Thesis (M.S. Ed.)--Northern Illinois University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [65]-68).

Thesis (M.Soc.Sc. Psychology)--University of Waikato, 2007. / Title from PDF cover (viewed March 18, 2008) Includes bibliographical references (p. [86-91])

Univ., Diss.--Dortmund, 2005.

Thesis (M.A.)--Carleton University, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 100-103). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Media is considered as one of the most powerful tools in disseminating information thereby shaping people’s lives. While there have been various studies about the relationship between media and people with disabilities, much of the emphasis has been on the media’s representation of people with disabilities than accessibility of print content in formats friendly to people with visual impairments. This research is a qualitative study which looked at the accessibility of online published print media information to people with visual impairments in terms of format. This was done by analysing content in online newspapers and magazines to determine its accessibility to them. Online interviews were also conducted to find out how print media is accessible to people with visual impairments. The Uses and Gratifications and the Social Responsibility theories were selected to frame the study on how media satisfies their specific needs and desires as well as having certain social obligations to society respectively. The findings of this study were that print media was inaccessible to people with visual impairments both in terms of formats and content. There is no print media known to people with visual impairments producing information in Braille format. The electronic version of printed media proved to be inaccessible due to the lack of media adherence to the Web Accessibility Guidelines. The research also established the underrepresentation and lack of representation in some print media due to print media’s lack of interest to cover disability issues. To respond to these needs, a framework was developed to ensure that people who are visually impaired are able to access print media information. / Communication Science / D. Phil. (Communication studies)

As a result of a complex range of cultural, economic and social factors, contributions by learning disabled people to the production of knowledge have been at best marginalised and at worst rendered silent. This study seeks to break that silence by engaging learning disabled people as co-producers of disability and media research discourses. It does this in two main ways: by addressing the manner in which they are positioned in the research process, and by identifying the ways in which they are (mis)represented or not in newspapers. This research not only investigates but it also presents new ways of giving learning disabled people a say in the knowledge production process. y the adoption of a mixed method approach in which learning disabled people are placed at the centre of the research process, this study aims to identify and critically analyse the significance and meanings of representations of learning disabled adults by the contemporary, print version of English national newspapers. Drawing from both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, it uniquely incorporates distinct but interrelated data collection stages, including a research advisory group and two focus groups with learning disabled people and their supporters, alongside a content analysis of five hundred and forty six learning disability news stories. This study offers new insights into the application and development of inclusive research principles, highlighting the contributions of supporters to the research process and the roles of a nondisabled inclusive researcher. It reveals the predominant ways by which learning disabled adults are represented by newspapers and how they are not generally engaged as sources of these news stories, while presenting the views of focus group members, throughout these discussions of the content analysis. This thesis concludes with a consideration of the implications of the findings for the future direction of inclusive research practices and media discourses that engage learning disabled people as co-producers of knowledge.