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I had to  ask myself a few times if this question was even worth pursuing. Every individual has the right to believe what they want and in the autism community we all know what that can mean. So to answer this question in the most productive way we’ll have to set aside some differences and focus on core issues– but even then we run into problems as these core issues differ throughout the entire community. Try your best to set aside these irregularities and come into this pre-editorial with a positive and unbiased view. Good luck!

What Does the Autism Community Want?

Before we tackle the portrayal of the autism spectrum in the media we first need to determine what the wants and needs of the autism community are.

Is the Media Correctly Portraying These?

Part of the reason I asked myself the initial question is due to HBO is running the Temple Grandin bio movie. Grandin is a great case study for people to get introduced positively to autism. The movie was written very accurately and tastefully.  However to someone who knows nothing about the spectrum they may see this and think everyone under the autism label is a Temple Grandin of sorts. Catch-22 if you ask me.

What can the Community do to Change Autism in the Media?

A lot of the media attention autism gets comes from those who have already established themselves in the media apart from autism. Whether you agree or disagree with their views I don’t think it’s fair that they get to be the mouth piece by default. The big names have taken a stance and accepted the responsibility of their position but again just like HBO documentaries they are able to influence in major ways. Ways that may or may not be correct. Hard question to answer without a bias!

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