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Turn the light on, so I can hear what you're saying. It's an old line, but a favourite one among us hearing-impaired people, because it points up how we "hear" with our eyes as surely as blind people "see" with their fingers or their ears.

Deaf and hearing-impaired Kiwis are about to get a lot more choice in what they watch on television thanks to closed captioning being introduced on 10 new channels.

For most of the week, the deaf in New Zealand are shut off from the television communication the rest of us take for granted. But for half an hour each Sunday, they can join the rest of the world, through a special programme called News Review.

Fifty deaf people registered a silent protest outside the Auckland Magistrate’s Court yesterday about what they say is the subtle discrimination of New Zealand against deaf people.

People who can hear as well as see 'Reasonable Doubts' (TV3, 9.50pm Saturdays) might be surprised to learn that Deaf New Zealanders can understand deaf lawyer Tessa Kaufman’s sign language little better than they can. ASL, used by Deaf actor Marlee Matlin, is a foreign language here. My Deaf friends give it the thumbs up. But the failure of television in New Zealand to provide anything in NZSL is described as “a running sore” by Hilary McCormack.

Television New Zealand has begun experimental transmission aimed at introducing a new service which will improve viewing enjoyment for the hard of hearing. Called Teletext, it is intended for daily transmission by next year.

Some Television New Zealand news bulletins are to be subtitled for hard-of-hearing viewers, but no titles are planned for TV3 news.