Perspectives on disability
- Created by: ecotts
- Created on: 02-01-18 12:16
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- Perspectives on Disability
- Pluralist
- Media representations of the disabled reflect the dominant medical view
- Which is that disability is dysfunctional for both the individual and society as the representations mirror the anxiety of society
- It also reflects society's admirations of the 'courage' of disabled people
- Therefore the media portrayals of the disabled show the reality of the life they live
- Media representations of the disabled reflect the dominant medical view
- Postmodernist
- They argue that the medical meta-narrative (dominant story) is in decline
- because the idea of the disabled that impairment does not mean unhealthy, deficiency and dependant in increasingly heard and acted upon
- This is shown through representations of the disabled though sport
- because the idea of the disabled that impairment does not mean unhealthy, deficiency and dependant in increasingly heard and acted upon
- they argue the disabled people in the 21st century can politically organise themselves, find their voice and construct their own identities
- They argue that the medical meta-narrative (dominant story) is in decline
- Social Constructionist
- Media representations are seen very different by sociologist who are disabled themselves
- and by those who belong to the social constructionist school of disability
- Disabled people are disabled by society particularly by social reaction to people with impairments
- They say there are 3 reasons why the media representations take the form they do
- 1. medical professionals set the agenda for media portrayal of disability
- They are at the top of the hierachy of credibility
- Whatever their view of disability is such as unhealthy, tragic dominates the journalist perspective
- They are at the top of the hierachy of credibility
- 2. Portrayal reflect the prejudgment that abled bodied people feel towards the disabled
- this is that the disabled reflect what the 'normal' world dreads such as personal tragedy
- 3. disabled people are rarely consulted by journalist
- Negative representations therefore reinforce the 'low' status, exclusion and inequality give to disabled people in an abled-body society
- Media representations are seen very different by sociologist who are disabled themselves
- Criticism
- Gauntlett
- Because of the diversity of media, it is difficult to generalise these points to be all the same
- for example, BBC and ITV may be represent the disabled positively, but Channel 5 may be negative and so may tabloid newspapers
- Because of the diversity of media, it is difficult to generalise these points to be all the same
- Gauntlett
- Pluralist
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