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The Media Television

How Should the Media Depict Autism? (salon.com) 117

Posted by EditorDavid from the spectrum-analysis dept.
April 2nd was "World Autism Awareness Day." This prompted Salon to ask: What would a good representation of autism in the media look like? When you talk to people who are neurodiverse, one problem they consistently identify is that even well-developed characters who seem to be on the spectrum are frequently "coded" — that is, they are given personality traits associated with autism but are never directly identified as being autistic.

"I have yet to seen a portrayal in the media that feels genuine," Becca Hector, an autism and neurodiversity consultant and mentor in Colorado, told Salon via Facebook. After noting the prevalence of autistic stereotyping in media, and particularly the entertainment industry, she added that "the closest they ever got, in my opinion, is Temperance Bones from the TV show 'Bones.'" Hector praised how the character "acted" autistic and the people around her responded with a mixture of laughter and exasperation, which struck her as realistic. At the same time, Bones was "absolutely coded."

Jen Elcheson, a 39-year-old autistic paraeducator and published author living in western Canada, agreed with Hector about Bones in the Facebook conversation. "Honestly, I find autistic coded characters easier to relate to in entertainment than the ones they purposely make autistic," she observed. "Because when they do it deliberately, it's usually characters laden in all the stereotypes."
Although Elcheson argued the alternative was also bad.

"When characters are coded not only does the greater public miss out on seeing a different depiction of an autistic that isn't a stereotype, but the autistic community once again experiences erasure."
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How Should the Media Depict Autism? More

How Should the Media Depict Autism?

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  • Honestly? Truthfully? Oh right (Score:3)

    by oldgraybeard ( 2939809 ) on Friday April 02, 2021 @07:05PM (#61230606)
    the media!
    • %s/autism/artism/g
    • They will tell us not to use the term autistic as those that have it are so fantastic that they should be called autastic! Also, never call them spastic.

  • Accurately? (Score:3)

    by istartedi ( 132515 ) on Friday April 02, 2021 @07:07PM (#61230614) Journal

    And because it's a spectrum, that will range from "somewhat odd" to "profoundly uncommunicative and in need of assistance daily".

    • Re:Accurately? (Score:5, Interesting)

      by wherrera ( 235520 ) on Friday April 02, 2021 @08:34PM (#61230912) Journal
      Unfortunately "autism" has been a victim of over broadening of is definition: first by broadening it from a category of disability following developmental regression in childhood by folding in those with Asperger-style personality traits, second by the adding of persons with any kind of developmental cognitive disability, so as to avoid the political incorrectness of the word "retardation." The word has jumped the shark already.

      • Re:Accurately? (Score:5, Informative)

        by Petrini ( 49261 ) on Saturday April 03, 2021 @12:51AM (#61231412)

        My child is on the spectrum, and I have observed a number of similarly-diagnosed children. They are alike in their differences, but they are certainly different from each other. The spectrum label is apt because the manifestation of "autism" is, while not unique, disparate enough that it is not easily slotted into buckets. The media has a tough time presenting it because it presents so differently from one individual to another.

        It is, however, threaded with a throughline of separation from neurotypical empathy and perspective-taking. My other, younger child is not on the spectrum, and it was amazingly clear how the younger one picked up on human emotions and social cues in a way the older one did not. The problem is that it branches so widely from there: perseverations, sensory input fascinations (or fixations or disorders), capacity for communication, combinations of these, It's these mutations and permutations with a unifying theme that compose the spectrum. These are sometimes disabilities and sometimes disorders, but rarely "retardation", which you seem to want to label everyone with.

        "Autism" is vastly oversimplifying the experience of these many, many people. Not all learning disabilities are on the spectrum (or an "ASD"). You may be tired of hearing about it, but you also clearly don't understand it.

        • Re: (Score:1)

          by kvutza ( 893474 )
          I consider us "not in a herd" people. We are lucky to lack the social perceptions, focusing thus on stuff that matters.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Junta ( 36770 )

          I think the problem is that the same term is used for people with categorically different needs. I know 'spectrum' is supposed to imply how severe it is and can show differences, but I think the slight end of the scale has become a catch-all for vaguely awkward behavior. The elimination of Asperger's from DSM was described to be motivated, in part, by overdiagnosis and people that were potentially merely different being put into the Asperger's bucket. Now I think Autism is overdiagnosed as a consquence.

          I've

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by Shaitan ( 22585 )

            I think there is a spectrum, most of us are high functioning, and only the extreme form is legitimately called dysfunction whereas the typical form means you have differences but many advantages over muggles.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Shaitan ( 22585 )

          Well stated even if focused on the negatives which pretend being "on the spectrum" is a deficiency rather than an advantage.

