Newsline for the Blind

Do you read the sports scores over coffee in the morning? Do you have a look at the morning news on the bus on your way to work? Do you read the newspaper in the evening after work? Do you read the obituaries or the editorials and keep up with all the local news? These are common practices among Americans, but the blind have been left out.

News headlines on radio and TV have provided some news access to blind people, but this is not the same as reading the newspaper. Newspapers are probably the most widely read kind of literature in the United States today--a major activity in our culture, an important means of shaping public opinion, and a primary source of information.

Now, for the first time, the blind can read newspapers very much the way sighted people do! The National Federation of the Blind has developed NEWSLINE, which is distributed through the National NEWSLINE Network. NEWSLINE makes it possible to read newspapers by using touch-tone telephones. Three national newspapers Washington Post, USA Today, and The Los Angeles Times--are available in Idaho. Other local newspapers are made available at the appropriate local service centers. The Idaho Statesman is available through our Local Service Center.

This is the way it works: Each morning the entire text of each paper is sent by modem or Internet to the headquarters of the National Federation of the Blind in Baltimore. There the newspapers are converted, in a very few minutes, into high-quality synthesized speech. This converted text is then sent by modem to each NEWSLINE Local Service Center, where it is stored in a black box. Blind individuals dial local phone numbers to access whichever newspaper they wish to read. Each person enters an identification number and a security code in order to be greeted by name and read the information in the newspapers.

By pushing various buttons on the touch-tone keypad, the reader chooses certain articles or parts of articles. He or she can repeat articles, go back to certain articles, and find the spelling of proper names. He or she can read first and last sentences of articles, skip articles, and repeat sentences. In short, the blind can read the newspaper in very much the same way sighted people do, and it is truly a major leap forward in making printed materials accessible to the blind.

In 1825 Louis Braille invented the Braille reading and writing system, a code composed of raised dots that is read with the fingertips. This was the first major breakthrough toward literacy for the blind. In 1933 Congress established the Talking Book Program (through the Library of Congress) to produce and lend recorded books for the blind. In 1995 the National Federation of the Blind began the NEWSLINE Service to make newspapers accessible to the blind. These are the three most important advances in history toward literacy for blind people!

Idaho was the sixth Local Service Center for Newsline and was opened August 1, 1996. Now there are more than 70 Local Service Centers all over the country, and more are being established regularly. Idahoans are hoping to establish a second one in this State soon.

NEWSLINE is a free service to blind and visually impaired individuals who cannot read the newspapers. The attached application form makes it possible for most people who qualify for this service to document their lack of vision. If additional information is needed for this purpose, it should be included.

For an introduction to the NEWSLINE Service you may dial 884-5160. You will be asked for an identification number and a security code. For testing the service, you may use 001377 for identification and 9314 for security code. After you apply for the service, your own personal codes will be sent to you.

For years the National Federation of the Blind has been working to improve the education of blind children in elementary and secondary schools. This is still an essential goal for the blind. To be well educated, the blind (like the sighted) must have access to current events. NEWSLINE makes this possible. The blind are excited to have this new opportunity. The public has been very supportive and enthusiastic as well.

Applications for service in Idaho should be sent to National Federation of the Blind of Idaho, 1301 S. Capitol Blvd., Suite C, Boise, ID 83706-2926, Phone: (208) 343-1377 or faxed to (208) 336-5333. E-mail applications cannot be processed, but we will attempt to respond to questions by e-mail.