[New-hampshire-students] Newsline newsletter
Marie Johnson
jomar2000 at comcast.net
Wed Dec 2 06:39:22 UTC 2009
Hi folks,
First off I wanted to point out a snipet of the newsletter that I get from
the Newsline team, congratulating NH as well as 3 other states for
continuing to maintain our "above 90%" usage status. Below that is the full
newsletter, if you are interested in hearing it for yourselves or just
reading the rest of the stats!
I felt it was really important to point this out, so that all of us that use
the service will continue to keep up the great work and keep the lines
humming. Newsline, no matter how you choose to receive it, either by phone
or internet, is one of the most important lines of communication we have,
that offer us the daily opportunity to access all the info we want and need
to know. .
Thank you to everyone that uses and supports this valuable service and
please pass on the information about Newsline to anyone that you think will
benefit from it.
Let's strive to get the numbers up in NH and stay on top of what's happening
in our communities.
Regards
Marie
* the snipet...
Feast your eyes (or ears, or fingers, depending) on these nummy numbers! In
October we received a total of 154,040 calls, that's 2,677 more than were
received in September. Salad, oops, Solid! We also harvested plenty of new
subscribers; a total of 1,299 new folks were signed up for NFB-NEWSLINE®.
Also, congrats to regulars Delaware, District of Columbia, New Hampshire,
and Connecticut, who all had local phone-line usage of above 90%!
* the full newsletter...
NFB-NEWSLINE® Newsletter
The Newsletter for Sponsors November 2009
In This Issue
Your Monthly Helpful Hint
Main Menu
Channel Chat
Statistics
Subscriber's Corner
Your Monthly
Helpful Hint
As you may know, we offer promotional tapes and CDs that market
NFB-NEWSLINE® with an upbeat message, a description of the benefits to
subscribers, and a brief demonstration of the service. The informational
audio materials are geared directly toward blind and physically handicapped
potential subscribers. The conclusion of the promotional tape or CD is
adaptable to state-specific information such as the sponsor's or state
affiliate's telephone number or short messages from the sponsor. If you'd
like to modify these tapes or CDs, known as the Information audio material,
please let us know by contacting Renee West at rwest at nfb.org.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quick Links
NFB-NEWSLINE® Home Page
NFB-NEWSLINE® Online
Got Questions? Get Answers!
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NFB-NEWSLINE® is a service of the National Federation of the Blind
:: 410-659-9314
Dear Marie,
Welcome, Sponsors, to the November 2009 issue of NFB-NEWSLINE® Happenings!
We hope you had a fabulous Thanksgiving, and that you are enjoying this
beautiful autumn season.
Take care, and should you have any questions about this newsletter, please
e-mail me at rwest at nfb.org.
Main Menu
Sometime during December we will be moving a majority of NFB-NEWSLINE®
computer hardware to an offsite location to offer more redundancy of
Internet connections and power supply. This is a necessary step in rolling
out our Voice Over Internet Protocol-based phone lines, which has the
potential to offer an increased number of local telephone numbers. We'll
keep you posted as things develop!
We are now able to conduct Webinars (seminars held online) about our service
that you might find useful for yourself, your staff, or your volunteers.
There will be two Webinars; one will cover NFB-NEWSLINE® basics and the
other focuses on NFB-NEWSLINE® Online. Supplemented with our handbook and
other materials, these Webinars can serve as a part of an effort to ensure
your staff is knowledgeable about the service and its benefits. Please
e-mail Renee West, Marketing and Outreach Manager, at rwest at nfb.org if you'd
like to schedule a Webinar-based training session.
Two new publications have been added to our roster since the last
newsletter, they are Hattiesburg American, out of Hattiesburg, Mississippi,
and Popular Science. Popular Science is a monthly magazine of science and
technology. Each issue covers the latest developments in cars, electronics,
communications, tools, energy, aviation, science, and space exploration. We
will also be adding an additional three magazines over the next two months;
stay tuned to see what we'll offer!
Don't forget that you can always be the first to get the scoop on new
publications and other service enhancements by following us on Twitter! Our
account may be found at http://twitter.com/NFB_NEWSLINE.
