The Difference Between Captions and Subtitles
Contrary to popular belief, subtitles and captions are not synonymous. In playable media, which includes videos, movies, tv, etc., captions are essential for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to understand the media. Captions are the text displayed either at the bottom or the top of the screen in playable media. This text indicates all dialogue, important sound effects, and music, allowing individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to understand the media without hearing it. There are two types of captions, open and closed. Open and closed captions have one key difference: Open captions are permanently on the screen, so the viewer cannot remove them. Closed captions can be turned on and off, so the viewer has the option to hide or show them. While captions are designed for individuals who cannot physically hear the audio, they can be used by anyone.
Subtitles, unlike captions, are not intended to help individuals with disabilities because they do not provide enough information. However, they are still very useful to people, especially if the media is in a different language. Subtitles only include the dialogue in playable media. Typically, they are translations of the dialogue into another language so that non-speakers of the language can understand it. Subtitles do not adequately help individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing because they do not include enough information about the audio. However, they are useful for anyone who does speak the language.
