The Walter Cronkite School recently became the home of the National Center on Disability and Journalism, a program that was created to educate journalists about how to write about people with disabilities.
The NCDJ has bounced around from city to city since 1998 but Kristin Gilger, Assistant Dean of the Walter Cronkite School and NCDJ’s supervisor, said the organization approached them looking for a permanent home. While the office is going to be located in the Walter Cronkite Building, the majority of the information NCDJ provides is in online.
“They were preferably looking for a university for that sort of atmosphere and environment,” Gilger said. “We told them we were interested. ASU is really a forefront for accommodating students with disabilities, so it made sense to have the organization here.”
NCDJ provides information for journalists, such as explaining which phrases about people who disabled are appropriate, and guides how to interview a person who is disabled.
Graduate student Jake Geller, a member of the NCDJ staff and someone disabled by Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, said he feels the center is another resource now available to students.
“The focus on the site is on working journalists, but students at the Cronkite School will eventually be journalists,” Geller said.
Geller said he has had some experience with reporters interviewing him about his disability.
“I recently looked back on some articles and realized how one word or phrase could skew the article differently,” he said. “It just takes one word to make someone’s life look negative because they have a disability, which is why I think it’s important NCDJ exists to help educate people.”
Geller said if students can’t find things on the center’s Web site, people are allowed to contact the center for answers or direction to the best resources.
“Most of the information is online, but of course I’m willing to work with students if they have questions,” he said.
Journalism freshman Jordan Hamm said he probably wouldn’t use the center because he preferred to find things online, but he thinks other students will use the center.
“I think having as many resources as possible is a good thing,” Hamm said. “I think it will be beneficial to students, especially in the journalism field, because it’s super competitive and dog-eat-dog. So the more resources students have to educate themselves the better.”
Contact the reporter at sheydt@asu.edu
