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9/14/01 - Letter of Thanks to News Media & Caption Providers
              Next GA-SK News-magazine on Emergency Notification
              2002 Blue Book Listing Deadline Extended to 10/19/01

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The Board of Directors and staff at TDI are shocked by the tragic events
this week. We hope that all is well with your family and loved ones, and
that everyone is accounted for. Our sympathies go to those of you who
might have suffered a loss.

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LETTER OF THANKS TO MEDIA AND CAPTION PROVIDERS

Many of us have spent many hours watching marathon news coverage of
the historic events in New York and Washington as well as the aftermath.
For the most part, this was only possible because of closed captioning. The
national networks and their local affiliates as well as the real-time news
captioning service providers deserve a big salute from TDI and its members,
subscribers and friends for their commitment and efforts.

Below is a list of the major news captioning providers that we know of and
their e-mail addresses/web addresses. Please take the time to send them
an e-mail thanking them for their commitment to keep us informed during
this tragic time.

The Caption Center
Larry Goldberg
caption@wgbh.org
www.wgbh.org/caption

Caption Colorado
Tad Polumbus
tadp@captcolo.com
www.captioncolorado.com

National Captioning Institute
Gene Chao
info@ncicap.org
www.ncicap.org

VITAC
Joe Karlovits
info@vitac.com
www.vitac.com

If we have overlooked any real-time news captioning provider, please let
us know so we can add their information to this list.

You may want to use this sample letter or develop one of your own. Please
send TDI a copy at info@tdi-online.org. Also, you may want to send a copy
to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC at access@fcc.gov.

********************************************************

Dear _[NAME]_

Thank you so much for providing captioning during this week's events
related to the terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, DC on
Channel _[CHANNEL]_ News in _[CITY, STATE]_. Your staff at _[COMPANY]_
showed professionalism and great commitment to accessibility. You know
you have my great appreciation and gratitude from me, my family and friends.

Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]
[ADDRESS & CITY]

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Additionally, some members and advocates have suggested thanking the news
networks for providing captioning. If you have any comments, here are the
web sites of the major networks. Look for their contact information as
well as your local affiliates at:

ABC
www.abc.go.com
www.abcnews.go.com/service/Help/abcmail_news.html

CBS
www.cbsnews.com
evening@cbsnews.com
weekend@cbsnews.com

CNN
www.cnn.com
www.cnn.com/feedback/

FOX
www.foxnews.com
comments@foxnews.com

NBC
www.nbci.msnbc.com
cable@msnbc.com

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If you are happy with the captioning on a national network or your local
affiliate, you may want to use this sample letter or develop one of your
own. Please send TDI a copy at info@tdi-online.org. Also, you may want
to send a copy to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC at
access@fcc.gov.

************************************************

To whom it may concern:

Thank you so much for providing captioning during this week's events
related to the terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, DC on
Channel _[CHANNEL]_ News in _[CITY, STATE]_. Your commitment to
accessibility means a lot to me, my family and friends.

Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]
[ADDRESS & CITY]

*****************************************

If you are NOT happy with the captioning on a national network or local
affiliate, you may want to use this sample letter or develop one of your
own. Please send TDI a copy at info@tdi-online.org. Also, you may want
to send a copy to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC at
access@fcc.gov.

******************************************

To whom it may concern:

The historic news this week has had a great impact on me. [HOW?] (You may
want to explain your emotional experiences or the inconveniences you went
through this week.)

When I tuned to Channel _[CHANNEL]_ News in _[CITY, STATE]_ at _[TIME]_
on _[DATE]_, I was upset to find that there were no captions on top of the
anxiety that all Americans felt during the attacks. FCC regulations require that
emergency news be accessible to people with disabilities. I am sending a copy
of this e-mail to the FCC.

Sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]
[ADDRESS & CITY]
cc: Federal Communications Commission

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NEXT GA-SK NEWS MAGAZINE ON EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION

Coincidentally, the next issue of the GA-SK is beginning its production.
The theme for this upcoming issue is Emergency Notification. Although
most of the material has been prepared and is geared to major weather
emergencies, there are some beneficial information that can apply during
situations such as what happened this week. If you have a story to tell
about how pagers or TTYs have helped you this week, please e-mail it to us
along with a photo of yourself and we will print it in a future issue of
the GA-SK.

If you are interested in subscribing to the GA-SK, please go to TDI's
website at www.tdi-online.org and click on HOW TO JOIN. Members and
subscribers should be getting their copies within a few weeks.

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2002 BLUE BOOK LISTING DEADLINE EXTENDED TO 10/19/01

The October 1 deadline for corrections and updates to listings in the Blue
Book has been extended to October 19, 2002.

Some of you may receive renewals shortly while others may receive Quality
Assurance Forms. If you receive them, please fill in the correct information
and send it back to TDI. If you have not received anything in the mail and
would like to join TDI and reserve a copy of the 2002 Blue Book, the best
way is to join TDI (See subscription information above).

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For updating your listings or any other comments about this e-note, send
an e-mail to jimhouse@tdi-online.org

Sincerely,

Jim House, Director
TDI Member Services & Public Relations
8630 Fenton St., #604
Silver Spring, MD 20910
jimhouse@tdi-online.org
TTY 301-589-3006
Voice 301-589-3786
FAX 301-589-3797
AOL IM haus7hill
For more info: www.tdi-online.org

   "Promoting Equal Access to Telecommunications and Media for People
     Who are Deaf, Late-Deafened, Hard-of-Hearing or Deaf-Blind"

About TDI - Formerly known as Telecommunications for the Deaf, Inc., TDI is a
non-profit corporation that promotes equal access to telecommunications and
media for individuals who are deaf, late deafened, hard-of-hearing or deaf-blind.
Since 1968, TDI has successfully advocated for federal legislation such as the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the
Television Decoder Act, both of 1990, as well as other legislation and policies
mandating greater access to TTY's, captioning and other telecommunication and
media technologies. TDI publishes an annual national directory and resource guide,
commonly known as The Blue Book, a popular resource book for people with
hearing loss, The GA-SK quarterly news-magazine, and hosts biennial conferences.
TDI's Home Office is at 8630 Fenton Street, Suite 604, in Silver Spring, MD 20910. We
are available by phone at 301-589-3786 or by TTY at 301-589-3006. Our fax number is
301-589-3797 and our web site is at www.tdi-online.org

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