          The other point that people trying to express disability generally skip is that there isn't an even distribution on the spectrum. High functioning and able to mimic others is the norm. Characters like "The Good Doctor" are extreme cases and uncommon.

          • Re: (Score:3)

            by Petrini ( 49261 )

            Well stated even if focused on the negatives which pretend being "on the spectrum" is a deficiency rather than an advantage.

            Just to be clear, being on "on the spectrum" is nearly always a huge challenge to function, even for high-functioning individuals like my child. It is decidedly not an "advantage". It is also not a mix of advantages and disadvantages that play out. It is truly different.

            My child's old enough - 14 - to start to intellectually understand his condition and recognize when his impulses are surprising others because they're categorically out of line with normal human interaction. He thinks differently. Char

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Shaitan ( 22585 )

      Well 'odd' is kind of offensive but also the extreme end of that spectrum is the uncommon end of that spectrum. Temperance "Bones" Brennan is already uncommon in the severity of the spectrum.

  • "never directly identified as being autistic" (Score:4, Insightful)

    by K. S. Kyosuke ( 729550 ) on Friday April 02, 2021 @07:09PM (#61230622)
    I don't like how people from Africa in media are often not directly identified as being black. When I'm not told directly I have a hard time recognizing them. /s
    • Comment removed based on user account deletion

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by K. S. Kyosuke ( 729550 )
        That I'm not sure that there need to be arrows on the screen pointing to people and saying "AN AUTISTIC PERSON".
        • Comment removed based on user account deletion
          • Maybe not everything needs to be pointed out every time? How much time would you like spent on the plot and how much on the janitor who's on screen for seven seconds?

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by Shaitan ( 22585 )

          Sure but the absence of depictions of typical autistic people is a bit of an issue. Actors are trained to depict outgoing people more than anything and often ARE outgoing or play outgoing in real life.

          The problem with not representing and identifying "Bones" and other high functioning characters is that they are typical on the spectrum whereas the commonly identified characters like "The Good Doctor" are extreme. Since the latter are commonly labeled it gives others a false impression of autism as a disabil

          • Actors are trained to depict outgoing people more than anything and often ARE outgoing or play outgoing in real life.

            Actors are also trained to depict attractive people more than anything and often ARE attractive or play attractive in real life. Somehow it happened that the dramatic medium is not sampling the population properly.

  • above my pay grade (Score:3)

    by bhcompy ( 1877290 ) on Friday April 02, 2021 @07:11PM (#61230630)
    All I know is I'm glad it's not a decision I have to make. It's a no win situation to choose how a disorder like that is depicted. You're never going to make anyone happy and the minefield is quite dangerous, which is why everyone is "coded" because plausible deniability is the only way to stay above the fray

  • and ideally not spelled out and turned into the central (cheesy) plot of your story.

    I often wondered if the character Jordan Cochran (played by Michelle Meyrink) in the 1985 film Real Genius was meant to be a person with autism spectrum disorders (ASD).

  • A lot of people have told me that they think I'm autistic, no idea if they're right.
    I don't even know what autism is since it varies so much between people and whenever I try to find an example it's always different.
    One thing I do know is it's not a super power as media would have you believe, it's a disability which varies from minor life impairment to absolutely debilitating. Because of this I've seen people online bragging about their autism, which just seems like insanity to me, it's like bragging abou
    • Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • I have aspergers and believe me, it is a serious disability. I was diagnosed late in life thus I have had to fend for myself and still does since the goverment thinks that I will be allright since I've survived this long. Trouble is that I think my ability to be okay gets a little bit worse each day.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by zmooc ( 33175 )

      First of all, you should only believe people that tell you're autistic if they're so themselves or they're professionally trained to do so;) Also you can try the "Asperger Spectrum Quotient" test (these days often renamed to the Autism Quotient Test). If you score "normal", it means nothing. If you score quite high, you probably are on the spectrum, in which case: welcome :)

      Also, (my) autism does have its superpower qualities, mostly related to the ability to hyper focus and to have very sensitive senses. I

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Shaitan ( 22585 )

        "A limp does not come with advantages while with autism, in the lucky ones, the advantages can even outweigh the disadvantages and often it is those advantages that have made such people very successful in the game of life."

        Lucky yes but I think this is also the most heavily weighted distribution. The more extreme cases are the less common distribution.

  • The attempt to come up with one formula for how to portray autistic people in media strikes me as very autistic.

  • Comment removed (Score:3)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 ) on Friday April 02, 2021 @07:28PM (#61230702)
    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • If autism is becoming more prevalent there is something we are doing wrong and then it seems to be preventable, and should also be prevented. Dooming someone to a life with autism when it can be avoided sounds like living hell.

