>I think we
>have more of a chance of holding the media accountable in these areas
>than in imaginative flights of fancy. Unfortunately, artistic license
>shackles us in that realm.
I'm not sure I agree with this. When studios use 'artistic license' to
give
bigotted depictions of ethnic minorities, members of those minorities
raise
hell. I would _hope_ that people take documentaries more seriously than
dramas and comedies, but bigotry is enforced in many ways. I've started
to
notice the pervasively negative uses of disabilities in the British
mysteries shown on A&E and PBS. Everyone in a wheelchair has a twisted
psyche.
Ron,
I agree we should take on all negative representations of disabilities in
the media. My point was that at minimum those involved in making
documentaries (such as the polio doc) and dramas supposedly based on
'real life' scenarios and institutions (such as E.R [although A&E and PBS
mysteries are usually fictional, they are situated in a supposedly
'consensual reality', so could possibly be included here]) should have to
consult with people in the disability community prior to filming if their
'story' concerns a disability or someone with a disability. Imaginative
flights of fancy--I was thinking particularly of films (and literature)
of fantasy such as 'The City of Lost Children' (the portrayal of
disabilities in this film was appalling) may pose a more difficult
challenge for us in that their creators may lean more heavily on the
excuse of 'artistic license' because of the fantasy element. Yet
obviously, they too should also be held accountable. Bye for now,
Russell
Russell Shuttleworth, MA, MSW
Sexuality Research Dissertation Fellow of the
Social Science Research Council, 1998-1999
Doctoral Candidate in Medical Anthropology
University of California San Francisco and Berkeley
3333 California St., Suite 485
San Francisco, California 94143-0850
Home: 2448 Prospect St
Berkeley, California 94704
Phone: 510-848 9749
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
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