Julianne Moore and Mark Ruffalo are set to star in the film adaptation of Nobel Prize winner José Saramago's 1995 novel, Blindness. The novel concerns a community in which an epidemic causes everyone to become blind, except the doctor's wife who feigns blindness (the character Julianne Moore will play). Chaos ensues, social structures collapse, and the doctor's wife tries to lead one group of blind people to safety.
Mark Ruffalo will play the doctor, Sandra Oh will play the Minister of Health, Gael Garcia Bernal will play the king of ward 3, and Danny Glover will play the narrator, according to imdb.com. No word yet if any blind actors are attached to the project.
Entertainment Weekly speculates that the film version will be one to watch for at the 2009 Academy Awards. The film is being directed by Brazilian Fernando Meirelles, who directed 2005's "The Constant Gardener."
Friday, February 1, 2008
AG Bell Assn criticizes PepsiCo Super Bowl ad
The Alexander Graham Bell Association of the Deaf sent a letter to PepsiCo executives Jan. 31 criticizing the Super Bowl ad because it only shows deaf people signing.
According to the Deaf DC blog, AG Bell's Board President and Executive Director sent a letter that said: "Your advertisement perpetuates a common myth that all people who are deaf can only communicate using sign language." They went on to request that PepsiCo also "educate the public…and promote appreciation for those individuals that go above and beyond to overcome the absence of something many of us take for granted - the miracle of sound.”
Shane Feldman, writing in the Deaf DC blog, says he doesn't believe the Super Bowl ad "promotes" sign language or implies that it is the only language deaf people use. He sees no myth perpetuated, explaining "some (deaf people) can speak, some can sign, some can cue, some can do all, some can do some, and that’s all there is to it."
According to the Deaf DC blog, AG Bell's Board President and Executive Director sent a letter that said: "Your advertisement perpetuates a common myth that all people who are deaf can only communicate using sign language." They went on to request that PepsiCo also "educate the public…and promote appreciation for those individuals that go above and beyond to overcome the absence of something many of us take for granted - the miracle of sound.”
Shane Feldman, writing in the Deaf DC blog, says he doesn't believe the Super Bowl ad "promotes" sign language or implies that it is the only language deaf people use. He sees no myth perpetuated, explaining "some (deaf people) can speak, some can sign, some can cue, some can do all, some can do some, and that’s all there is to it."
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Law & Order: SVU tackles Ashley X case/genetic testing
The Jan. 22 episode of Law & Order: SVU referenced the Ashley X case, in which parents in Washington State received permission to stunt the growth of their 6-year-old disabled daughter so her body would remain small, as well as having a scene in which some of the complexities of genetic testing and their impact on people with disabilities are discussed.
You can read more about the Ashley X case from the Inclusion Daily Express:
http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/families/ashleyx.htm.
I won't be doing this often but I thought the dialogue surrounding these issues was important to preserve. I have transcribed it below. Unfortunately, Law & Order: SVU is not one of the shows NBC has on its web site with full episode replays.
This episode was called "Inconceivable" and focused on the theft of frozen embryos from a fertility clinic. The detectives talk to everyone who had an embryo in the stolen tank, which leads them to parents who mirror the Ashley X case and a Little Person who had embryos undergoing genetic testing.
The Ashley X scene:
The detectives enter the home of the parents of 8-year-old, Alicia, who has serious disabilities. The parents reveal that the embryos in question were actually from Alicia's eggs, which her mother was going to carry to term. The parents explain that Alicia's eggs were available because of the experimental procedure she is undergoing to stunt her growth.
Det. Elliot Stabler: Why?
Father: Growth plates fuse at puberty. The doctors started hers early to stop her from getting any bigger.
Det. Olivia Benson: So you are purposely deforming your daughter?
Father: To enhance her quality of life.
Elliot (sarcastically): Sounds like a great future.
Father: Alicia can't turn herself over. We carry her to the dinner table, give her baths, put her in a stroller to take her for a walk.
Elliot: So this is for your convenience?
Father: The more movement Alicia gets the better her circulation, which means fewer sores and infection.
Olivia: What you are doing is wrong.
Father: The bioethics committee disagreed.
Mother: We're not the first ones to do this. It was done once before in Washington State. (referring to the Ashley X case)
Stabler and Benson go out the front door of the home.
Elliot: Who are you calling?
Olivia: Children's services.
Elliot: Don't.
Olivia: You can't possibly be OK with what they are doing to her?
Elliot: Look, it's a nightmare but it's a bad situation no matter what they do. They think they're doing what's best for the kid.
Olivia: They are trapping her in a child's body forever.
Elliot: Parents have to make hard choices.
At the end of the episode, it is revealed that Olivia Benson applied to be an adoptive parent but has been turned down because she is single, has no family, and has a time-consuming job.
The scene involving genetic testing features the terrific short-statured actress, Meredith Eaton Gilden (http://mereditheatongilden.com/). Two other detectives, Det. Fin Tutuola and Det. Chester Lake, question her about her embryos, which were in the group stolen.
Meredith: It's humane to get rid of the defective ones. Babies born with homozygous achondroplasia usually die within a year. Their tiny chest cages cause constriction, resulting in respiratory distress. It's a nasty death.
Fin: That's what you were screening for?
Meredith: We had a little girl named Rose who had it. She died in my arms.
Chester: I am so sorry.
Meredith: My husband is also a dwarf, which gives us a 25% chance of having a baby with the condition.
Fin: So you had them weed out the embryos with the death sentence attached?
Meredith: I donated them to research.
Chester: Sounds like the clinic helped, but we heard you caused a disturbance.
Meredith: Yea, after all of that, my doctor refused to implant one of my healthy embryos.