  • there is a whole range of symptoms, from slight to very severe, that are covered by the definition of "autism." There would not be a set list of things for an actor to depict it.

    • This. It is referred to as "Autism Spectrum Disorder" for a reason. And there have been many very excellent depictions of Autism, ranging from mild to severe, in movies and shows. Most of the time people don't notice for the same reasons that people with Autism in real life don't stick out except in extreme cases.
  • Entrapta from the She-Ra reboot is coded as autistic and was developed, as a character, with the help of a production team member who is autistic. Most people I know who are on the spectrum, including myself, think that it's a positive portrayal. So... go with that maybe?

    • Fuck episodes we're going to go straight for a 5 season plot beginning to end! Eat it Babylon 5.

      I like long form narrative. And my nieces seem to love the show, but well, I think a lot of it is completely lost on them.

      I also think Entrapta has shades of Werner von Braun.

      A fantastically good show, could talk about it all day.

  • Lets face it. When you watch a show or movie you often see low effort depictions of things you are knowledgeable about. They get it wrong and keep getting it wrong. Why would this be any different. The truth is the thing they get right are more often things to do with how big media operates. That is something they know something about. Everything else is laughably wrong.

    • *has flashbacks of 8 separate 9" screens on a spider and frantically typing away at a purely graphical interface so bright you can read it off their faces "hackers"*

      Unelss of course you are Dennis Nedry and need to fly through fucking 3D worlds.

      At least Matrix had nmap on scren.

  • Movie "Temple Grandin" already did (Score:5, Interesting)

    by UnknownSoldier ( 67820 ) on Friday April 02, 2021 @08:06PM (#61230822)

    The movie Temple Grandin (2010) [imdb.com] (loosely based on a true story) already tackled presenting autism with respect. Instead of stigmatizing people, it pointed out that autistic people literally think, feel, and perceive the world differently. Instead of labeling this as good/bad it just accepted people.

    Just treat people with kindness and understanding.

    Not sure why this needs to be any more complicated then that.

  • Like George!

  • They use the term in an accurate and respectful manner. Media can learn from them.
  • I thought the movie did a good job showing his struggles with change and his need for routine.

    • It id a pretty bad job though.
      Because among the entire spectrum, those who can actally function, are, sadly, a rare corner case. Most true autists jave trouble even doing basic things like talking. While Rain Man was at least nice, and got people to be aware of it and not scared, it seriously understated how bad the disease usually is. Please don't expect impossible things from your autistic kids. They aren't Rain Man, OK?)

  • I think Miko Hughes did a good job in Mercury Rising.

  • Temperance Brennan wasn't autistic. The character was described as being like someone who has Asperger in the early series, but never stated. Later Sweets, a psychologist described her as socially withdrawn and unable to read social cues having developed a highly skeptical and rational belief system as a defence mechanism to abuse in foster care as a child. And she gets better towards the end of the show after getting married and having child. It was after all a procedural forensic science/cop show tryin

  • https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=... [youtube.com]

    Note the comments: Approved by functioning autists all over.

    Or, you know, don't exaggerate but don't hide either, if you're not going for comedic effect.

    (Oh, and nobody is exempt from being made fun of. It does not mean one is not loved. That's precisely why it is a joke instead of an insult. It just tests you for triggers. If you're triggered, you lost. So pride yourself in your confidence and avoid becoming a SJW bully who took it seriously.
    And: Sad that I even need to say

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Cederic ( 9623 )

      I've met many autistic people.

      None of them sway in their seat like that.
      None of them speak that fast.
      None of them shout at someone across a table in normal conversation.

      Maybe this is an American thing.

  • Don't. Just don't. Stop depicting us as geniuses. Stop depicting us as OCD. Stop depicting us. I do not want a media lens on my mental difficulties at all. By all means, have autistic characters when it makes sense. But spare me your inaccurate representations, your patronizing, and your attempts to lead the people. If you want to help pay for unbiased research. But you don't want to help. You've identified another pie you can get your fingers into. Another group of downtrodden to place into your progressiv

  • Show our struggle more. (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Kokuyo ( 549451 ) on Saturday April 03, 2021 @03:18AM (#61231658) Journal

    I realize I'm late to the party and many others have already stated at least some of my point but as an aspie myself I feel the need to add my two cents here.

    I agree with many that the definition of autist is very broad which obviously makes it very hard to depict us accurately. But it's not so much that I think they're not showing enough of us, how we are so to speak, but what it does to us in everyday life.

