Faculty Research & Scholarly Work 20132014
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M011_Cover_NEW_Layout 1 12/8/14 3:12 PM Page 1 FACULTY • RESEARCH • & • SCHOLARLY Get social... • Faculty Research & Scholarly Work facebook.com/MisericordiaU WORK 20132014 twitter.com/MisericordiaU • 2 0 1 3 youtube.com/MisericordiaU 2 0 1 4 Founded by the Sisters of Mercy M011_Cover_NEW_Layout 1 12/8/14 3:12 PM Page 2 M011_Text_NEW 12/8/14 3:13 PM Page 1 F A C U L T Y • R E S E A R C H & • S C H O L A R L Y • W O R K 02 08 14 College of Arts College of College of Professional and Sciences Health Sciences Studies and Social Sciences M011_Text_NEW 12/8/14 3:13 PM Page 2 Melissa Sgroi, Ed.D., right, and Dan Kimbrough produced two awardwinning documentaries about accessibility issues at polling places. M011_Text_NEW 12/8/14 3:13 PM Page 3 M011_Text_NEW 12/10/14 2:29 PM Page 4 THE • OTHER • ‘OTHER ’ : DISABILITY • IN • THE • MEDIA News Tonight for five years. happens when a student with a disability Reporter Barbara Walters Despite numerous milestones, the – visible or not – has to fill out a job made headlines when she laborious road to equality in media application? Do they fall in the category was given a $5 million occupations is still missing a substantive of ‘other?’” minority, according to Misericordia Dr. Sgroi says what is most disturbing contract by ABC News to University Assistant Professor Melissa to her is that she has not found census become the first woman to Sgroi, Ed.D., chair of the Department of numbers on media professionals who Communications. There were more than have disabilities, and the media’s anchor a network evening 56 million people with disabilities in representation of disability is not well newscast in 1976. Her desk America in 2010, according to the understood by media consumers. “The mate, veteran newsman United States Census Bureau, yet the current students we have are going to number of media workers with be the creators and framers of media Harry Reasoner, was so disabilities – regardless of gender or content. We need them to be aware. We insulted to be paired with a race – is so nominal and underreported all need to be more aware,” she adds that it is hard to determine emphatically. woman that he was openly a percentage. Dr. Sgroi has spent the past three hostile to her on the air. Dr. Sgroi, a former television news years completing a qualitative study anchor/reporter and magazine writer, examining the college experiences and has had multiple sclerosis (MS) since age job searches of communications Named the first black man to anchor a 34. She studies disability in the media professionals who have disabilities. She network newscast by ABC two years and wonders what she should tell limited her research pool to those in later, Max Robinson shared the story of students in media education about fair jobs that directly create media content, his first television assignment in 1959 – and equitable reporting when such a such as reporters, anchors, producers, when he was told to read the news at a large percentage of the population videographers and directors. The Portsmouth, Va., news station offcamera may not be represented in subjects included a legendary sports while a logo of the station filled the media professions. radio broadcaster who is blind. screen. He removed the logo and one “We call it the ‘other’ other,” says Dr. “I am looking at what each night appeared on air against orders. He Sgroi, who may be fully able to walk one experienced as a journalism and mass was fired the next day. The journalist day, but may need a cane to get around communications student with a disability went on to earn regional Emmys for his the next because of an MS flareup. “It is and what they felt and whether the coverage of the riots that followed the the diversity issue that no one wants to experience impacted their choice of assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., talk about. Gender, race and sexual career,” she explains. “The physical and became coanchor of ABC World preference get attention. But what environment in higher education is very 04 M011_Text_NEW 12/8/14 3:13 PM Page 5 COLLEGE • OF • ARTS • AND • SCIENCES positive, yet despite the Americans with the Center for Independent Living Disabilities Act (ADA), there are still a lot in Scranton. of pedagogical barriers to learning. I Although Budney was able to access talked with successful professionals his assigned polling place, there were across the country who, as students, had definite limitations to others. What the problems getting internships because team documented was so unsettling they had functional limitations, or felt that they decided to examine other they struggled because media polling sites in both Luzerne