About
The "Talking Gazette" (often referred to locally as the Blue Mountains Talking Gazette) was established in 2003 in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, as a free community resource. 
Conceived by local resident Thelma Murphy OAM in conjunction with the Springwood Neighbourhood Centre, the service was created to provide news and information to residents who are blind, have low vision, or experience impairments that prevent them from reading the standard local newspaper. 

Early Beginnings and Production
The project began as an entirely volunteer-led initiative, with community members acting as rotating narrators to read articles, community notices, and local features from the Blue Mountains Gazette.  Even today, volunteers from the Springwood Neighbourhood Centre record articles to produce the digital media each week.

Early editions were distributed to clients on cassette tapes, allowing listeners to stay connected to their local community.

Technological Evolution
CD/DVD Transition: As cassette technology phased out, the service shifted to distributing audio on CDs and DVDs.

Access to the Talking Gazette through Vision Australia
People who meet the criteria by either being blind, sight impaired, reading disabilities such as dyslexia, or any form of disability where they are unable to read from a printed form can register for access to the Vision Australia Library and can then use the Library App to listen to The Talking Gazette and many other audio publications available from the Vision Australia Library.

Thelma Murphy OAM - 1923-2020