By Wang Fanfan

Yang Qingfeng does an interview in Shanxi Province in 2007.

It was the Friday night right after the National Day holiday. At 7 pm sharp, in an apartment on the south third ring of Beijing, Yang Qingfeng and Sun Zhiyuan were hosting their weekly program Happy Wind of the Weekend in a professional recording studio. Mixed with laughter, banter and beautiful music, the two boys were sharing their experience of a trip to Tibet with millions of listeners across China.

"I open the windows of the car. There is no noise out there. The only sound I can hear is the wind rebounding between the car and the guard rails on the street, so I know we are moving ahead," Yang said of his experience.

Without a discerning ear, you would believe this amusing radio program was no different from those you listen to driving on your way back home, only with more subtle details.

However, the host Yang Qingfeng has been totally blind since he was five years old, while his co-host Sun Zhiyuan lost sight in his left eye at 12 and can only see blurry images after three different eye surgery procedures.

Iconoclasts

One Plus One Sound Studio is made up of a group of 13, nine of whom are disabled, eight with visual impairments and one with a physical disability.

Three hours a day, Monday through Friday, they broadcast online to millions of blind people in China. With a click of the mouse, the voice of love is ready to be delivered.

One Plus One Sound Studio, the first radio production center staffed entirely by disabled producers and journalists, is an attempt to try new possibilities for those who are blind, but remain free-spirited, confident and optimistic.

Three years ago, on World Blind Day 2006, One Plus One first established its sound studio with the cooperation of the BBC World Service Trust. BBC brought not only facilities and journalism courses, but also the idea that the business of the blind should be taken care of by the blind. They are the experts on themselves.

"It's been 20 years that we have listened to the same pattern of radio programs which the ordinary people make for the blind. The image of the blind people ‘fighting hard with fate' is too clichéd. We want to change it," said Fu Gaoshan, the co-founder of One Plus One.

Seven of the nine members of One Plus One hold bachelor degrees, while the other two are educated to junior college level. In a country in which only two universities open their doors to the blind, and there is only one middle school for the blind in each province, they are more than fortunate.

"The path of most blind people is fixed. We can only be masseurs or masseuses, even with a college diploma," said Fu.

Yang Qingfeng spent five years in Beijing Union University, majoring in Chinese medicine. During his fourth year in college Yang interned in the Beijing Massage Hospital, while he spent more time in One Plus One. "It's a dream from my childhood years. It's a wish that finally came true. It feels half-dreamlike and half-real," said Yang.

Yang Qingfeng and Li Ning broadcast live.

Difference not disadvantage

The BBC brought their 40 years of experience running radio programs for the blind to China, but the world by the Pacific Ocean is apparently different than that by the Atlantic.

Implantation is not the model. "Public radio is supposed to serve the public, providing information as well as job opportunities for all kinds of people in the society, including the blind. But our public radio is [normally] run totally for-profit," Fu Gaoshan said.

Selling their programs to the radio stations was a tough process as first. "Generally one demo is fine, but radio stations want more demos from us, sometimes they even come over to our place to take a look, because they don't trust our ability," he added.

With great perseverance, One Plus One programs earned recognition for their efforts. Now over 75 domestic radio stations broadcast their programs and their voice is heard by 300 million listeners all over the country.

"Our programs focus on a different cognition, which is listening. Sometimes it is a vantage point. We discover things that ordinary people tend to ignore," said Fu.

Last year during the Paralympics, the Chinese blind football team competed with Brazil in the finals. CCTV did not broadcast the game live, so One Plus One's live online program attracted plenty of football fans because of the on spot broadcasting and professional commentary.

"In front of radio, everyone is blind. Being blind is not a disadvantage, only a difference," said Fu.

"When I walk, people around me are very nervous, but I feel a little smug. Look, I can walk with my eyes closed. I invent lots of life knacks and share them with the blind audience. I have plenty of life experience that ordinary people don't have," Yang said.

By providing information for the blind which the traditional media outlets fail to do, and establishing a platform for the blind to participate and voice themselves, One Plus One develops its own characteristics in the highly competitive media industry.

Yang Qingfeng interviews athelete Xie Qing at the Water Cube during the 2008 Paralympic Games. Photos: courtesy of One Plus One Sound Studio

The future?

"We cannot see far ahead, but we cherish the present and what we have now," Xie Yan, the director of One Plus One said.

"We need respect more than care," said Fu Gaoshan. In order to bring more understanding of the blind community, One Plus One created the platform for the blind to communicate with the ordinary people in terms of activities or shared hobbies. "It's not very successful yet, but the direction is what we want."

"Radio is not our end, but our means. It brings us together, and opens other possibilities," said Xie. "But we need government support, especially in terms of finance."

"We have to create a successful model for the blind. A model that can earn money and pay the salaries of our staff," said Fu Gaoshan. He also revealed that One Plus One is running a deficit, relying on the cooperation programs from other foundations and organizations.

"I don't worry too much about the future," said Yang Qingfeng, who sacrificed a well-paid massage career to pursue his dream. "The environment I grew up makes me think money is not that important," he said, grinning.

"If it's a dream, I hope I never wake up."