Is the accessibility of media content for these groups improving, or do they remain excluded and marginalized?

We will discuss the challenges that vulnerable groups face in the time of rapid development of new digital media, online and mobile applications, and artificial intelligence. Are the accessibility of media contents for these groups improving, or do they remain excluded and marginalized? We will focus on the situation of the deaf and hard of hearing in Slovenia and neighboring Croatia, their cultural needs, and the accessibility of literature and media. In addition, we will also address the situation of other vulnerable, minority, and marginalized groups and ask what can be done to improve the accessibility of cultural contents for vulnerable groups.We will present a best practice example of including vulnerable groups, especially the deaf and hard of hearing, in the international project Slavic Soundwalking, co-financed by the European Union within the Creative Europe program. Thanks to the Creative Europe program and Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia, which recognizes the importance of including various groups in the media space and ensuring diversity and accessibility of cultural contents in an international context, all 75 authorial short stories of the project will also be translated into Slovenian Sign Language. This will make the mobile application available to deaf and hard of hearing residents and visitors of Ljubljana.