A Practical Accessibility Pass for Article Pages
Published
A short, repeatable review catches common barriers in article content, navigation, images, and controls.
Check the page without a mouse
Tab through the navigation, topic filters, article links, and pagination. Focus should stay visible and move in a sensible reading order. Links should describe their destination; avoid a feed full of identical “read more” labels without nearby context.
Give images the right alternative
Ask what information an image contributes. Describe that information in alt text if it matters to the article. If a thumbnail merely decorates a linked title that already names the destination, keep the thumbnail silent to assistive technology. The W3C non-text content guide explains this distinction.
Keep the article structure readable
Use one page heading, then nested section headings in order. Write link text that still makes sense outside its paragraph, and use lists for actual groups of items. Do not use heading levels only to make text look larger.
Test real content, not just the template
Long titles, narrow screens, large text, missing images, and validation errors all change the experience. Review one representative article at mobile width and with keyboard navigation after the content is saved.