Channel Chat
As this is holiday season, it might be helpful to post on your state's
Information Channel holiday schedules for your agency and other important
entities that serve the print-disabled community in your state. Your
channel is a great venue to notify those you serve if meetings are to be
held on a different day and time than is usual, or you have reduced hours or
closures.
Examples of agencies to contact:
* NLS regional and sub-regional libraries
* State agency providing services for the blind
* Technology Assistance Program
* Client Assistance Program
* Centers for Independent Living (contact your
state's Independent Living Council chair)
Statistically Speaking
Feast your eyes (or ears, or fingers, depending) on these nummy numbers! In
October we received a total of 154,040 calls, that's 2,677 more than were
received in September. Salad, oops, Solid! We also harvested plenty of new
subscribers; a total of 1,299 new folks were signed up for NFB-NEWSLINE®.
Also, congrats to regulars Delaware, District of Columbia, New Hampshire,
and Connecticut, who all had local phone-line usage of above 90%!
Top Ten Minutes Used:
I've got to dish about these statistics! NFB-NEWSLINE® subscribers savored
a total of 2,979,980 minutes of service in October. Massachusetts'
subscribers have been pudding, er, putting our servers to use with an
increase of 14,164 more minutes than were used in September; Pennsylvania
and California's subscribers also enjoyed a bounty of minutes with increases
of 6,561 and 2,397 more minutes than in the previous month, respectively.
1. California 287,574
2. Massachusetts 193,038
3. New York 190,793
4. Florida 180,139
5. Illinois 152,162
6. Ohio 149,179
7. Texas 120,811
8. Maryland 120,647
9. Pennsylvania 117,840
10. Michigan 100,420
Top Ten New Subscribers:
Well, we've done it! As of the end of October we gathered a cornucopia of
new folks and now can boast a total of 72,555 subscribers. I am so thankful
for your efforts in this regard. Some "main course" states this month are
Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Illinois, who have all exceeded September's new
subscriber statistic with an increase of 18, 8, and 6 new subscribers,
respectively.
1. Florida with 843
2. Pennsylvania with 53
3. Texas with 32
4. Illinois with 28
5. California with 25
6. North Carolina and Wisconsin with 24 each
7. Massachusetts with 18
8. Ohio and Oregon with 17 each
9. New Jersey and Arizona with 15 each
10. New York with 13
Online Superstars:
Chow down on the delish data below! Texas is hot with an increase of 2,181
more e-mails than were delivered in September, and Florida shouldn't be
leftover in receiving notice, because they also increased their e-mails
delivered by 618.
1. Texas 15,477
2. New York 10,406
3. Florida 9,604
4. Pennsylvania 8,973
5. Colorado 7,373
6. California 7,363
7. Massachusetts 7,225
8. Maryland 6,473
9. North Carolina 5,961
10. Virginia 5,457
Top Ten Registered Subscribers:
Here's the premi-yum pack!
1. Florida with 14,238
2. California with 6,705
3. Maryland with 3,024
4. Texas with 2,930
5. Michigan with 2,668
6. North Carolina with 2,631
7. Wisconsin with 2,413
8. New York with 2,378
9. Ohio with 2,293
10. Massachusetts with 1,951
Subscriber's Corner
For this Subscriber's Corner I am providing you with an excerpt of an
article that appeared in the Fall 2003 issue of Future Reflections, the
magazine of the National Organization of Blind Parents. Mr. Osentowski now
lives and works in Colorado and is still an active user of the service. He
says about NFB-NEWSLINE® Online: "I have been using NFB-NEWSLINE® In Your
Pocket...and it has transformed the way I read the newspaper. It makes my
hour-long morning commute to work pass much more quickly, and it is far less
costly and more convenient than holding a cellular phone to my ear during
the trip." This article is provided to you to emphasize the importance of
promoting NFB-NEWSLINE® to blind and otherwise print-disabled youth.
NFB-NEWSLINE® offers these young individuals a tool that, as with other
tools provided by your agency or organization, can be used to build a life
of success, much as Ryan has done. If you'd like to discuss ways in which
your agency can promote NFB-NEWSLINE® to youth in your state, please contact
Renee West at rwest at nfb.org. Note: The Kearney Hub is now available on
NFB-NEWSLINE® along with over 300 additional newspapers and magazines.
