CBS TO OFFER AUDIO DESCRIPTION FOR THE BLIND FOR "THE 75TH ANNUAL TONY AWARDS®"

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Jun 08, 2022, 11:20 ET

Academy Award Winner and Tony Nominee Ariana DeBose to Host Sunday, June 12, on CBS

NEW YORK, June 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- CBS, The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing will broaden access to THE 75^TH ANNUAL TONY AWARDS^®by providing, for the first time, audio description for the live telecast. The addition of audio description, which provides audio-narrated descriptions of a program's key visual elements, ensures that viewers who are blind and low vision will be able to take in all the action occurring on the screen, and provides a much richer experience of the event. The audio description will be provided on the Secondary Audio Programming (SAP) channel by industry leaders VITAC and Audio Eyes.

Live from the legendary Radio City Music Hall in New York and hosted by Academy Award winner and Tony nominee Ariana DeBose, THE 75^TH ANNUAL TONY AWARDS will be broadcast Sunday, June 12 (8:00-11:00 PM, LIVE ET/5:00-8:00 PM, LIVE PT) on the CBS Television Network, and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+*.

Since April 1, 2002, CBS has continuously provided audio description and is proud to have been an industry leader and innovator in the voluntary provision of the service. The Network offers audio description with nearly all its regularly scheduled scripted primetime programs, all movies, selected specials and the entire CBS DREAM TEAM Saturday morning block of educational/informational children's programming.

"For over 20 years, CBS has continually improved upon and increased the availability of audio description in our programming. We are proud to be able to offer THE 75^TH ANNUAL TONY AWARDS to an even wider and more inclusive audience," said Mark Turits, vice president of captioning and audio description at Paramount Global.

The 75^th Tonys television event will recognize all the award categories and honor the incredible artistry of the 2021-2022 season. The Tony Awards, which honor theater professionals for distinguished achievement on Broadway, is presented by The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing and has been broadcast on CBS since 1978.

The Tony Awards are produced in collaboration with Tony Award Productions, a joint venture of The Broadway League and the American Theatre Wing, and White Cherry Entertainment. Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss are executive producers for White Cherry Entertainment. Weiss will serve as director.

About the Tony Awards
The Antoinette Perry "Tony" Award, which was founded by the American Theatre Wing in 1947, is bestowed annually on theater professionals for distinguished achievement on Broadway. The Tony is one of the most coveted awards in the entertainment industry and the annual telecast – the night America watches Broadway – is considered one of the most prestigious programs on television.

About AUDIO EYES
Audio Eyes is a partnership of audio engineers, producers, accessibility experts, blind professionals and audio description professionals who are passionate about providing high quality services in a creative, inclusive work environment. The Audio Eyes production team has more than a decade of experience providing live audio description in theaters as well as recorded audio description for broadcast television networks, nationally distributed DVDs, government agencies and private entities. Additionally, they have extensive experience producing audio dramas, audio books, music, radio programs, radio ads and a variety of business-to-business audio products. The Audio Eyes progressive work environment, inclusive hiring practices and technical expertise keep the company at the leading edge of the accessible media production industry.

About VITAC
VITAC, a Verbit company, is the largest provider of accessible video products and services in North America. Responsible for captioning hundreds of thousands of programming hours each year, its customers include every broadcast company and most cable networks, as well as Fortune 1000 corporations, educational institutions, government agencies, plus stadiums and arenas.

*Paramount+ Premium subscribers will have access to stream live via the live feed of their local CBS affiliate on the service as well as on demand. Essential-tier subscribers will have access to the program on-demand the day after the special airs.

Audio Description on Paramount+ will only be included in post-live air streams.

SOURCE CBS