Memes
Memes are images with a common or relatable theme with text overlaid. They are posted in chat rooms, social media, and presentations.They are often funny and memorable which makes them great for explaining concepts. Unfortunately, they are text-heavy. So they are often inaccessible to people with cognitive and visual disabilities.
In previous guidelines, we talk about appropriate alternative text to describe images. When images contain text, we need to include that text in the alt text.
Communicating a meme involves answering two questions:
- How do you provide context of the meme used?
- How do you note the text overlaid on the image?
See the examples below.
Examples
Note that the solution does not have to be exactly like the examples. Maybe something else on the meme needs to be described. Also note that a full description of the image is not included.
Like other complex images, screen reader users are familiar with concepts in descriptions. They can look up memes to get a broader understanding on the original image. This would be like faculty teaching a concept one day, then using that concept in an example the next day. It does not need to be described in full again.
