Too Peas In A Podcast Mandy Hose and Kate Mulholland

Summer Series: ABCPea Nas talks journalism and parenting with a disability

·56 min·5 clips

Naz's mother fought the school system when funding meant for her was going to be given to other kids.

["Kate introduces the episode as part of a summer series, replaying a favorite interview from November.", "She briefly promotes her new podcast 'Honestly I'm Lonely' before transitioning to the main interview.", "The guest is Naz Campanella, the National Disability Affairs Reporter for the ABC, who is on maternity leave with her eight-month-old son Lachlan.", "Naz describes her disabilities: she is totally blind and has Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT), a neurological condition affecting sensitivity, balance, and muscle tone.", "She shares her enjoyment of maternity leave, filling her days with activities like swimming lessons and coffee dates with other mothers.", "Naz talks about her husband's role as a breakfast presenter on ABC News Radio and how their irregular work hours prepared them for newborn sleep patterns.", "She recounts her childhood diagnosis with CMT at age 10 after struggling to read Braille, which led to teachers labeling her as lazy.", "Naz explains how new technology like audio books and talking Braille machines transformed her education after a supportive teacher intervened.", "She attended a mix of special and mainstream schools, with her mother advocating fiercely for proper funding and support.", "Naz discusses facing discrimination in job interviews, where employers openly doubted her ability to be a journalist due to her blindness.", "She landed a cadetship at the ABC, one of 10 spots among thousands of applicants, and worked her way up to newsreading.", "Naz describes the unique system she developed to read news live on Triple J, involving four simultaneous audio streams and self-paneling.", "She reflects on becoming a role model for other blind individuals and fielding inquiries from international educators.", "Naz emphasizes the distinction between journalism and advocacy, noting she must remain impartial in her reporting.", "She details her two-year preparation for pregnancy, working with an exercise physiologist and occupational therapist to build strength and adapt parenting tasks.", "Naz recounts her positive hospital experience, where staff admitted they'd never cared for a disabled mother and collaboratively created an accessible birth plan.", "She describes her emergency caesarean as beautiful due to clear communication from the medical team.", "Naz talks about adapting parenting techniques, such as using rattling toys on her son's wrists to locate him as he crawls.", "She plans to return to work full-time, arranging daycare and family help, wanting her son to see both parents as working caregivers.", "The episode concludes with Kate expressing her long-time admiration for Naz and gratitude for her participation."]

As heard by us

A loose, specific chat about journalism and the long road into radio.

Naz's take on journalism and radio has its strongest run when it traces the path from a childhood with radio on all day to the ABC cadetship. The plain details do the work: community radio at 15, about four years of unpaid work across radio, TV, print and magazines, and the old…

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Why you'd press play

Radio dreams, unpaid internships, and a very real path to the ABC.

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