King County TV automates meeting audio description with MediaScribe

King County TV has added an automated audio description workflow for council and committee meetings using Tightrope Media Systems’ MediaScribe Narrate, aiming to meet ADA Title II and WCAG 2.1 AA requirements without expanding staff. The county says the cloud-based system fits into its existing Cablecast publishing workflow and helps a small team handle 10 to 12 hours of weekly meeting video.

Why it matters: - King County TV is trying to make long-form government meetings more accessible without turning a small production team into a full-time narration staff. - The workflow addresses ADA Title II digital accessibility requirements and WCAG 2.1 AA goals for public meeting video. - The setup matters for residents because meeting video can now be published with audio description and transcript support through the county’s existing distribution channels.

What happened: - King County TV adopted MediaScribe Narrate from Tightrope Media Systems for council and committee meeting coverage. - The county government station covers four to six meetings a week, adding up to about 10 to 12 hours of video. - The tool is being used as part of the county’s effort to bring meeting video into compliance with accessibility standards. - King County TV already uses Cablecast Automation to publish meeting video, and MediaScribe now plugs into that workflow.

The details: - MediaScribe runs in the cloud, so King County TV did not need to install new hardware. - The platform is designed to handle multi-hour meeting files, not just short clips. - The workflow leaves staff with an editable, human-reviewable output instead of a fixed final track. - King County TV also built accessible PowerPoint templates based on University of Washington accessibility resources so meeting slides carry screen-reader-friendly text. - The county consulted with other Washington stations, including Yakima and Tacoma, before choosing a workflow. - King County TV also worked with Rooted in Rights, a Washington-based nonprofit focused on accessible media. - The team used Tightrope’s free educational resources while evaluating audio description options. - Tightrope webinars on audio description helped fill a gap in available training, according to Station Manager Kimberly Hill. - MediaScribe analyzes the video, detects gaps, and generates descriptions that staff can review and correct. - The system is tuned to recognize common events in a government meeting, which helps with long recordings. - After review, MediaScribe can render an MP4 with the original audio and a mixed description track, standalone audio files, and a plain text transcript with visual descriptions. - Those outputs feed King County TV’s Cablecast VOD page and public transcript downloads.

Between the lines: - King County TV is choosing automation over a fully manual accessibility workflow because the volume of meeting video would otherwise strain a small team. - Brian Starr, AV Technology Manager for King County TV, said the Cablecast integration makes publishing “pretty seamless.” - Starr also said describing hours of meeting content requires storytelling skill that staff reports do not naturally provide. - The county’s approach suggests accessibility can be built into public media workflows without adding major operational friction, but only if the tools fit existing systems.

What's next: - King County TV will continue using MediaScribe as part of its regular meeting production and publishing process. - The county expects the workflow to keep its video-on-demand page accessible and available quickly after meetings are cleared for publication. - Starr said residents and staff are directed to the county’s VOD link because it is WCAG compliant and posted before other public channels.

The bottom line: - King County TV is showing how a public broadcaster can meet accessibility requirements for long government meetings by automating the hardest part of audio description and keeping staff review in the loop.

About Tightrope Media Systems: - Tightrope Media Systems has spent more than 25 years providing video distribution and media accessibility tools for government and community organizations. - Its Cablecast platform supports playout automation for cable channels, websites, and mobile and over-the-top streaming devices. - Its MediaScribe platform includes live captions, real-time translation, meeting transcription, and audio descriptions for live and on-demand content. - More information is available at the company's website.