This article is a duplicate of my Pensioners Platform column for the March-April 2014 edition of the Torbay Times. It is also an update of my November 2013 OAP-UK Blog article on the same subject:-
HEARING LOSS can strike
at any age, but it’s especially common among the retired and elderly. Indeed,
after a lifetime of ‘ear troubles’ I now wear hearing aids, but I still resort
to sub-titles as a back-up when I watch the television. Similarly, I enjoy
reading the interactive news on the BBC red button first thing in the morning,
while keeping half an eye on the muted video news content. This may be a bit of
a personal ritual, but it helps me to wake-up. In fact, I used to start my day
on Sky News interactive, after which – and simply for a news balance – I’d switch
to the BBC News text service. Not anymore though.
A little
over one year ago, in a sly and cynical move, Sky News removed its on-screen
red button icon. However, not to be outdone, I found I could still access the
Sky News text service by pressing the red button on my remote control anyway.
Then, towards then end of last year, I noticed a Sky News announcement stating
that the text news service was being discontinued but an on-demand video choice
would remain.
Consequently,
on 1st November, I e-mailed Sky News as follows: “Dear News at Sky: I
suffer from severe hearing loss, and I’m appalled at the apparent scrapping of
your text news on the red button, which I’ve been using for quite a few years. If
my suspicions are correct, I believe your actions are a clear case of
discrimination against those of us with hearing issues. I have therefore
copied-in Maria Miller MP, the Secretary of State for Media and Equalities, on
this e-mail’s circulation. Yours faithfully”
Guess what? I didn’t receive a reply from
either Sky News or the Secretary of State: just computer generated
acknowledgements of receipt. So, on 26th November, I copied the
above e-mail to our local MP Adrian Sanders, who immediately contacted Ofcom.
At the end of January, Mr Sanders wrote to me to confirm he’d been in-touch
with Ofcom, and they, in turn, had made contact with Sky. In response to the Ofcom
approach, Sky apparently said it had withdrawn the red button service, because “it
was duplicating information already shown on its website.”
Excuse me? Duplicating
information already shown on the Sky website? Forgive me for asking this
question but, who at Sky News made the misguided assumption that EVERYONE
viewing its TV ‘red button’ facility owns a PC, tablet, laptop, smart phone or
smart TV?
Yet again, we appear
to be witnessing, here, the all too familiar narrow-mindedness of today’s corporate
world. And, once again, the perpetrators are likely to be otherwise bright but not-so-young
things with all kinds of diplomas and degrees, yet possessing little, if any,
sense of community or consideration for others. These people are being
entrusted with decision-making that clearly discriminates against a significant
proportion of the population. Yet their bosses don’t get it!
By its very nature,
the now defunct Sky News red button text service was a useful tool for all of
us suffering hearing loss: young and elderly alike. However, in its wisdom, Sky
News assumed we ALL have internet access. But they were wrong. While it’s true
to say we UK pensioners are only just beginning to wake-up to the advantages of
being internet savvy, we nevertheless represent a huge sector of the UK population.
So, whoever made that decision to drop the Sky News red button text service not
only did us a disservice, but he or she also demonstrated a distinct lack of social
awareness. Shame on you Sky News!
As a footnote to the
above, I regret to report I have received an e-mail from the Equalities &
Human Rights Commission (EHRC) telling me that enquiries such as this are now
handled by the Equality Advisory Support Service (EASS). The e-mail then goes-on
to say, “The EHRC is unable to provide you with any advice or support in
relation to the matters raised in your original request. We have not
forwarded your request to the EASS in order to protect your privacy and
confidentiality.”
I wonder why the words
“fobbed-off” and “pillar to post” spring to mind?
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