FCC Grants TNT, TBS a Limited Waiver of Audio Description Rules

WASHINGTON, D.C. —The FCC has granted a petition by Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT and TBS networks for a limited waiver of the FCC’s audio description rules. In making the decision, the FCC noted that the petition was not opposed and that the networks had committed to providing a large amount of programming with audio descriptions. It also said that the American Council for the Blind and the National Federation of the Blind consented to the grant of the waiver.

“Specifically, WBD requests that the Commission grant TBS and TNT, two of the top five nonbroadcast networks, a limited waiver of section 79.3(b)(4) of the Commission’s audio description rules, subject to certain conditions,” the FCC noted in its description. “Because WBD has made a commitment to provide a substantial amount of audio description on TBS and TNT, as well as on TruTV, that exceeds the current quarterly requirement, and because the unopposed Petition has the support of advocates for blind and visually impaired consumers, we grant the limited waiver for TBS and TNT.”

In the decision, which is available here , the FCC also said that “WBD’s proposed conditions for TBS are comparable to the ones granted in the 2021 TBS Order. We also acknowledge that WBD has committed to providing additional audio described programming on its affiliate network, TruTV. Specifically, TruTV will audio describe all newly produced, non-live programming aired between 6:00 a.m. and midnight ET within three business days of receipt for scripted programming, and within seven business days of receipt for non-scripted programming.   Regarding TNT, WBD’s proposal of 2,500 hours per calendar year of audio described programming without regard to the number of repeats exceeds the minimum hours required by the rules  and is `tailored to reflect the greater amount of repeat, live, and near-live programming on TNT’ as compared to TBS.   As with TruTV, TNT also will audio describe all newly produced, non-live programming aired between 6:00 a.m. and midnight ET within three business days of receipt for scripted programming, and within seven business days of receipt for non-scripted programming. Moreover, we take notice of WBD’s indication that the American Council for the Blind and the National Federation of the Blind consent to the grant of the waiver.   We find that granting WBD’s Petition, with the aforementioned conditions, has the potential to expand accessible content for viewers who are blind or visually impaired.”