Fin: He refused to implant because of your size?
Meredith: No, because of babies. He wanted to use an embryo that would become what you call "normal" size. I wanted an LP.
Chester: LP? Little person.
Fin: You wanted to purposely create a child with a disability?
Meredith: Size is not a disability. We have normal lifespans and lives. Why shouldn't I be allowed to have a child who looks like me? Everybody else can.
pause.
Meredith: I think someone would have noticed if the thief was 4 foot one.
Touché.
Law & Order: SVU has been doing its disability homework for this episode. The dialogue shows Olivia Benson vocalizing the the disability rights perspective in the Ashley X case, and Meredith Eaton Gilden is allowed to speak for people with physical differences who select to have children who look like them.
Anyone know where the SVU writers learned about all this? Email me and let me know.
You can read more about the Ashley X case from the Inclusion Daily Express:
http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/families/ashleyx.htm.
I won't be doing this often but I thought the dialogue surrounding these issues was important to preserve. I have transcribed it below. Unfortunately, Law & Order: SVU is not one of the shows NBC has on its web site with full episode replays.
This episode was called "Inconceivable" and focused on the theft of frozen embryos from a fertility clinic. The detectives talk to everyone who had an embryo in the stolen tank, which leads them to parents who mirror the Ashley X case and a Little Person who had embryos undergoing genetic testing.
The Ashley X scene:
The detectives enter the home of the parents of 8-year-old, Alicia, who has serious disabilities. The parents reveal that the embryos in question were actually from Alicia's eggs, which her mother was going to carry to term. The parents explain that Alicia's eggs were available because of the experimental procedure she is undergoing to stunt her growth.
Det. Elliot Stabler: Why?
Father: Growth plates fuse at puberty. The doctors started hers early to stop her from getting any bigger.
Det. Olivia Benson: So you are purposely deforming your daughter?
Father: To enhance her quality of life.
Elliot (sarcastically): Sounds like a great future.
Father: Alicia can't turn herself over. We carry her to the dinner table, give her baths, put her in a stroller to take her for a walk.
Elliot: So this is for your convenience?
Father: The more movement Alicia gets the better her circulation, which means fewer sores and infection.
Olivia: What you are doing is wrong.
Father: The bioethics committee disagreed.
Mother: We're not the first ones to do this. It was done once before in Washington State. (referring to the Ashley X case)
Stabler and Benson go out the front door of the home.
Elliot: Who are you calling?
Olivia: Children's services.
Elliot: Don't.
Olivia: You can't possibly be OK with what they are doing to her?
Elliot: Look, it's a nightmare but it's a bad situation no matter what they do. They think they're doing what's best for the kid.
Olivia: They are trapping her in a child's body forever.
Elliot: Parents have to make hard choices.
At the end of the episode, it is revealed that Olivia Benson applied to be an adoptive parent but has been turned down because she is single, has no family, and has a time-consuming job.
The scene involving genetic testing features the terrific short-statured actress, Meredith Eaton Gilden (http://mereditheatongilden.com/). Two other detectives, Det. Fin Tutuola and Det. Chester Lake, question her about her embryos, which were in the group stolen.
Meredith: It's humane to get rid of the defective ones. Babies born with homozygous achondroplasia usually die within a year. Their tiny chest cages cause constriction, resulting in respiratory distress. It's a nasty death.
Fin: That's what you were screening for?
Meredith: We had a little girl named Rose who had it. She died in my arms.
Chester: I am so sorry.
Meredith: My husband is also a dwarf, which gives us a 25% chance of having a baby with the condition.
Fin: So you had them weed out the embryos with the death sentence attached?
Meredith: I donated them to research.
Chester: Sounds like the clinic helped, but we heard you caused a disturbance.
Meredith: Yea, after all of that, my doctor refused to implant one of my healthy embryos.
Fin: He refused to implant because of your size?
Meredith: No, because of babies. He wanted to use an embryo that would become what you call "normal" size. I wanted an LP.
Chester: LP? Little person.
Fin: You wanted to purposely create a child with a disability?
Meredith: Size is not a disability. We have normal lifespans and lives. Why shouldn't I be allowed to have a child who looks like me? Everybody else can.
pause.
Meredith: I think someone would have noticed if the thief was 4 foot one.
Touché.
Law & Order: SVU has been doing its disability homework for this episode. The dialogue shows Olivia Benson vocalizing the the disability rights perspective in the Ashley X case, and Meredith Eaton Gilden is allowed to speak for people with physical differences who select to have children who look like them.
Anyone know where the SVU writers learned about all this? Email me and let me know.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Humorist David Roche's book out Feb. 5
I have seen David Roche perform and if his book is half as witty as he is as a performer, it must be great. Roche has a facial disfigurement, but his humor focuses on what others reactions to him are.
"It is not the fact of my disfigurement that wears at my psyche," he says. "It is the fear and self-doubt of others, their very human concern about their own social acceptability, their worry about being unlovable and abandoned, which they project onto me."
His book, published by the Penguin Group of New York, is called The Church of 80% Sincerity, and the book's press materials explain, "Humor is the most subversive of the arts. In 'Church,' Roche uses it well to present a new paradigm for facial difference, one which effectively challenges the prevailing social definition of disability. Disability is not a tragedy or a reason for pity. It is not something to be atoned for, nor something to be cured. Instead, Roche claims, for him it has been a gift."
His book explains "how his disfigurement brought him to a deeper level of understanding of himself and of others. He shows how all of us have an inner sense of being flawed, a fear of being unacceptable to others."
Publishers Weekly Review calls The Church of 80% Sincerity a "powerful little book that's part memoir, part inspirational handbook. For Roche, being himself has meant coming to terms with a face so severely disfigured by a benign congenital tumor that he's been spat at and called a monster. He was rejected from a seminary because, he was told, his appearance meant 'people would not respect you as a priest.' The loss of the fathers of the Holy Cross is the general public's gain. A performer and motivational speaker, Roche is frank and witty and incapable of resorting to sentimental pap."
You can find out more about David Roche at: http://www.davidroche.com/. He is also featured in the brilliant 2006 Canadian documentary, "Shameless: The ART of disability." Directed by Bonnie Sherr Klein, it explores the lives and activism of five artists with disabilities. I highly recommend it, as it truthfully depicts the multi-faceted lives of passionate, creative people. The documentary is available for purchase from the National Film Board of Canada, http://www.nfb.ca/collection/films/fiche/?id=51620.
"It is not the fact of my disfigurement that wears at my psyche," he says. "It is the fear and self-doubt of others, their very human concern about their own social acceptability, their worry about being unlovable and abandoned, which they project onto me."
His book, published by the Penguin Group of New York, is called The Church of 80% Sincerity, and the book's press materials explain, "Humor is the most subversive of the arts. In 'Church,' Roche uses it well to present a new paradigm for facial difference, one which effectively challenges the prevailing social definition of disability. Disability is not a tragedy or a reason for pity. It is not something to be atoned for, nor something to be cured. Instead, Roche claims, for him it has been a gift."
His book explains "how his disfigurement brought him to a deeper level of understanding of himself and of others. He shows how all of us have an inner sense of being flawed, a fear of being unacceptable to others."
Publishers Weekly Review calls The Church of 80% Sincerity a "powerful little book that's part memoir, part inspirational handbook. For Roche, being himself has meant coming to terms with a face so severely disfigured by a benign congenital tumor that he's been spat at and called a monster. He was rejected from a seminary because, he was told, his appearance meant 'people would not respect you as a priest.' The loss of the fathers of the Holy Cross is the general public's gain. A performer and motivational speaker, Roche is frank and witty and incapable of resorting to sentimental pap."
You can find out more about David Roche at: http://www.davidroche.com/. He is also featured in the brilliant 2006 Canadian documentary, "Shameless: The ART of disability." Directed by Bonnie Sherr Klein, it explores the lives and activism of five artists with disabilities. I highly recommend it, as it truthfully depicts the multi-faceted lives of passionate, creative people. The documentary is available for purchase from the National Film Board of Canada, http://www.nfb.ca/collection/films/fiche/?id=51620.
ABC drama to add disclaimer about autism/vaccine link
The New York Times reported Jan. 29 that the ABC show, "Eli Stone," will go on as planned, despite a call for cancelling the debut episode from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), which is concerned because the Jan. 31 episode depicts a link between childhood vaccines and autism. The AAP said the link has been scientifically disproved and it believes the show is irresponsible in pursuing a story line that might cause some parents to forgo vaccines for their children.
ABC says it will show the debut episode as planned on Jan. 31, but will put a disclaimer in written and voice-over form at the beginning of the show that says, "'The following story is fictional and does not portray any actual persons, companies, products or events.' A second card will direct viewers to the Center for Disease Control’s autism Web site, www.cdc.gov/autism," according to the NY Times.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/29/business/media/29abc.html
ABC says it will show the debut episode as planned on Jan. 31, but will put a disclaimer in written and voice-over form at the beginning of the show that says, "'The following story is fictional and does not portray any actual persons, companies, products or events.' A second card will direct viewers to the Center for Disease Control’s autism Web site, www.cdc.gov/autism," according to the NY Times.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/29/business/media/29abc.html
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Target, what are you thinking?
Target has long been a favorite store of mine, but recently it has dissed bloggers and created an inaccessible corporate web site, so I am unhappy to see its negative corporate behavior.
When a blogger contacted Target to complain about an ad she thought was inappropriate (it shows a woman's crotch in the middle of the Target bull's eye), she was told that Target wouldn't respond to her because it doesn't "participate with non-traditional media outlets," according to the Jan. 28 NY Times.
Doesn't Target know that what will be left when the traditional media implodes in the next few decades will be BLOGS. :-)
But it doesn't stop there. A class action lawsuit from blind and visually impaired Internet users is moving forward against Target.com, alleging that the web site is not accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Target claims that the ADA applies to actual building accessibility, not the virtual world. If the case is decided in the favor of blind and visually impaired Internet users, it could have far-reaching impact in creating a more accessible online environment. http://www.inclusiondaily.com/archives/07/10/03/100307catarget.htm
All this not-so-nice behavior by Target is ironic to me because I have done several research projects looking at advertising images of people with disabilities, and Target was a pioneer in the 1980s and early 1990s in creating quality print ads using adults and children with disabilities in its sales circulars. These ads were well done and went to 30 million households in 32 states.
Target's vice president of marketing said in Marketing News in 1992 that their use of people with disabilities in their ads was so successful that they can actually point to specific products that sold much better because they were modeled by a disabled person. In addition, another ad campaign that depicted children with disabilities lead to 1000 supportive letters and was "the single most successful consumer response we've ever gotten," a VP of marketing told The Washington Post in 1991.
Target ads included not just wheelchair users but children and teens with Down syndrome, leg braces and artificial limbs. Some Target suppliers feared the ad campaign would seem exploitative, but it had the opposite effect: "There isn't a single disabled person who will say they feel they're being exploited; they are thrilled and proud that they are being portrayed as just another member of society," the Target public relations vice president said in The Washington Post in 1991.
I know that was a long time ago now, but Target seemed to "get it" back then (when they had a VP of marketing with a child with a disability). Please Target, this "non-traditional media outlet" would like you to once again work WITH people with disabilities rather than against them.
When a blogger contacted Target to complain about an ad she thought was inappropriate (it shows a woman's crotch in the middle of the Target bull's eye), she was told that Target wouldn't respond to her because it doesn't "participate with non-traditional media outlets," according to the Jan. 28 NY Times.
Doesn't Target know that what will be left when the traditional media implodes in the next few decades will be BLOGS. :-)
But it doesn't stop there. A class action lawsuit from blind and visually impaired Internet users is moving forward against Target.com, alleging that the web site is not accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Target claims that the ADA applies to actual building accessibility, not the virtual world. If the case is decided in the favor of blind and visually impaired Internet users, it could have far-reaching impact in creating a more accessible online environment. http://www.inclusiondaily.com/archives/07/10/03/100307catarget.htm
All this not-so-nice behavior by Target is ironic to me because I have done several research projects looking at advertising images of people with disabilities, and Target was a pioneer in the 1980s and early 1990s in creating quality print ads using adults and children with disabilities in its sales circulars. These ads were well done and went to 30 million households in 32 states.
Target's vice president of marketing said in Marketing News in 1992 that their use of people with disabilities in their ads was so successful that they can actually point to specific products that sold much better because they were modeled by a disabled person. In addition, another ad campaign that depicted children with disabilities lead to 1000 supportive letters and was "the single most successful consumer response we've ever gotten," a VP of marketing told The Washington Post in 1991.
Target ads included not just wheelchair users but children and teens with Down syndrome, leg braces and artificial limbs. Some Target suppliers feared the ad campaign would seem exploitative, but it had the opposite effect: "There isn't a single disabled person who will say they feel they're being exploited; they are thrilled and proud that they are being portrayed as just another member of society," the Target public relations vice president said in The Washington Post in 1991.
I know that was a long time ago now, but Target seemed to "get it" back then (when they had a VP of marketing with a child with a disability). Please Target, this "non-traditional media outlet" would like you to once again work WITH people with disabilities rather than against them.
New ABC drama fuels controversy over autism/vaccine debate
The ABC drama, "Eli Stone," premieres Thursday at 10 p.m. Jan. 31, and according to a Jan. 23 NY Times story, the pilot will focus on the controversial belief by some that autism is caused by childhood vaccines. The NY Times story explains that prominent scientific organizations have dismissed the connection between vaccines and autism.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/23/arts/television/23ston.html?ex=1358830800&en=35aec95143c29a6d&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
In the episode, the main character, Eli Stone, takes the case of a mother who sues because she says a vaccine preservative with mercury caused her child's autism. According to the NY Times, "reams of scientific studies by the leading American health authorities have failed to establish a causal link between the preservative and autism. Since the preservative was largely removed from childhood vaccines in 2001, autism rates have not declined."
The premise of "Eli Stone" is that the title character, a lawyer, begins having visions due to a brain aneurysm, which causes him to refocus his life and law practice from defending corporations like pharmaceutical companies to instead helping "the little guy."
Now the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has entered the discussion, asking that ABC pull the episode because it fears parents will receive incorrect information about the risks of childhood vaccines.
The AAP statement released Jan. 28 said: "'A television show that perpetuates the myth that vaccines cause autism is the height of reckless irresponsibility on the part of ABC and its parent company, The Walt Disney Co.,' said Renee R. Jenkins, MD, FAAP, president of the AAP. 'If parents watch this program and choose to deny their children immunizations, ABC will share in the responsibility for the suffering and deaths that occur as a result. The consequences of a decline in immunization rates could be devastating to the health of our nation’s children.'"
http://www.aap.org/advocacy/releases/jan08elistonerelease.htm
David Kirby of The Huffington Post calls the AAP request to pull the episode "censorship." He writes, "if I were Dr. Jenkins, I would be far more concerned about real news happening in the real world -- events that not only suggest the possibility of some sort of link between mercury, vaccines and autism, but might alarm parents more than any fictional account written for ratings-grabbing mass entertainment." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/pediatricians-abc-and-ce_b_83472.html
The earlier NY Times article also pointed out that ABC is potentially alienating its numerous pharmaceutical advertisers with the autism/vaccine story line. "Eli Lilly & Company, which developed thimerosal (the mercury-based preservative pulled in 2001), and the two companies that now make the bulk of childhood vaccines used in the United States, GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi-Aventis, spent an estimated $138 million for advertising on ABC last year, according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus, though little to none of it was spent advertising vaccines."
Greg Berlanti, a co-creator and an executive producer of "Eli Stone," told the NY Times that he thinks that the script shows the several sides of the autism/vaccine argument. “I think they wanted us to do our homework about all of it, which we did,” he said.
I haven't seen the show yet, but I am fearful when entertainment TV drama tries to tackle complex topics, because in ramping up the drama to keep the audience engaged, important facts sometimes get left out. And with fewer and fewer people going to news sources for information, it scares me to think someone might get a large portion of his/her medical information from a TV drama. I realize that sometimes when a TV drama tackles medical topics, it ends up educating many people who otherwise wouldn't have the information. Plots revolving around cancer, AIDS, and heart disease have led to early detection for some audience members who have gone to the doctor after seeing a TV show. But I don't know that the plot of the "Eli Stone" pilot will really "help" anyone; it will just fuel the fire of an already acrimonious controversy.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/23/arts/television/23ston.html?ex=1358830800&en=35aec95143c29a6d&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
In the episode, the main character, Eli Stone, takes the case of a mother who sues because she says a vaccine preservative with mercury caused her child's autism. According to the NY Times, "reams of scientific studies by the leading American health authorities have failed to establish a causal link between the preservative and autism. Since the preservative was largely removed from childhood vaccines in 2001, autism rates have not declined."
