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Visual Description

Also known as: Visual Content Description

The practice of conveying visual information through non-visual means, primarily text or speech. Visual description encompasses various contexts including image descriptions, alternative text, audio description of video, and assessment descriptors for privacy tools. Research in disability studies highlights that visual description is inherently subjective and value-laden, shaped by the describer's perspective and choices about what to emphasize or omit, raising questions about who holds authority over how visual content is communicated.

Category: accessibility principles · content accessibility

Related: Image Description · Alternative Text · Assessment Descriptor

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