Newsline for blind is coming

By Karen Blakeman
Advertiser Staff Writer

Beginning next month, blind and other physically handicapped people will be able to enjoy the newspaper over their morning coffee — or any other place or time they want.

"I can flip through the sections and pick which stories I want, just like you do," said Virgil Stinnett, a local merchant who is also vice president of National Federation of the BlindiHawaii.

The national program, called Newsline, is available to registered users through a touch-tone phone. Nearly 100 newspapers, including The Advertiser, have signed on since the program began in 1996. It will be available in Hawai'i beginning in January for at least six months.

After entering their access codes, users will be able to choose which part of the paper they'd like to peruse, and then select stories.

They can choose at which speed they want the electronically generated voice to read, and even ask the system to spell words to them, Stinnett said.

The system, which relies on donations, is being financed in Hawai'i by the Trimble Foundation, according to Stinnett.

One Hawaii resident, a 72-year-old man whose vision has been impaired all his life, accessed Newsline through an earlier, privately and federally financed pilot program, Stinnett said. For the first time, he was able to appreciate, on his own, the advantages offered by newspapers — the ability to skim some articles and concentrate on those of interest.

"He said it made him feel independent," Stinnett said.

Stinnett, who was a commercial fisherman before he lost his sight in 1996, said Newsline gave him back a daily routine that he had once taken for granted.

"I'd missed it," he said, "reading the paper. I'm happy it's back."

In addition to more than 3,000 visually impaired people in the state, the program will benefit people who have physical problems that make it difficult to turn the pages of the paper or other disabilities that make it difficult to read, he said.

Because Newsline is available by telephone, it is easier to access than online services for those who cannot afford computers and for those who are unwilling or unable to use computer technology, he said.

More information on Newsline for those interested in registering or making donations can be obtained by calling the National Federation of the BlindiHawaii at 595-6123 on O'ahu or toll-free at (866) 595-6123 from the Neighbor Islands.

Reach Karen Blakeman at 535-2430 or kblakeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.