logo
    • Magazine
    • Membership
    • Donate
  • Racial Justice
  • Economic Justice
    • Collections
  • Climate Justice
  • Health Justice
  • Leadership
  • CONTENT TYPES
  • Subscribe
  • Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
    • Complimentary Webinars
    • Premium On-Demand Webinars
  • Membership
  • Submissions

Nonprofit Newswire | Nonprofit Service for the Blind Reads Playboy

Bruce S Trachtenberg
September 10, 2010
Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

September 9, 2010; Source: ABC News |Society relies on volunteers to do a lot that makes life better for all kinds of people, but one group of do-gooders is clearly in a league of its own. Among the dozens and dozens of newsweeklies, tabloids, and other periodicals that volunteers for Taping for the Blind, a Houston-based nonprofit, record to be broadcast over special radios to thousands of people, mostly in Texas, is Playboy magazine.

In addition to the articles, jokes, letters and cartoons, the group’s designated Playboy reader, Suzi Hanks, describes the photos in the magazine, including the always-popular centerfold, in generous detail. For example, here’s her very revealing rendition of Miss August: “She has long curly brown hair . . . She is in the first photo sitting in the ocean. She has a very large grin on her face, pink lipstick. She has a small tattoo right over the small of her back over the dimple area that appears to be maybe some sort of tribal design. It is red . . . Her legs are kind of crossed. She is sitting in the water. Behind her shoulder, down past her arm, you can see her breast peeking out . . . There are no tan lines at all. She is not wearing any nail polish or jewelry or bathing suit or anything.”

Sign up for our free newsletters

Subscribe to NPQ's newsletters to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Not surprisingly, Hanks has a regular following. After becoming legally blind, 67-year-old Bob Bartlett, who previously had been a regular Playboy reader, signed up for Taping for the Blind three years later. Today, he says the spoken version of Playboy “really is one of my favorite shows. Some people say it’s filth. It’s not. She [Hanks] helps me be current in pop culture.”

While Playboy might be the most eye-catching of Taping for the Blind’s offerings, at least 3,000 subscribers, mostly in Texas, tune into the service’s broadcasts, which air 24 hours a day. Taping for the Blind’s programming can be heard over specially tuned radio receivers that are distributed free of charge. The group, which describes its mission as “turning sight into sound,” also offers some of its previously aired programming online.—Bruce Trachtenberg

Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

Become a member

Support independent journalism and knowledge creation for civil society. Become a member of Nonprofit Quarterly.

Members receive unlimited access to our archived and upcoming digital content. NPQ is the leading journal in the nonprofit sector written by social change experts. Gain access to our exclusive library of online courses led by thought leaders and educators providing contextualized information to help nonprofit practitioners make sense of changing conditions and improve infra-structure in their organizations.

Join Today
logo logo logo logo logo
See comments

Spring-2023-sidebar-subscribe
You might also like
What Nigeria Can Teach the US About Food Insecurity
Chidinma Iwu
Arab American Philanthropy
Tamara El-Khoury
Forerunners of Food Justice: Black Farmer Movement Spans Generations
Demetrius Hunter
What Would a Social Justice Investment Ecosystem Look Like?
Steve Dubb
Measuring Healthcare Equity in North Carolina
Sonia Sarkar
The Nonprofit Sector and Social Change: A Conversation between Cyndi Suarez and Claire Dunning
Claire Dunning and Cyndi Suarez

NPQ Webinars

April 27th, 2 pm ET

Liberatory Decision-Making

How to Facilitate and Engage in Healthy Decision-making Processes

Register Now
You might also like
AOC’s “Tax the Rich” Dress Dazzles Met Gala, while...
Anastasia Reesa Tomkin
Foundation Giving Numbers for 2020 Show 15 Percent Increase
Steve Dubb
Strike MoMA Imagines Art Museums without Billionaires
Tessa Crisman

Like what you see?

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

See our newsletters

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

NPQ-Spring-2023-cover

Independent & in your mailbox.

Subscribe today and get a full year of NPQ for just $59.

subscribe
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Copyright
  • Careers

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

 

Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.