Disability In the Television Industry

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In the Television Industry, there is a lack of representation among disabled characters. 1 in 5 Americans is qualified to be disabled. The term disability is a cultural term set by society, rather than a medical term. In recent years the television industry has started to incorporate disabled characters into the story plot line. However, there is a lack of representation among disabled characters in televisions genres.

Reality TV: In reality television industry there is a lack of representation of disabled character compared to non-disabled characters. The rate of disabled characters levels out to be 13.8%. Some examples of reality TV shows with disabled characters include TLC show little people which broadcast a show focused on a married midget couple. A major issue is that there are few reality TV shows focused on physical disabled individuals, and if so they tend to be more medical related rather than entertainment based.

Dramas: The drama industry has an average of 3.2% representation in the industry. Some examples of popular drama Include the show Glee, The Secret Life of An American Teenager, and Breaking Bad. In the show Glee, the main character Arnold is in a wheelchair but his wheelchair is used as a prop advantage when the performance group is on stage. An issue in this drama is how the characters who are disabled for example Arnold from the show Glee is portrayed by an actor who is physically able to walk.

Sitcoms: The sitcom industry has a percentage rate of 2.1% performers. Some examples Include Bones, The Big Bang theory. The sitcom group has the lowest rate of disabled characters out of all genres. This is a disappointing rate, humans with physical disabilities may want to see people like them represented in a humorous way rather then the typical sympathetic approach that  shows tend to follow.

Animated: The Animated genre has the second highest disability character rate with a percentage of 8.6%. Some examples of animated characters include Mater from Cars the movie, Anakin Sky walker from Star Wars, and Pearl From finding Nemo. This group has the second highest rating, and also incorporates the most television shows geared to young children.

Overall there is a lack of Disability representation among Television shows. 1/5th of Americans have some sort of disability, and this should be broadcast as a society. In recent years there has been a vast improvement among being inclusive to disabled characters and the disabled community in TV shows, however, this needs improvement.The major reason behind this is due to the fact that society as whole has labeled the term disability as physical disability due to  soci-culture standards. A question to ask your self is how society as a whole can become more accepting towards Disabled Humans.