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KweliTV

Summary

Accessiblü conducted a high-level accessibility evaluation of the KWELI.TV streaming platform to assess its usability for individuals with disabilities. The review was conducted using the JAWS and NVDA screen readers, keyboard-only navigation, and manual inspection for conformance to select WCAG 2.2 AA success criteria.

Key Findings

The KWELI.TV platform presents significant accessibility barriers that may prevent users with disabilities from effectively accessing and navigating the streaming service. Critical issues include keyboard traps in navigation menus, inaccessible video controls, missing alternative text for images, and improper heading structures. While the platform shows some positive elements like the presence of a navigation region and some properly labeled links, these accessibility challenges create substantial barriers for screen reader users and keyboard-only users attempting to browse content, watch videos, or use the live TV features. 

Addressing these accessibility concerns would enable users with disabilities to fully utilize KWELI TV's streaming services and access its culturally significant content library. 

Top 3 Issues

  1. Keyboard Traps in Navigation Menus

    • Brief Description: The Browse and About accordion menus trap keyboard focus when expanded, preventing users from navigating away without using the Escape key.
    • Impact: Keyboard-only users and screen reader users become trapped and cannot continue navigation.
    • WCAG Success Criteria: 2.1.2 No Keyboard Trap (Level A)

  2. Inaccessible Video Player Controls

    • Brief Description: Video player controls are either missing entirely or cannot be accessed via keyboard. The trailer link causes focus to jump unpredictably, making video controls unreachable.
    • Impact: Users with visual and motor disabilities cannot play, pause, or control video content.
    • WCAG Success Criteria: 2.1.1 Keyboard (Level A), 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (Level A)

  3. Missing Alternative Text for Images

    • Brief Description: Throughout the platform, images are announced as "graphic" without meaningful descriptions, including show thumbnails, logos, and promotional images.
    • Impact: Screen reader users cannot understand the visual content or context of shows and features.
    • WCAG Success Criteria: 1.1.1 Non-text Content (Level A)

Disabilities Impacted

Blind and Low-Vision Users

  • Issues: Missing alt text, improper heading structure, unlabeled buttons, inaccessible video controls, and lack of skip navigation.
  • Impact: Screen reader users cannot effectively browse content, understand show information, or control video playback, severely limiting platform usability. 

Users with Motor Disabilities

  • Issues: Keyboard traps, inaccessible controls, unpredictable focus management, and missing keyboard access to critical features.
  • Impact: Keyboard-only users will become trapped in some menus and cannot access video controls or navigate efficiently through the platform. 

Neurodiverse Users 

  • Issues: Inconsistent navigation patterns, unpredictable focus behavior, and complex calendar/schedule interfaces without proper structure.
  • Impact: The inconsistent interface behavior and lack of clear structure make it difficult for users to develop mental models of how to use the platform effectively.