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New Feature: Export Videos with Burned-In Captions for Social Media Accessibility

· 7 min read
Recap Innovations
AI-Powered Video Accessibility Solutions

Government entities are responsible for making their social media videos accessible under ADA Title II, even when the platform itself does not offer built-in caption support. We have added a new export option to Recap that lets you burn captions directly into the video frames, producing a file with permanently visible (open) captions that works on any platform.

The problem: not every social media platform supports caption files​

When you upload a video to YouTube or Vimeo, you can attach a separate caption file (SRT, VTT, etc.) that viewers toggle on or off. These are closed captions, and they are the preferred approach because they give viewers control.

But many platforms used by government communications teams do not support uploading caption files at all:

  • Instagram Reels and Stories do not accept SRT/VTT uploads for all post types
  • TikTok relies on auto-generated captions that may not meet accuracy requirements
  • X (formerly Twitter) does not support caption file uploads on video posts
  • Facebook Reels have limited caption upload support compared to standard Facebook video

As we covered in our article on social media video accessibility under ADA Title II, the DOJ does not treat platform limitations as an exemption. The content the government posts must still conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA. If the platform cannot display a separate caption track, you need another approach.

The solution: open captions (burned-in text)​

Open captions are captions rendered directly into the video pixels. They are always visible, regardless of what the platform supports or what settings the viewer has enabled. The text becomes part of the image itself, like a subtitle permanently stamped onto each frame.

This is now available in Recap as a one-click export. Select a video, choose the "Open captions (burned-in)" media format, pick which transcript or translation to burn in, and export. The processing happens in your browser using hardware-accelerated video encoding, and the result is a standard MP4 file ready to upload anywhere.

Open captions vs. closed captions: when to use each​

The distinction matters for compliance, usability, and viewer preference.

Closed captions (preferred when supported)​

Closed captions are delivered as a separate data track alongside the video. The viewer's player reads the track and displays the text as an overlay. The viewer can:

  • Toggle captions on or off
  • Customize the font, size, color, and background
  • Use captions in screen readers and other assistive technologies that parse text tracks

Closed captions respect viewer autonomy. A person who does not need captions is not forced to see them. A person who does need them can adjust the display to their own preferences.

Use closed captions when the platform supports uploading a caption file (YouTube, Vimeo, standard Facebook video, your own website with an accessible player).

Open captions (necessary when the platform falls short)​

Open captions are part of the video image. Once burned in, they cannot be turned off, resized, or restyled by the viewer.

Use open captions when:

  • The platform does not support closed caption file uploads
  • You are distributing the video to a channel where you cannot control player settings (email attachments, digital signage, kiosks)
  • You want to guarantee captions are visible regardless of viewer settings or platform changes

The tradeoff is reduced flexibility, so open captions should not replace closed captions on platforms that support them. They are a practical solution for the platforms that do not.

WCAG Technique G93: the standards basis for open captions​

WCAG Technique G93 ("Providing open (always visible) captions") is a sufficient technique for meeting:

  • WCAG Success Criterion 1.2.2 (Captions for Prerecorded content)
  • WCAG Success Criterion 1.2.4 (Captions for Live content, together with G9)

The W3C describes the technique this way: "all of the dialogue and important sounds are embedded as text in the video track. As a result they are always visible and no special support for captioning is required by the user agent."

The key phrase is "no special support for captioning is required by the user agent." This is exactly what makes open captions valuable for social media: the platform does not need to support captions because the captions are already in the video.

SC 1.2.2 does not specifically require closed captions. It requires captions. Both closed captions (Technique G87) and open captions (Technique G93) are sufficient techniques. The choice depends on the delivery context.

Common questions​

Are open captions "good enough" for our website?​

Technically, yes, per WCAG. Practically, closed captions are better for your website because they give viewers control over display and can be parsed by assistive technology. Use closed captions on your own site and open captions for platforms that do not support them.

Can we use auto-generated captions from the social media platform instead?​

Auto-generated captions from platforms like TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube often have significant accuracy issues, especially with proper nouns, technical terms, speaker identification, and non-speech sounds. WCAG requires captions to be accurate, synchronized, and complete. Auto-generated captions rarely meet that standard without manual review.

By generating captions in Recap first (where you can review, edit, and add speaker names) and then burning them into the video, you maintain control over quality.

What about viewers who find on-screen text distracting?​

This is a real concern and one reason closed captions are preferred when available. Open captions are always visible, and some viewers may find them distracting. When your distribution includes both a platform that supports closed captions and one that does not, export twice: a clean video with a separate caption file for the first platform, and an open caption version for the second.

Does burning in captions change the video quality?​

The export re-encodes the video, which can introduce a small quality difference depending on the source format and resolution. In practice, the difference is negligible for social media distribution, where platforms compress uploaded video regardless. The exported MP4 uses high-quality encoding settings.

Can I burn in a translation instead of the original transcript?​

Yes. When you select the open caption export, you choose which text track to burn in. This can be the original transcript, any available translation, or an audio description track. This is useful for creating versions of a video targeted at specific language communities.

How it works in Recap​

  1. Open any video file in Recap that has a completed transcript
  2. Click Export and select the Media tab
  3. Choose Open captions (burned-in)
  4. Select which text track to use (original, a translation, etc.)
  5. Click Export

The video is processed in your browser using the WebCodecs API for hardware-accelerated encoding. Once complete, the MP4 is uploaded to your workspace for download and future re-download. A progress dialog shows estimated completion time.

The captions appear as white bold text on a semi-transparent black background, positioned at the bottom center of the video, matching standard caption presentation conventions. Text is automatically word-wrapped and scaled to the video resolution.

For government teams posting video to social media, we recommend this workflow:

  1. Upload the video to Recap and let transcription complete
  2. Review and edit the transcript for accuracy, add speaker names
  3. Export with closed captions (SRT or VTT) for platforms that support caption uploads (YouTube, Vimeo, standard Facebook video)
  4. Export with open captions for platforms that do not support caption uploads (Instagram Reels, TikTok, X)
  5. Include a link to the Recap-hosted accessible version in the social media post, so viewers can access the full experience with toggleable captions, transcripts, audio descriptions, and get AI summaries and video recaps directly

This approach ensures every platform receives an accessible version of the video, using the best method each platform supports.

Getting started​

The open caption export is available now for all Recap workspaces. No additional configuration or package add-on is needed.

If you are a state or local government entity, or higher ed institutution, preparing for the ADA Title II compliance deadline and want to discuss your social media video accessibility workflow, reach out: