ENGL 1302
Undiagnosed Issues: The Media is the Least of the Problem
Charles A. Riley, professor of journalism at Baruch College and co-founder of WeMedia,
the first company devoted to individuals with disabilities, wrote the article “Disability and the
Media: Prescriptions for Change”. What the author attempts to address in this article is the
unrelenting stereotyping of these individuals in the media, and attempts to appeal to change
through the same channels. There appear to be many questions posed through the article for
which the author addresses but also seems to raise further concerns. The appeal to change that
Riley makes in the article is extremely effective when dealing with celebrities in the media, but
is also limited in scope and also does not address the majority of these individuals who do not
have the same luxuries to voice their concerns.
Some of the claims that Riley makes in the article is that the media has transformed these
stories of triumph and redemption into money making schemes. The author goes on to say that
the media capitalized on these individuals by exploiting them in the media through movies and
books over the years. Riley states that the media is responsible for this due to improper
vocabulary usage and provides a complete appendix for reference. The purpose of this article
according to Riley is “to expose the extent of the problem while pinpointing how writers, editors,
photographers, filmmakers, advertisers, and the executives who give them their marching orders
go wrong, or occasionally get it right” (531). However, there is little to no evidence given to
confirm when the media does get it right or wrong according to the author. The proposals that
Riley makes in the article seem to address issues for one particular group of individuals, but
exclude a majority who remain without a voice in the campaign. The ones who are excluded
, from the equation are the individuals who are not in the media who suffer from the same
afflictions as celebrities, and certainly suffer without the same means to voice their concerns.
However, the author does seem to have a passion about the subject matter and attempts to
provide plenty of evidence for the claim that the media has perpetuated the problem. Riley states
that one of the main issues that seem to arise is that the media is quick to depict these individuals
in the media as the antagonist. According to Riley, “We have had millennia of fiction and
nonfiction depicting angry people with disabilities as villains, from Oedipus to Ahab to Dr.
Strangelove” (530). The characters in these stories that the author mentions are depicted with a
wooden leg and a wheelchair, and are the antagonist in their respective works. Riley goes on to
say that the negative depictions are not as frequent but the damage has already been done by
stating, “It is impossible to know the full degree of damage wreaked by the demeaning and
wildly inaccurate portrayals of people with disabilities, nor is it altogether clear whether much
current progress is being made” (531). The article does not provide any evidence of current
progress, or clarification that the media should be responsible for the misconceptions.
By attempting to appeal to the moral judgement of humanity, the author feels that this
will make a difference in the way the media will portray these individuals. The reversal of
negative stereotypes appears to be the main goal, or the Kairos that the author is attempting to
reach through the article by reinforcing the everyday language. The article states, “One of the
first and most significant steps to changing negative stereotypes and attitudes toward people with
disabilities begins when we rethink the way written and spoken images are used to portray
people with disabilities” (534). It appears that what the author is attempting to do is to use his
credibility to appeal to the people in hopes it will change the way that we all use the language in
our everyday lives. By doing so, the author wants to change the way that we communicate with
Undiagnosed Issues: The Media is the Least of the Problem
Charles A. Riley, professor of journalism at Baruch College and co-founder of WeMedia,
the first company devoted to individuals with disabilities, wrote the article “Disability and the
Media: Prescriptions for Change”. What the author attempts to address in this article is the
unrelenting stereotyping of these individuals in the media, and attempts to appeal to change
through the same channels. There appear to be many questions posed through the article for
which the author addresses but also seems to raise further concerns. The appeal to change that
Riley makes in the article is extremely effective when dealing with celebrities in the media, but
is also limited in scope and also does not address the majority of these individuals who do not
have the same luxuries to voice their concerns.
Some of the claims that Riley makes in the article is that the media has transformed these
stories of triumph and redemption into money making schemes. The author goes on to say that
the media capitalized on these individuals by exploiting them in the media through movies and
books over the years. Riley states that the media is responsible for this due to improper
vocabulary usage and provides a complete appendix for reference. The purpose of this article
according to Riley is “to expose the extent of the problem while pinpointing how writers, editors,
photographers, filmmakers, advertisers, and the executives who give them their marching orders
go wrong, or occasionally get it right” (531). However, there is little to no evidence given to
confirm when the media does get it right or wrong according to the author. The proposals that
Riley makes in the article seem to address issues for one particular group of individuals, but
exclude a majority who remain without a voice in the campaign. The ones who are excluded
, from the equation are the individuals who are not in the media who suffer from the same
afflictions as celebrities, and certainly suffer without the same means to voice their concerns.
However, the author does seem to have a passion about the subject matter and attempts to
provide plenty of evidence for the claim that the media has perpetuated the problem. Riley states
that one of the main issues that seem to arise is that the media is quick to depict these individuals
in the media as the antagonist. According to Riley, “We have had millennia of fiction and
nonfiction depicting angry people with disabilities as villains, from Oedipus to Ahab to Dr.
Strangelove” (530). The characters in these stories that the author mentions are depicted with a
wooden leg and a wheelchair, and are the antagonist in their respective works. Riley goes on to
say that the negative depictions are not as frequent but the damage has already been done by
stating, “It is impossible to know the full degree of damage wreaked by the demeaning and
wildly inaccurate portrayals of people with disabilities, nor is it altogether clear whether much
current progress is being made” (531). The article does not provide any evidence of current
progress, or clarification that the media should be responsible for the misconceptions.
By attempting to appeal to the moral judgement of humanity, the author feels that this
will make a difference in the way the media will portray these individuals. The reversal of
negative stereotypes appears to be the main goal, or the Kairos that the author is attempting to
reach through the article by reinforcing the everyday language. The article states, “One of the
first and most significant steps to changing negative stereotypes and attitudes toward people with
disabilities begins when we rethink the way written and spoken images are used to portray
people with disabilities” (534). It appears that what the author is attempting to do is to use his
credibility to appeal to the people in hopes it will change the way that we all use the language in
our everyday lives. By doing so, the author wants to change the way that we communicate with
