History
Before audio recordings, books were available in Braille. In 1931, the government of the United States made it a goal to make sure that the blind were equipped with books. Yet, later on, audio recordings were the preferred format. Audio recordings were first created (on vinyl, at the time), when the 1931 Pratt-Smoot Act was amended, in 1933, to include "talking books". The access to these talking books was soon expanded to service blind children, as well. In 1952, children’s titles were given the same treatment as adult books. All of this access was allowed to occur, since copyright laws allow for books to be recreated in formats that help the blind, and others with disabilities. In today’s world, though things are going digital, talking books still remain very popular. According to John M. Taylor, the “NLS currently produces about 2,000 talking books (2 million copies) and 45 audio magazines (3.7 million copies) a year on specially formatted cassette tapes for approximately 700,000 readers.” It is through the funding, at all levels of government, that this program is able to connect the blind with books.
Read more about this topic: Books For The Blind
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