Human Interest: ABC—News Report Puts Focus on Disabled Student’s Abilities

By Debra Kaufman, Special to TelevisionWeek

When ABC News correspondent Erin Hayes, whose reporting has garnered three Murrow Awards, was assigned the tale of Patrick Henry Hughes, she didn’t know what to expect. All she knew was that Patrick was a disabled University of Louisville student who played trumpet in the school’s marching band.

What she found was a young man who was blind and physically disabled from birth and living an extraordinary life. She also discovered the deep bond between Patrick and his father, who has structured his life around his son’s needs, working the overnight shift at UPS so he can go to the university with his son. Mr.—Hughes also pushes Patrick’s wheelchair at all of the band’s rehearsals and performances at games, an athletic feat in itself, requiring sprints, rapid turns and other near-balletic maneuvers. "Patrick’s father is his eyes in class and his legs in the marching band," said Ms. Hayes.

"We didn’t go into detail with his disabilities," she said. "We wanted to focus more on his abilities."

Patrick’s abilities extend beyond playing a trumpet and attending university. He is also a gifted classical pianist, having learned the piano at his father’s side when he was a young child.

The piano playing stunned Ms. Hayes, who had no idea that the young man had this special talent. "I was so floored by the grace and beauty that came through him," she said. "We all came away thinking there is something good in this world."

One thing that stood out was Patrick’s decidedly positive outlook on the world and his own disabilities. "He considers his blindness a gift, a blessing," Ms. Hayes said. "I asked him to explain and he said, ‘I don’t see skin color or hair length or eye shape. I just see the person inside.’"

Perhaps the most challenging aspect of capturing "The Blind Trumpeter" was to resist the urge to impose a structure on the story. "I had an idea of what this story would be," Ms. Hayes said. "But when I sat down to write it, my words won’t do it, I thought. There is so much here that is beautiful and graceful. I just need to not get in the way of it. You let it unfold, and that’s the tough part—to let the viewer see it the way we did."

ABC News producer Susie Banikarim handled the logistics required to turn the story around quickly. "The challenge was to get everything lined up so we could do it in two or three days of shooting," said Ms. Hayes. "Susie is brilliant at that."

That included an entire day that Ms. Hayes spent at the university with Patrick. The crew also attended a game. Then there was the shoot at the Hughes home, which included the unexpected piano recital. "Sometimes we shoot nine or 10 hours for a four-minute story, and four minutes is long for ‘World News,’" she said.

"I have to give my executive producer, John Banner, a lot of credit. Sometimes when I send in a long script, they say it won’t fit. But John said, ‘This is beautiful; we’re going to just let it play.’ I credit him for having the insight that if you cut the story, you cut the soul out of it."