"Bigger Than Big" with Francoir Jacobs (Audio Description)

Lizzie Eastham and Sam Rickard present Studio 1 - Vision Australia Radio’s weekly look through a different lens.

On this week’s show

"Bigger than Big" with Francois Jacobs"

Once more Lizzie and Sam keep an ear out for Audio Description!

Lizzie catches up with Francois Jacobs, Blind Citizens Australia’s Systemic Advocacy Lead and asks, what is a Systemic Advocacy Lead? They also talk about the changes coming to the way Vision Impaired and Blind Citizens access media including Audio Description

Studio 1 welcomes any input from our listeners. If you have any experience or thoughts about issues covered in this episode or believe there is something we should be talking about.

You may also be interested in joining our choir of angels and telling your story. Click here: https://chat.whatsapp.com/FwBORTly2OqC9FFmQAm97z?s=hd&p=i&mlu=3&amv=2 to join our whatsapp group and have your say.

EMAIL: studio1@visionaustralia.org or leave comment on the station’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/VARadioNetwork

A special thank you to Blind Citizens Australia and Francoir in particular

Find out more here: https://www.bca.org.au/

This program was made possible with support from the Community Broadcasting Foundation. Find out more at https://cbf.org.au/

In a landmark step toward media accessibility, the Australian Government has announced plans to introduce legislation mandating audio description across all free-to-air commercial television networks and video-on-demand services.

Speaking on Vision Australia Radio’s Studio 1, Francois Jacobs, Systemic Advocacy Lead at Blind Citizens Australia (BCA), described the decision as "bigger than big." While public broadcasters like the ABC and SBS have offered limited audio described programming since receiving government funding around 2020, commercial networks and streaming platforms have lagged behind.

Audio description provides real-time verbal narration of visual elements—such as facial expressions, actions, and scene changes—during gaps in dialogue. For the blind and vision-impaired community, this service is essential for cultural inclusion, enabling equal participation in shared family moments and popular workplace conversations.

This legislative victory comes after more than 30 years of sustained community advocacy, including key human rights complaints to the United Nations. However, Jacobs emphasized that the announcement is just the beginning. BCA is actively preparing to consult on the upcoming draft legislation to ensure it establishes high-quality standards and sets fixed broadcast hours rather than vague percentages, guaranteeing meaningful accessibility for all viewers.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.