***
EQUAL ACCESS TO A BLACK AND WHITE WORLD
by Ryan Osentowski
"Dad, what does `arson' mean?" I asked as I sat next to him on the couch,
interrupting him midway through an article he was reading aloud to me from
the Kearney Daily Hub.
"It's when people set fires on purpose," he answered.
"Like in a fireplace?" I asked.
"No, like in a building," he patiently answered. "Sometimes people burn
buildings because--" but I had already lost interest in what my dad was
saying. Mention of the fireplace had caused me to reach up and feel the
newspaper he was holding in front of his face. Until then I had assumed
that newspaper was just something you stuffed into a fireplace to help the
fire burn brighter. But here was my father reading to me from one.
"Dad, why are you reading that?" I asked.
"I like to know what's going on around town," he answered, putting down the
paper. Evidently he had decided that he would never make it to the sports
page with a curious four-year-old pestering him with questions. I
immediately grabbed another page, putting it to my nose and smelling the
ink. I ran my hands over the smooth surface of the paper, listening to the
rustle as it gave way between my fingers. Then, after a few seconds of this
exploration, I crushed it into a ball, fired the papery projectile across
the room, and laughed. My dad sighed and commented that he hadn't really
wanted to read the sports page anyway.
Ten years later I began to realize how much more important a newspaper was
than mere fire fuel. In my eighth-grade social studies class, our teacher,
Mr. Henderson, began a weekly ritual of Friday morning current events trivia
contests. He told our class that we were to read the Thursday evening
paper, and he was going to test us on Friday morning to see how much we had
absorbed. The person who answered the most questions correctly would win a
free soft drink and candy bar from the teachers' lounge. Soft drinks and
candy bars might as well have been contraband at the time, since no vending
machines were available to students at our school.
This prize was enough to jar the students out of the world of comic books
and television for one night in order to acquaint themselves with the real
world reflected in the Kearney Daily Hub. I realized that I would have to
enlist my parents' aid to help me win, so I began urging them to read the
paper to me on Thursday nights. Unfortunately, raising three boys and
working full time didn't always afford them the necessary time to read the
complete Kearney paper aloud. I soon discovered that I could bribe my
friends to read the paper to me. This worked for about two weeks until my
mother found out what I was doing and informed me in no uncertain terms that
lunch money was to be used for lunch and nothing else. Somehow I couldn't
convince my mother that a soft drink and candy bar were as nourishing for
lunch as the daily mystery meat and potatoes that faced us in the cafeteria.
I cursed motherly intuition and began searching for another option. Then I
learned about our state radio reading service, but was disappointed to learn
that they did not read the Kearney paper regularly. When they did read the
Hub, they excerpted it. Eventually I resigned myself to the fact that I
would never win a free soft drink and candy bar.
Six years after that Dr. Kenneth Jernigan and the National Federation of the
Blind brought one of my fondest dreams to reality with the creation of
"NEWSLINE for the Blind." During high school and early college I began
paying more attention to current events. I watched the evening news and
listened to AM talk radio and political commentary. Many times I heard a
journalist on TV or radio quote from an article in USA Today, the Wall
Street Journal or the Los Angeles Times. I found myself frustrated that
they would never read the entire article. My curiosity was aroused, but I
could never find out more about the subject being discussed. Mixed with my
frustration, however, was a growing fascination that the media pundits on
radio and television always quoted from the newspaper. This told me that,
despite the thriving world of electronic media, the printed word in
newspapers still had its place.
I always felt frustrated, convinced that I was shut out from a part of the
world of current events into which my sighted classmates could freely dip.
I had a computer but hadn't yet logged onto the Internet. When I heard that
the NFB had invented a service by which blind people could read the entire
text of a newspaper by telephone, I became excited. My excitement was
short-lived when I learned that it wasn't available in Nebraska, where I was
attending college. I experienced that same old feeling of
disappointment--no soft drink and candy bar for me. But this time it was
worse. Instead of sugary treats, I was being denied equal access to a big
part of the ever-changing face of our world. Newspaper articles were often
discussed in political science, journalism, and philosophy classes that I
took. I had better luck convincing classmates to read an occasional article
to me if it grabbed my interest, but I still could not browse an entire
newspaper at will.
