 Boston #HandsOff protest against the Trump Administration looks up at news helicopters flying over the marchers on Tremont Street. She, like many marchers, made her own sign, which read I’m sick of this shit written in all capital letters on a plain white poster board. The march, which wound its way through Beacon Hill and to Government Center, attracted more than 100,000 people. In this example: Who: A protester What: The Boston #HandsOff protest When: April 5 Where: Boston Why: Protest against the Trump Administration Accessible detail: Protester in a blue mask Accessible detail: Sign reads I’m sick of this shit Additional detail: Protest attracted more than 100,000 people ← Return to Accessibility User feedback survey Please take a moment to tell use how you use the OAJ Style and Accessibility Guide. Open survey