The premise of "Eli Stone" is that the title character, a lawyer, begins having visions due to a brain aneurysm, which causes him to refocus his life and law practice from defending corporations like pharmaceutical companies to instead helping "the little guy."
Now the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has entered the discussion, asking that ABC pull the episode because it fears parents will receive incorrect information about the risks of childhood vaccines.
The AAP statement released Jan. 28 said: "'A television show that perpetuates the myth that vaccines cause autism is the height of reckless irresponsibility on the part of ABC and its parent company, The Walt Disney Co.,' said Renee R. Jenkins, MD, FAAP, president of the AAP. 'If parents watch this program and choose to deny their children immunizations, ABC will share in the responsibility for the suffering and deaths that occur as a result. The consequences of a decline in immunization rates could be devastating to the health of our nation’s children.'"
http://www.aap.org/advocacy/releases/jan08elistonerelease.htm
David Kirby of The Huffington Post calls the AAP request to pull the episode "censorship." He writes, "if I were Dr. Jenkins, I would be far more concerned about real news happening in the real world -- events that not only suggest the possibility of some sort of link between mercury, vaccines and autism, but might alarm parents more than any fictional account written for ratings-grabbing mass entertainment." http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/pediatricians-abc-and-ce_b_83472.html
The earlier NY Times article also pointed out that ABC is potentially alienating its numerous pharmaceutical advertisers with the autism/vaccine story line. "Eli Lilly & Company, which developed thimerosal (the mercury-based preservative pulled in 2001), and the two companies that now make the bulk of childhood vaccines used in the United States, GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi-Aventis, spent an estimated $138 million for advertising on ABC last year, according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus, though little to none of it was spent advertising vaccines."
Greg Berlanti, a co-creator and an executive producer of "Eli Stone," told the NY Times that he thinks that the script shows the several sides of the autism/vaccine argument. “I think they wanted us to do our homework about all of it, which we did,” he said.
I haven't seen the show yet, but I am fearful when entertainment TV drama tries to tackle complex topics, because in ramping up the drama to keep the audience engaged, important facts sometimes get left out. And with fewer and fewer people going to news sources for information, it scares me to think someone might get a large portion of his/her medical information from a TV drama. I realize that sometimes when a TV drama tackles medical topics, it ends up educating many people who otherwise wouldn't have the information. Plots revolving around cancer, AIDS, and heart disease have led to early detection for some audience members who have gone to the doctor after seeing a TV show. But I don't know that the plot of the "Eli Stone" pilot will really "help" anyone; it will just fuel the fire of an already acrimonious controversy.
Monday, January 28, 2008
The Key of G explores disability, caregiving and interdependence
"The Key of G," a documentary about a young disabled man and his caregivers, directed by Robert Arnold, explores the world of caregiving and friendship. "THE KEY OF G tells the story of Gannet, a 22-year-old man with severe disabilities, as he prepares to move out of his mother's home and into a San Francisco apartment with three musicians and artists as primary caregivers," according to its web site,
http://www.lateralfilms.com/keyofg/index.html.
The film won the 2007 Golden Gate Award for Best Bay Area Documentary at the 50th San Francisco International Film Festival. Here's what a Jan. 24 article in the San Francisco Chronicle said about it: "Showing people with disabilities on film can be tricky. There are so many cliched images to avoid - saintly figures or frank objects of pity. In the documentary 'The Key of G,' Bay Area filmmaker Robert Arnold avoids stereotypes in showing audiences the life of Gannet, a young man in his 20s with a rare syndrome who moves into an apartment with three of his artist caregivers. Together, they not only manage but thrive in this setting, a contrast to the model of institutionalized care. . . .The film is lyrical not sentimental, and the pace is leisurely."
The film will be shown on PBS, but is also available for purchase on DVD.
I have only seen the trailer for the film, but I like what I see about it on its web site. I think more disability films need to embrace this notion of interdependence. The director told the San Francisco Chronicle, "I think that an important part is getting the concept of interdependence. The caregivers get so much back from Gannet. The living situation works as well for the caregivers as it does for him. That house becomes a center for making music and influences their art." http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/24/NS3EUHP1D.DTL
We all rely on each other and can learn from each other. I think many non-disabled people fear disability because they see it as a "dependent" state, when, in fact, people with disabilities are just living a more openly interdependent life. The highly regarded disability studies scholar, Paul Longmore of San Francisco State U., once explained that non-disabled people can learn a lot from the outwardly interdependent way many disabled people must live. Many non-disabled people don't see the interdependent way that they themselves live every day, relying on others to grow their food, provide their transportation, build their houses, educate their children, etc.
http://www.lateralfilms.com/keyofg/index.html.
The film won the 2007 Golden Gate Award for Best Bay Area Documentary at the 50th San Francisco International Film Festival. Here's what a Jan. 24 article in the San Francisco Chronicle said about it: "Showing people with disabilities on film can be tricky. There are so many cliched images to avoid - saintly figures or frank objects of pity. In the documentary 'The Key of G,' Bay Area filmmaker Robert Arnold avoids stereotypes in showing audiences the life of Gannet, a young man in his 20s with a rare syndrome who moves into an apartment with three of his artist caregivers. Together, they not only manage but thrive in this setting, a contrast to the model of institutionalized care. . . .The film is lyrical not sentimental, and the pace is leisurely."
The film will be shown on PBS, but is also available for purchase on DVD.
