Transcript
[00:00:19] Nathan Wrigley: Welcome to the Jukebox podcast from WP Tavern. My name is Nathan Wrigley.
Jukebox is a podcast which is dedicated to all things WordPress. The people, the events, the plugins, the blocks, the themes, and in this case a debate about whether or not there’s a place for accessibility in a canonical plugin.
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So on the podcast today, we have Joe Dolson and Jonathan Desrosiers. As you’ll hear in their podcast introductions, both Joe and Jonathan are veterans of WordPress, committing to Core in different ways. They’re deeply committed towards making the platform more useful for all users.
This episode is all about exploration rather than answers. Joe and Jonathan discuss the world of canonical plugins, a special category of plugins maintained by the Core team. They’re designed to be as reliable and secure as features found in WordPress Core itself.
The discussion unpacks exactly what defines a canonical plugin, how these plugins have evolved out of the traditional feature plugin model, and what it means for users and contributors alike.
At the center of this episode is accessibility, should accessibility enhancements remain a primary concern within WordPress Core, or is it time to start developing them as canonical plugins? Joe and Jonathan discussed the pros and the cons of both options, referencing technical challenges, project philosophies, and the