The
radio can be tough to understand for many people who have hearing loss.
National
Public Radio (NPR) Labs will be covering the Presidential election debates in
October and the November 2012 elections, Mike Starling, Executive Director of
NRP Labs, said. NPR Labs captioned their
first radio program in 2008, after expressing interest in creating captioned
radio technology in 2005.
Their
Captioned Radio system will offer emergency alert systems for deaf and
deaf-blind citizens through the use of bed shakers to save lives, Starling
said. Emergencies include inclement
weather emergencies and missing persons. The mission of the NPR Labs is to serve the underserved. “We want all people to hear the radio,
because if we all can’t hear then we are all hearing challenged,” said Maryfran
Tyler, Director of Enterprise Strategy and Planning for NPR Distribution.
However,
the captioned radio service is still at a “pilot” stage, since NPR is seeking funding
to cover their full schedule of shows on the radio. NPR has received funding to develop the
technology through grants at this point. Also, NPR Labs provides technology consulting for various radio stations
for revenue. They have received two
captioning related grants from the National Institute for Disability
Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) through the Department of Education, Tyler
said.
NPR
Labs also circulated paper surveys to HLAA attendees to investigate their
desires of which radio show they want captioned first. Also, Tyler
To
participate in the survey online, visit www.nprlabs.org/hlaa.