Three years later I had the opportunity to see NFB-NEWSLINE® in action. I
was attending the Federation's annual Washington Seminar, and Dr. Maurer
demonstrated NFB-NEWSLINE® by speaker phone during the great gathering-in.
I was impressed and excited when Dr. Maurer informed us that we could all
use NFB-NEWSLINE® while we visited Washington, thanks to a test number set
up by the national office in Baltimore. I stayed up much too late those few
nights, browsing the Washington Post and the Baltimore Sun, soaking up the
latest headlines. I couldn't get enough, much to the annoyance of my
roommates, who were more interested in getting sleep than the news. We all
left Washington full of determination. I was determined to help fight to
get NFB-NEWSLINE® in Nebraska, while my two roommates were determined to
find a different roommate the following year.
In June of 1999 my hopes were finally realized as the NFB of Nebraska
officially launched NFB-NEWSLINE® in Lincoln with a grand ribbon-cutting
ceremony. I was like a kid in a candy store, getting my Coke and Snickers
bar ten years late. I was always on the phone checking out national
headlines as well as the Omaha World-Herald. By that time I enjoyed
Internet access, but the idea of walking around my apartment with my
cordless phone in hand, browsing the Washington Post, was very liberating.
It was a big step up from the days of readers and radio reading services,
but I still felt limited. I had only four papers to choose from. Yet I
loved the service and felt I had come full circle when I became the Nebraska
NFB-NEWSLINE® outreach coordinator in the fall of 2000. The work itself is
easy and rewarding, demonstrating NFB-NEWSLINE® for blind persons who are
interested and helping them to sign up for the service. I take a great deal
of pride in sharing the joy of equal access with others who can benefit from
NFB-NEWSLINE®.
Since I have been a part of NFB-NEWSLINE®, I have seen it grow and touch the
lives of more people. With the new national service that came to us
courtesy of Congress in March of 2002, the limits have become even less
constricting. Whereas before I was able to read only four newspapers, I am
now able to choose among some fifty-five state and national papers. The
benefits of this became starkly clear last semester when my criminal justice
professor took up an issue of USA Today one morning and began reading an
article about the Enron scandal. I realized that I had read that very
article just a few hours before. I could finally recognize an article that
my professor was quoting. I made it a point to approach him after class and
discuss the article in depth. Later that semester I had the opportunity to
debate my philosophy professor in his office regarding an article from the
New York Times on cloning. He was impressed that I was so well read and
asked, "Who reads your newspapers for you? Do you have to pay someone?"
"Not at all," I said and pointed to the telephone on his desk. "I get
everything from this." Needless to say, my professor was impressed.
NFB-NEWSLINE® has made a strong impact on my life, and the results are
nothing but positive. Along with my daily news headlines, I can read movie
and book reviews, editorials, and human interest. I can keep up with the
Nebraska Cornhuskers on the sports page or find out if it's raining in
Baltimore. The world of black and white denied me for so long is now at my
fingertips, and it serves me well.
In reflecting upon the benefits that NFB-NEWSLINE® has offered to me, I find
it difficult to understand how anyone could oppose NFB-NEWSLINE®. We, the
blind of this country, have taken a great leap forward in gaining access to
a world that was largely denied to us for many years. NFB-NEWSLINE® truly
embodies Dr. Jernigan's vision of independence, and any blind person can be
a part of it. I hope those who have not yet signed up for this
revolutionary service will do so and enjoy the world of black and white that
I have come to love.
We Need Your Help!
Support Braille Literacy and help provide blind children and adults with the
tools they need to succeed by purchasing the Louis Braille Coin. Created in
honor of the 200th birthday of Louis Braille, this beautiful coin is made of
90 percent silver and is the first US coin ever to feature readable Braille.
Visit www.braille.org or call the National Federation of the Blind at (410)
659-9314, extension 2216, to learn how you can make change with a dollar!
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