25th anniversary of Tasmania’s radio station for the print handicapped

A booklet ‘Vision in Sound’, has just been published to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Tasmania’s only radio station for the print handicapped, 864 RPH Print Radio Tasmania.

864 RPH has been on air since 26 June 1982, and was the first RPH to have daily programming anywhere in Australia.

“By turning print into sound, the station has opened up a whole world of knowledge and entertainment for many thousands of Tasmanians,” Tasmanian Health Minister Ms Laura Giddings said at the booklet’s launch.

“864 RPH has played a vital role in giving people who have a print handicap the same access to information as any other group in the community,” she said.

The station reads the Tasmanian content from the Mercury and Examiner newspapers and broadcasts the National Press Hour, which provides readings from The Australian, Melbourne Age, Sydney Morning Herald and the Canberra Times.

RPH also maintains an extensive magazine reading service, drawing on the resources of RPH stations right across Australia.

The reading service is also crucial for Tasmanians with learning disabilities, as well as people with difficulties comprehending print, or those whose physical disability makes it either impossible to access a newspaper or magazine or so difficult that reading becomes just too hard.

RPH is run by a handful of permanent staff and a team of more than 80 dedicated volunteer readers and presenters. The State Government meets a little under 50% of RPH Tasmania’s costs through isability program funding.