I have only seen the trailer for the film, but I like what I see about it on its web site. I think more disability films need to embrace this notion of interdependence. The director told the San Francisco Chronicle, "I think that an important part is getting the concept of interdependence. The caregivers get so much back from Gannet. The living situation works as well for the caregivers as it does for him. That house becomes a center for making music and influences their art." http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/01/24/NS3EUHP1D.DTL
We all rely on each other and can learn from each other. I think many non-disabled people fear disability because they see it as a "dependent" state, when, in fact, people with disabilities are just living a more openly interdependent life. The highly regarded disability studies scholar, Paul Longmore of San Francisco State U., once explained that non-disabled people can learn a lot from the outwardly interdependent way many disabled people must live. Many non-disabled people don't see the interdependent way that they themselves live every day, relying on others to grow their food, provide their transportation, build their houses, educate their children, etc.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
NPR plans live captioning for hearing impaired audience
The system would allow deaf and hearing impaired people to read radio broadcasts live as they are happening. According to a Jan. 8 press release from the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the system "will leverage cutting- edge HD Radio™ technology to enable hearing-impaired people to 'see' live radio content on specially equipped receivers by applying television closed-captioning processes to radio broadcasts. The technology also will provide audio cues and voice prompts, as well as advanced radio reading services, for those visually impaired and blind."
"We're using the new [high-definition] radio system, and a tiny sliver of the total bandwidth in a special channel we created," Mike Starling, chief technology officer and executive director of NPR Labs, said in The Towerlight newspaper. "Our demonstration broadcast was very similar to how it is done for live TV captioning - using a standard court reporter system that drives our customer software and transmits it using HD radio."
The new radio system is being developed through collaboration between NPR, the Harris Corporation and Towson University to form the International Center for Accessible Radio Technology (ICART), http://www.i-cart.net/. (Full disclosure: I am an employee of Towson University but am not affiliated with the center.)
"We're working very closely with radio stations around the world to ensure they have the right technical infrastructure in place for this initiative," said Howard Lance, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Harris Corporation, in the release. "The new HD Radio transmission systems we're installing are tailor-made for this effort, as their digital capabilities will make it relatively easy for stations to transmit live textual transcripts to HD Radio receivers."
"There is tremendous need for accessible radio for sensory-impaired people, including the deaf, hard-of-hearing, blind, visually impaired, print impaired, deaf/blind, and mobility impaired," Dr. Ellyn Sheffield, assistant professor of psychology at Towson and co-director of ICART, said in the release. "There is no question this initiative will have a profound impact on the quality of millions of people's lives. Finally, sensory-disabled individuals will have access to all radio programming, as well as radio emergency alerts and vital disaster recovery information."
More than 1,500 radio stations are now broadcasting in HD Radio in the USA, according to the CES release. More than half of the CPB-qualified stations have been awarded HD Radio conversion grants by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). According to recent estimates, by 2010, all 825 public radio stations should be broadcasting digitally.
The system ICART plans was announced at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Jan 7-10, 2008. You can see a picture of what the system will look like at Gizmodo:
http://gizmodo.com/341123/first-ever-closed+captioned-hd-radio-for-the-deaf-launched-by-npr-harris-and-towson-university.
You can read the Towson University student newspaper report here:
http://media.www.thetowerlight.com/media/storage/paper957/news/2008/01/24/News/Univ-To.Host.Captioned.Radio.Research-3165156.shtml
"We're using the new [high-definition] radio system, and a tiny sliver of the total bandwidth in a special channel we created," Mike Starling, chief technology officer and executive director of NPR Labs, said in The Towerlight newspaper. "Our demonstration broadcast was very similar to how it is done for live TV captioning - using a standard court reporter system that drives our customer software and transmits it using HD radio."
The new radio system is being developed through collaboration between NPR, the Harris Corporation and Towson University to form the International Center for Accessible Radio Technology (ICART), http://www.i-cart.net/. (Full disclosure: I am an employee of Towson University but am not affiliated with the center.)
"We're working very closely with radio stations around the world to ensure they have the right technical infrastructure in place for this initiative," said Howard Lance, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Harris Corporation, in the release. "The new HD Radio transmission systems we're installing are tailor-made for this effort, as their digital capabilities will make it relatively easy for stations to transmit live textual transcripts to HD Radio receivers."
"There is tremendous need for accessible radio for sensory-impaired people, including the deaf, hard-of-hearing, blind, visually impaired, print impaired, deaf/blind, and mobility impaired," Dr. Ellyn Sheffield, assistant professor of psychology at Towson and co-director of ICART, said in the release. "There is no question this initiative will have a profound impact on the quality of millions of people's lives. Finally, sensory-disabled individuals will have access to all radio programming, as well as radio emergency alerts and vital disaster recovery information."
More than 1,500 radio stations are now broadcasting in HD Radio in the USA, according to the CES release. More than half of the CPB-qualified stations have been awarded HD Radio conversion grants by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). According to recent estimates, by 2010, all 825 public radio stations should be broadcasting digitally.
The system ICART plans was announced at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Jan 7-10, 2008. You can see a picture of what the system will look like at Gizmodo:
http://gizmodo.com/341123/first-ever-closed+captioned-hd-radio-for-the-deaf-launched-by-npr-harris-and-towson-university.
You can read the Towson University student newspaper report here:
http://media.www.thetowerlight.com/media/storage/paper957/news/2008/01/24/News/Univ-To.Host.Captioned.Radio.Research-3165156.shtml
Saturday, January 26, 2008
John Belluso play at Public Theater in NYC March 8-23
(Note: I consider theater to be a peripheral part of the "media" world because so much theater ends up on film and TV, so I will occasionally include it on this blog.)
