Tuesday, June 6, 2017

6/11 #CripTheVote Chat: Political Coverage and Disabled People

Yellow graphic with black text that reads: #CripTheVote Twitter Chat, Political Coverage & Disabled People, June 11 2017, 7 pm Eastern, Guest hosts @VilissaThompson @realsesmith @anamariecox cripthevote.blogspot.com

#CripTheVote Twitter Chat
Political Coverage and Disabled People
Sunday, June 11, 2017
4 pm Pacific / 7 pm Eastern

We are certainly living in some interesting times. With a little over 100 days in office, the co-partners of #CripTheVote, Gregg Beratan, Andrew Pulrang, and Alice Wong, are hosting a chat looking at the coverage of disabled people in the media, specifically political coverage (e.g., safety net, education, housing, AHCA, proposed federal budget). We are thrilled to have three fantastic journalists and writers as our guest hosts: Vilissa K. Thompson, s.e. smith, and Ana Marie Cox.

Nearly every story on disability issues has examples of how preconceptions about disability affect how it's talked about, a recent article on Social Security Disability Insurance stands out ... as do a number of responses to it:

Generations, disabled: A family on the fringes prays for the “right diagnoses”
Terrence McCoy, Washington Post - June 2, 2017

The Washington Post’s Reporting on Disability Is Giving Trump Cover for Disability Cuts
Rebecca Vallas, TalkPoverty - June 2, 2017

The Washington Post’s Distorted View of Rural Disability
Stephen Kuusisto, Planet Of The Blind - June 3, 2017

The Washington Post just illustrated the biggest flaw in disability coverage
S.I. Rosenbaum, Poynter - June 5, 2017

Generations, Disabled AND IN POVERTY: A Response To The Washington Post
Katie Tastrom, Ravishly - June 5, 2017

How to Participate

Follow @GreggBeratan @AndrewPulrang @DisVisibility @VilissaThompson @realsesmith @anamariecox on Twitter 
When it’s time, search #CripTheVote on Twitter for the series of live tweets under the ‘Latest’ tab for the full conversation.  
If you don’t use Twitter, you can follow along in real time here: http://twubs.com/CripTheVote 
If you might be overwhelmed by the volume of tweets and only want to see the chat’s questions so you can respond to them, check @DisVisibility’s account. Each question will tweeted 5-6 minutes apart. 
Check out this explanation of how to participate in a Twitter chat by Ruti Regan: https://storify.com/RutiRegan/examplechat 
Check out this captioned ASL explanation of how to participate in a chat by @behearddc
https://www.facebook.com/HEARDDC/videos/1181213075257528/

Introductory Tweets and Questions for 6/11 Chat

Welcome to the #CripTheVote chat looking at the recent political coverage & disabled people. 
We are pleased to have guest hosts @VilissaThompson @realsesmith and @anamariecox with us today! #CripTheVote 
Please remember to use the #CripTheVote hashtag when you tweet.   
If you respond to a question such as Q1, your tweet should follow this format: “A1 [your message] #CripTheVote” 
Q1 What are your thoughts on how the media, specifically coverage of politics, covers people with disabilities? #CripTheVote 
Q2 Are descriptions of disabled ppl as ‘vulnerable’ strategic & useful? Other themes you've seen in stories about #SafetyNet? #CripTheVote 
Q3 Are there examples of media coverage of issues such as the #AHCA & #TrumpBudget that concern you as a disabled person? Why? #CripTheVote 
Q4 What are your thoughts of hashtags such as #IAmAPreexistingCondition and social media in the portrayal of disability? #CripTheVote 
Q5 Are there stories, op-eds, or reporting on politics & disabled people that you liked? Feel free to share any links #CripTheVote 
Q6 What's missing, problematic, ableist/sanist/audist in the political coverage of disability issues & our communities? #CripTheVote 
Q7 What stories should reporters to pay attention to now? What's your advice to them on covering the disability community? #CripTheVote 
Q8 Which voices should editors be turning to for disability coverage? Advice to editors about commissioning & editing stories? #CripTheVote 
Q9 How do we get our stories out there? What experiences & lessons can you share with others? #CripTheVote 
This concludes the #CripTheVote chat on political coverage & disabled people. Thank you for joining us. 
Special thanks to our guest hosts @VilissaThompson @realsesmith and  @anamariecox! #CripTheVote 
Please keep the convo going! You can find updates & more info here: http://cripthevote.blogspot.com/ #CripTheVote 
Join us on 7/16 for the next #CripTheVote chat on the death penalty w/ guest host @talilalewis https://www.facebook.com/events/460708540933005/
A Storify of this #CripTheVote chat will be up shortly. Thanks again!