Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF) strives to be Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.2 AA compliant. The WCAG is an open standard for determining accessibility. AA compliance is considered good support for a website geared toward a global audience.
What we are doing
We take the following initiatives to ensure our website is inclusive and accessible to all:
- We run automated and manual tests to check for accessibility issues.
- We check the content of our website using various assistive technologies.
- We conduct accessibility audits by third-party organizations at least intermittently.
- We maintain a transparent list of known accessibility issues.
- We use color schemes that have high contrast ratios.
- We use distinct, visible focus indicators for all interactive elements.
- We respect user’s preferences for reduced animation experiences.
- We respect the user's preferences for color schemes.
- We provide different ways for users to report accessibility issues that they discover on our website.
Accessibility features
The website is developed using semantic HTML and progressive enhancements. In addition, we also provide the following features for better experience with assistive technologies:
- Proper heading structure to provide a logical document outline
- Accessible names for links, buttons, embeds, and other interactive controls
- Skip links to help people easily navigate to the main content of the page
- Landmark areas to better categorize the different sections of a page
Technology specifications
We try to use technologies that are robust, well-tested, and accessible, using different web browsers and assistive technologies.
Front end
We try to use the standard web technologies as much as possible, and rely on progressive enhancement throughout our development. Most of our code uses HTML, CSS, ARIA, and SVG to make it accessible for everyone. We also use JavaScript and React for certain interactions in the website, but those interactions are progressively enhanced.
Backend
The backend of our website is built using Wagtail, which is a Django framework that strives to be WCAG 2.2 compliant and ATAG 2.0 compliant. This enables our editors to have an accessible editing experience and also create accessible content for the website.
Known issues
We are aware of the following accessibility issues with the current version of the site, and are committed to working toward a resolution:
- Nondecorative media content does not consistently provide useful ALT text (alternative text for screen readers and other assistive technologies).
- Heading levels may not always follow a logical hierarchical order.
- Some navigation links lack accessible labels that clearly distinguish them from each other.
- Some form validation messages don't meet color contrast guidelines.
Report issues or suggest improvements
If you discover an accessibility issue not mentioned above, or if you have suggestions for making our website more user-friendly or accessible, please contact us at [email protected]. We aim to read and respond to all reports within the next five working days.