John Belluso's "The Poor Itch" will be at the Public Theater, 425 Lafayette, in New York, N.Y., March 8-23. Belluso, who died at the age of 36 in 2006, was an up-and-coming playwright who addressed themes of disability in his work.
Belluso, who used a wheelchair, told the San Francisco Observer that having a disability gave him understanding of what he needed to do to be a playwright. “Finding the balance between participating and observing is really the key to being a good writer and a happy person,” he told the San Francisco Observer in 2005. “My disability has done nothing but help me understand that process.”
He explained to the Observer that disability would remain a theme in his work. “It is an experience that shapes my life and view of the world, and a topic that I find endlessly fascinating because there is that universal element… It is the one minority class in which anyone can become a member of at any time.”
Belluso had just begun readings of "The Poor Itch" at the time of his death. It is about a timely subject -- an injured soldier who returns home from Iraq. For tickets, visit:
http://tickets.publictheater.org/calendar/view.asp?id=5033.
I saw Belluso's "The Rules of Charity" by the Theater by the Blind (http://www.tbtb.org/index.htm) in 2007 and it was a fantastic production. That play focuses on an older gay man with cerebral palsy and his daughter who resents assisting him. It is a powerful play and addresses important themes that I believe resonated so clearly because Belluso honestly portrayed a lived experience of disability in the play. There's no sugar-coating or putting a disabled person up on a pedestal -- just authentic people who love, laugh, cry and hurt like everyone else.
Here's the NY Times obituary about Belluso:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/15/theater/15BELLUSO.html
John Belluso's "The Poor Itch" will be at the Public Theater, 425 Lafayette, in New York, N.Y., March 8-23. Belluso, who died at the age of 36 in 2006, was an up-and-coming playwright who addressed themes of disability in his work.
Belluso, who used a wheelchair, told the San Francisco Observer that having a disability gave him understanding of what he needed to do to be a playwright. “Finding the balance between participating and observing is really the key to being a good writer and a happy person,” he told the San Francisco Observer in 2005. “My disability has done nothing but help me understand that process.”
He explained to the Observer that disability would remain a theme in his work. “It is an experience that shapes my life and view of the world, and a topic that I find endlessly fascinating because there is that universal element… It is the one minority class in which anyone can become a member of at any time.”
Belluso had just begun readings of "The Poor Itch" at the time of his death. It is about a timely subject -- an injured soldier who returns home from Iraq. For tickets, visit:
http://tickets.publictheater.org/calendar/view.asp?id=5033.
I saw Belluso's "The Rules of Charity" by the Theater by the Blind (http://www.tbtb.org/index.htm) in 2007 and it was a fantastic production. That play focuses on an older gay man with cerebral palsy and his daughter who resents assisting him. It is a powerful play and addresses important themes that I believe resonated so clearly because Belluso honestly portrayed a lived experience of disability in the play. There's no sugar-coating or putting a disabled person up on a pedestal -- just authentic people who love, laugh, cry and hurt like everyone else.
Here's the NY Times obituary about Belluso:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/15/theater/15BELLUSO.html
Rutgers professors refute NY Times column on ADA
The New York Times Magazine, in its Freakonomics column by authors Stephen J. Dubner and Steven D. Levitt on Jan. 20 called "Unintended Consequences," cited a 2001 study by Daron Acemoglu and Joshua Angrist in the Journal of Political Economy that argues that the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) led to a decline in employment among people with disabilities. That study surmises that employers were afraid of ADA discrimination lawsuits so they avoided hiring workers with disabilities. You can read the full NY Times column here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/20/magazine/20wwln-freak-t.html.
When that study came out, much controversy erupted about it among disability researchers. And the disability community was obviously concerned if important civil rights legislation like the ADA was actually doing harm.
However, a number of disability and employment researchers from universities like Cornell and Rutgers had different findings. Cornell University researchers at the Employment and Disability Institute there investigated the findings of the original study, known in disability circles as the anti-ADA study. They found that although employment of some people with disabilities might have declined, it was not due to the Americans with Disabilities Act. Possible problems in the anti-ADA study were the data used and definitions of disability.
Douglas Kruse and Lisa Schur of Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations conduct disability employment research and they also found problems with how the anti-ADA study was done. Their 2003 paper in Industrial Relations said, "Given the problems in measuring who is covered by the ADA, there is reason to be cautious of both positive and negative findings."
They wrote a letter to the NY Times Magazine explaining the problems with the anti-ADA study, which I hope the NY Times will publish, but if they don't, I have their permission to publish it here:
To the editor of the Magazine section,
The Jan. 20th Freakonomics column on “Unintended Consequences” uses as an example some initial research on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which concluded that this law, contrary to its intentions, hurt the employment of people with disabilities. A re-analysis of these data by Cornell researchers, however, showed that the ADA did not hurt employment among people most likely to be covered by the law: people with more severe and long-lasting disabilities. In fact, employment rates appear to have increased among some groups in this population. Our own research using other data showed that there was no initial drop in employment after the ADA became effective. It is true that employment of people with disabilities has generally stagnated in the past 20 years, but several studies have found that the ADA played no causal role. Instead, primary blame can be put on work disincentives in federal disability income programs. The low employment rates can be addressed by a variety of promising public and private policies to increase recruitment and retention of employees with disabilities, as described in a recent report from the federal government’s National Council on Disability. We certainly do not dispute that laws can have unintended consequences, but recent research shows that the ADA is not a valid example.
Douglas Kruse, Professor
Lisa Schur, Associate Professor
School of Management and Labor Relations
Rutgers University
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/20/magazine/20wwln-freak-t.html.
