Audio-Reader builds new studio at Pittsburg site

PITTSBURG — The Audio-Reader Network and Homer Cole Community Center have announced a new partnership that allows volunteer broadcasters to read southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri newspapers from a new studio located at the center, 3003 N. Joplin St. The broadcast, which airs from 2-4 p.m. weekdays, has been part of Audio-Reader’s 24-hour programming for nearly 20 years. Registered listeners with vision loss and other print impairments receive the broadcast via special radios. 

In the Pittsburg area, the broadcast is found on a subcarrier of KRPS, which also housed the Audio-Reader studio until recently. 

“The move provides greater visibility for the Audio-Reader program and a more accessible location for its readers,” said Steve Kincaid, interim director and chief engineer for Audio-Reader, who built the new studio. The program currently utilizes about 20 volunteers to prepare and read area newspapers. Those interested in volunteering must be able to pass a reading audition and travel to the Homer Cole Center to volunteer. 

Audio-Reader provides recordings of newspapers, books and magazines to people in Kansas and parts of Missouri who are blind or have other visual or physical impairments that prevent them from reading normal printed materials. To register for the service or set up an audition call Audio-Reader’s main offices at 1-800-772-8898. You can also visit the Audio-Reader website at http://reader.ku.edu.