    So in my opinion, Sheldon Cooper is a very good example of an autist in the way he behaves. But unlike many autists, for some reason he has never developed his mask.

    At east as much as I understand it, this is a male trait in many aspergers: At some point we define the cost of developing the mask as too high... so we just don't. I am an example of this. "Those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind".

    However even I have developed social skills. I KNOW when I let my mouth run off and when I am way too honest and direct but at that point I just have deemed the cost of holding back way higher than the fallout.

    Sheldon doesn't even seem to be aware. Now that is not exactly impossible. As many stated, the spectrum is vast. It would have been nice though if he hadn't been surrounded by enablers all the time. At the end of the show, he actually acknowledges some of it which I found very refreshing!

    But some things are never discussed. One is how female autists often deviate from the male ones. Hermione Granger for example: Her sense of what is right, her being a teachers pet to the grave, her studiousness and especially how she absolutely does not network with other girls are telltale signs. Those are not exactly signs that would make you think autist unless you know that the girls very often react like that.

    The main thing I miss here is the price we pay. We have few to no friends often except for other autists. Some of us are chafing because of that, others feel quite content. Those who have trouble with it either have trouble because in the world in their head that is perfect, people ought to have friends like on the tv shows and they think they're faulty because of it. Others just honest to god yearn for friendship.

    The price we pay for upholding our masks is energy. Every social event we managed to live through saps our energy. Very few of us, I feel, have made social skills their "thing". Even the girls who often make psychology their thing do not necessarily cherish social interaction. My wife is like this. The working of humans fascinates her but more from a distance ;).

    So we have to live with the fact that keeping up our masks, keeping our families running, demands so many social interactions every day, phone calls to government entities, insurance, doctors etc that will cost us way more energy than neurotypicals.

    We need to learn to be content with the things we do manage and stop beating ourselves up over the things that our perfectionist brains keep reminding us we don't do perfectly.

    It's to a large degree how we manage our own expectations.

    OH! And we're very rational, brain-driven entities. In many ways, this is absolutely a skill I would not give up however I had to realize that I too am a biological machine and that my mind is not stronger than my body. My body absolutely DOES have influence over me via instincts and chemicals.

    Accepting this and taking basic instincts more into account, has helped me go at life in a different way and do away with a LOT of my anxiety which in turn makes it easier to manage my ulcerative colitis (which I have heard seems to be a not uncommon theme in autists).

    It may sound weird to you and I expect not all autists would agree but I don't care about being weird among neurotypicals. THAT I have dealt with and that I cane asily live with. I would appreciate people to understand though why I am so adamant about certain things... why the choice between only a suirface book and a macbook for a work laptop nearly rips me apart inside because neither fits the wa

    • Awesome summary, and very well written.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by dddux ( 3656447 )
      I like your "rambling" and I find a lot of myself in it, as well as my wife. We're called highly functioning autists, I guess? I tend to think of it as a torment and a privilege in a way, at the same time. Many scientists are highly functioning autists because of these interesting traits that we posess, one of them being anti-social. I find being social with most of the people who are considered completely normal, and wasting energy on small talk highly distractive. However, I am diagnosed with anxiety, dep
  • Rather than beating the watcher over the head with the fact that they're autistic, work into the plot that they received vaccines as a kid. Then the watcher will immediately know that they're autistic!

  • No super geniuses, no socially-awkward nerds. Depicting autistic people as socially-awkward super genius is an ableist stereotype, and downplaying a disability is a shitty thing to do.

  • Portrayals need to be coded because the diagnosis of autism is imprecise, arbitrary and subject to change. If a character is identified with Asperger's, for example, the movie quickly becomes outdated whenever the APA decides it's no longer a thing, and now it's all part of a 'spectrum.' Now, there's little scientific basis for this, just pattern recognition on the part of 'experts' that depends on shared stereotypical symptoms, not shared biophysical mechanisms. The identification of relevant symptoms is b

  • Why should they depict it at all? Does the media have to depict everything that becomes some liberal darling cause?

    How should the media depict mosquito bites?

    How should the media depict leukemia?

    How should the media depict balding?

    Gimme a break. The media doesn't have to depict these things at all.

  • Autistic behavior can range from smearing feces on walls to non verbal to mild autism ( like my son who is a cyber security analyst for the Air Force- civilian) up to Dan Aykroyd and Nikola Tesla. Thats a wide range. There is no one way to depict it and that is a problem for the 'media' they are not that creative and if they can't stereotype something they have no idea how to handle it.

  • "Estimates" (likely overblown) put the rate of people world wide with autism at about 1 in 160. So, does the media really need to worry all that much about how to portray a fraction of a percent of the population? Should they instead be asking, "why bother?"

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