When that study came out, much controversy erupted about it among disability researchers. And the disability community was obviously concerned if important civil rights legislation like the ADA was actually doing harm.
However, a number of disability and employment researchers from universities like Cornell and Rutgers had different findings. Cornell University researchers at the Employment and Disability Institute there investigated the findings of the original study, known in disability circles as the anti-ADA study. They found that although employment of some people with disabilities might have declined, it was not due to the Americans with Disabilities Act. Possible problems in the anti-ADA study were the data used and definitions of disability.
Douglas Kruse and Lisa Schur of Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations conduct disability employment research and they also found problems with how the anti-ADA study was done. Their 2003 paper in Industrial Relations said, "Given the problems in measuring who is covered by the ADA, there is reason to be cautious of both positive and negative findings."
They wrote a letter to the NY Times Magazine explaining the problems with the anti-ADA study, which I hope the NY Times will publish, but if they don't, I have their permission to publish it here:
To the editor of the Magazine section,
The Jan. 20th Freakonomics column on “Unintended Consequences” uses as an example some initial research on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which concluded that this law, contrary to its intentions, hurt the employment of people with disabilities. A re-analysis of these data by Cornell researchers, however, showed that the ADA did not hurt employment among people most likely to be covered by the law: people with more severe and long-lasting disabilities. In fact, employment rates appear to have increased among some groups in this population. Our own research using other data showed that there was no initial drop in employment after the ADA became effective. It is true that employment of people with disabilities has generally stagnated in the past 20 years, but several studies have found that the ADA played no causal role. Instead, primary blame can be put on work disincentives in federal disability income programs. The low employment rates can be addressed by a variety of promising public and private policies to increase recruitment and retention of employees with disabilities, as described in a recent report from the federal government’s National Council on Disability. We certainly do not dispute that laws can have unintended consequences, but recent research shows that the ADA is not a valid example.
Douglas Kruse, Professor
Lisa Schur, Associate Professor
School of Management and Labor Relations
Rutgers University
See PepsiCo Deaf culture Super Bowl ad
A sneak peek has been posted on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sz57McRaCNU.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sz57McRaCNU.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Super Bowl ad features Deaf culture joke
A PepsiCo ad during the 2008 Super Bowl will focus on a joke common in the deaf community. Two guys are going to their friend's house for the Super Bowl. When they get to the street, they forget which house is his. SO to figure that out, they honk loudly and watch the lights go on and the dogs bark. Then they go to the house that remains dark -- that's where their deaf friend lives. The first 60 seconds of the ad will have no sound, which PepsiCo hopes will grab the attention of its Super Bowl audience.
Two PepsiCo employees, Brian Dowling and Darren Therriault, who are both deaf, are featured in the ad. The ad is the idea of Clay Broussard, a supply and logistics manager at PepsiCo in Dallas, who is hearing, but is involved with the deaf community because he attends a church in which all the services are in sign language.
National Association of the Deaf president Bobbie Beth Scoggins told The Associated Press she sees this ad as an historic event, because it is unusual for an ad featuring American Sign Language to receive such prominent play.
"I was glad to see this part of deaf culture awareness shared in a most clever way," Scoggins told The AP.
For more information: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22824530/from/ET/.
Two PepsiCo employees, Brian Dowling and Darren Therriault, who are both deaf, are featured in the ad. The ad is the idea of Clay Broussard, a supply and logistics manager at PepsiCo in Dallas, who is hearing, but is involved with the deaf community because he attends a church in which all the services are in sign language.
National Association of the Deaf president Bobbie Beth Scoggins told The Associated Press she sees this ad as an historic event, because it is unusual for an ad featuring American Sign Language to receive such prominent play.
"I was glad to see this part of deaf culture awareness shared in a most clever way," Scoggins told The AP.
For more information: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22824530/from/ET/.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Top disability rights stories of 2007
Dave Reynolds, editor of Inclusion Daily Express, has announced the top disability rights stories from 2007.
They cover a wide range of topics, from Target.com accessibility to Ashley X to restoring the intent of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Check them out at: http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/top2007.htm.
They cover a wide range of topics, from Target.com accessibility to Ashley X to restoring the intent of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Check them out at: http://www.inclusiondaily.com/news/top2007.htm.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Man without legs photographs staring around the world
Montana State film student Kevin Connolly was born without legs and became curious about the constant staring that meets him at every turn, so with camera in hand, he rode his skateboard internationally to document the staring he experiences. (He prefers a skateboard to a wheelchair.)
He traveled through 15 countries documenting the stares he gets. The Christian Science Monitor wrote about him in its Jan. 22 edition (http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0122/p20s01-ussc.html).
Connolly took 32,000 photos and has created an online exhibit, called The Rolling Exhibition at http://therollingexhibition.com/. It's a wonderful exhibit, which allows the viewer to see the world from a unique perspective. Many of the images are visually stunning because of the upward angle that captures aspects of the scene that one usually doesn't experience. I know its theme is the staring but the composition and subjects on the street make many of the images pure artistry. If this is any indication of his documentary abilities, I will be there to buy tickets to his first film.
He traveled through 15 countries documenting the stares he gets. The Christian Science Monitor wrote about him in its Jan. 22 edition (http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0122/p20s01-ussc.html).
Connolly took 32,000 photos and has created an online exhibit, called The Rolling Exhibition at http://therollingexhibition.com/. It's a wonderful exhibit, which allows the viewer to see the world from a unique perspective. Many of the images are visually stunning because of the upward angle that captures aspects of the scene that one usually doesn't experience. I know its theme is the staring but the composition and subjects on the street make many of the images pure artistry. If this is any indication of his documentary abilities, I will be there to buy tickets to his first film.
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