News For Doubters

News For Doubters

The Braille Monitor

_July 1997

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PHOTO/CAPTION: Heather

Kirkwood

K.U. Grad Has News

for Doubters

by Heather Kirkwood

Taken from the July-August, 1996, issue

of The Freestate News, a publication of the NFB of Kansas.

Editor's note: Heather Kirkwood

is a 1992 NFB Scholarship winner and a 1996 graduate of the University of Kansas

in Lawrence. Here is her article about her decision to major in journalism and

turn it into a lifelong career.

My senior year of high school I had two

options for fourth period--driver's education and journalism. My guidance counselor

and I laughed at the apparent absurdity of the situation.

Both classes seemed a waste of time for

a legally blind student, but we decided on journalism because it wasn't likely

to get me killed.

We were right. That was five years ago,

and I'm still here, but as I walk down the hill Sunday to receive a bachelor

of science in journalism, I won't be laughing.

In high school I lived in Germany and

had the chance to witness many big stories firsthand. I had been in East Berlin

only weeks before the Berlin Wall fell and in Tallinn, Estonia, weeks before

residents declared their independence from the Soviet Union. On every trip I

carried a notebook in my purse and took copious notes about everyone I met and

everything they said.

But become a journalist? I didn't allow

myself to entertain the thought because I didn't want to be disappointed. I

decided I would use my interest in politics to make the news, not report it,

and set out for college to major in political science. But my attitudes toward

politics and blindness changed a lot during my freshman year. Expectations had

been set by people who considered themselves progressive because they made allowances

for me.

The summer before my freshman year in

college I met a blind reporter who worked for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

A year later, as I rethought my career goals, I kept thinking about her. Journalism

went from an absurd idea to a perfect solution. What other profession would

allow me to be a part of current events, get to know lots of different kinds

of people, study them, and learn how issues affected their lives? Best of all,

I could ask lots of nosy questions and tell people it was my job.

I discussed my plans with my counselor

at Vocational Rehabilitation Services for the Blind. While her initial response

was encouraging, her boss was not enthusiastic. He thought I should think about

whether my career plans were realistic. My family reacted the same way.

Luckily, I was not convinced. I was a

reporter for my college's newspaper and had few problems.

The pressure was on, however, when I

transferred to Kansas University and took my first reporting class.

I felt I had a lot to prove, but I kept

up with my peers, and my confidence grew. That is, until I went to cover a city

commission meeting.

I watched the meeting on television the

week before and listened carefully to each member's voice. Then I drew a seating

chart and assigned each member a number so I wouldn't have to write their names.

Amazed at how crafty and resourceful

I thought I had been, I went to the meeting and discovered that Lawrence City

Commission members never introduced themselves or recognized each other by name.

I also discovered that the sound system distorted the voices and changed their

direction.

That night tears streamed down my face

as I attempted to attribute quotes by process of elimination. I would have to

admit to my professor that blindness had interfered with my ability to get the

story. I trudged up the hill, turned in my story, and confessed what had happened.

My professor looked at me, shrugged his shoulders, and said, "You live

in Lawrence right? Don't you have a right to know who is saying what at a meeting?

Why didn't you just get up and ask them to identify themselves before talking?"

Sometimes the hardest problems have the

simplest solutions.

Since then I have had two internships

and have been a reporter for the University Daily Kansan. Like sighted reporters,

I don't like to waste time traveling from point A to point B, so I make lots

of phone calls. Many stories involve covering events or meetings that allow

me a few hours to arrange transportation or get directions.

Now, as I begin looking for a job, I

bristle at the idea that there is anything unusual about being a journalist

and being blind. When editors ask questions such as how I will cover stories,

I have to remind myself that five years ago I would have asked the same thing.

Graduation may be a small victory for me, but the war is only just beginning.