Every time I write an article that touches on a group of people with a certain disease or disability, I always reach out to a few people living with that disease and include their voices in the story. This ensures that there is room for differences of opinion or experience – disability should be inclusive, including people of different races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, religions, ages and economic backgrounds. It’s like a core principle of journalism to include the voices of groups affected by any issue you write about, but I often see stories about issues affecting people with disabilities that don’t quote a single person with disabilities. People with disabilities are sometimes marginalized as sources in favor of healthy researchers or physicians. While these voices can improve the story, they should not replace the voices of people with disabilities in the story that their community is involved in.
I am sometimes asked, “What is the best way to interview a person with a disability?” I do not treat a person with a disability differently than a person without a disability. The only thing that can change is my communication style, depending on the disability of my source. For example, I make sure the source with an intellectual or developmental disability knows what the person is agreeing to through the interview, and I make sure my questions are easy to understand. If I’m interviewing a source who can’t speak, I email my questions rather than doing the interview in person or over the phone.
Journalists also tend to ask for interviews “as soon as possible” if they are on a tight deadline, but for some interview sources, exacerbations of chronic conditions may make it impossible to be interviewed on the same day the request is made. I try to give my sources as much time as possible and make it clear that I understand that their health is a priority.
When I write, language is important: when I interview people with disabilities, the first thing I do, if their disability is relevant to the story, is ask them how they prefer to be described. Some people, like me, prefer person-centered language, such as “disabled”, while others prefer person-centered language, such as “person with a disability.” (Preference can depend on a number of complex factors, including what kind of disability they have and how they relate to their disability.) I don’t use terms that sound like someone is a “victim” of a disability. I am not saying that someone is “suffering” with a disability; I’m just saying they “have” a disability. I also don’t use terms like wheelchair bound, birth defect, or housebound.
While disability in and of itself is not a bad thing, some people do not want to be identified by their disability, while others may consider it an essential part of who they are.
One of the hardest parts about reporting on people with disabilities is that there are so many different types of disabilities and their experiences vary so much. I’m not an expert on every disability, but the key to being a disability reporter is to acknowledge it and listen to those who understand it.