and professionals assumed that they just Lackawanna counties. Not one of the could not do the job. I found that their random sites they visited was fully ADA experiences were very negative and few compliant. They found numerous places were willing to be counted among the without designated handicapped disabled or talk about it.” parking, one site lacked ramps for She has plans to publish her results access, and another where the door in the near future. labeled “handicapped” was locked, Dr. Sgroi’s 20-years of experience making voting nearly impossible for in the media, her sensitivity to issues people with disabilities in those regarding disability, and her interest neighborhoods. in students with disabilities led to a By the end of the eight-hour day, they project that has opened the eyes of had enough material to produce the 15 thousands to the hurdles those with minute documentary, “VOTE,” which disabilities still face today. chronicled the barriers to voting that She and fellow Misericordia University exist for people with disabilities and Communications Professor Dan how accessibility issues can Kimbrough, M.S., an award-winning disenfranchise some voters. “We need videographer, accompanied Christian to realize that disability is diversity Budney, a student with disabilities from based on a physical difference, and if we Marywood University, Scranton, Pa., to really intend to be inclusive we need to see what barriers he faced when going address all types of differences,” to vote at his polling place in Scranton Dr. Sgroi says. “The documentary really on general Election Day in November opened people’s eyes … we got 2012. Sgroi met Budney, an advocate for people talking.” the disabled, through his work with No one was more surprised than 05 M011_Text_NEW 12/10/14 2:29 PM Page 6 COLLEGE • OF • ARTS • AND • SCIENCES Professor Kimbrough. “On the first day Merit in Disability Issues, and got the actually moved polling operations from of filming, we kept coming across attention of government officials across Meyers High School, where the only locations that were not accessible, and it both counties and in state government. handicapped access to voting was hit me that this was a much bigger issue Professors Sgroi and Kimbrough went through a locked door, to the nearby St. than we anticipated,” adds Professor back on the road with a camera just Aloysius Church to improve accessibility. Kimbrough. “And once we got back and three weeks later on the day of the 2013 A site in Dallas Township, Pa., needed started looking through the footage, it general election, approximately one only to add a handicapped parking did not take long to realize that there year after their initial filming. They space to be compliant. had to be a followup.” revisited five of the offending sites in Documenting the changes, their There was extensive media interest Luzerne and Lackawanna Counties, and followup documentary, “VOTE: The when Misericordia University held a stopped at five polling places in Disabled Democracy,” premiered on special screening of “VOTE” on Oct. 29, Dauphin County, where a concerted Public Broadcasting Systems affiliate 2013 before a large audience in the effort had been underway since 1988 to WVIATV on May 11, 2014 and on Lemmond Theater on campus. (The ensure handicapped voters have WYLNTV, Hazleton. (The video can be video can be viewed at accessibility. viewed at vimeo.com/78104564). vimeo.com/78104564). What they found was that their efforts While this video also garnered The documentary earned the team had initiated positive change. In one numerous awards, including the 2014 numerous awards, including an Award of case, Luzerne County election officials Award of Merit presented by Accolade Dan Kimbrough, M.S., assistant professor of communications, has been a member of the faculty of Misericordia University since 2008. He earned a Master of Arts degree in electronic broadcast management from Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, Mich., and holds Bachelor of Science degrees in psychology and communications from Manchester College, North Manchester, Ind. He teaches a variety of audio and video classes and oversees the Video 123 optional on campus internship. As a documentary videographer for 15 years, he say the “Vote” documentary was one of the most eyeopening projects he has worked on, rating it second only to one that he did on Title IX. 06 M011_Text_NEW 12/8/14 3:13 PM Page 7 COLLEGE • OF • ARTS • AND • SCIENCES Film, Television, New Media & almost in tears. Because of physical panel that included noted disability Videography Awards and an limitations, her parents had not been scholar Beth Haller, professor of international Communicator award, able to vote in years. She was journalism/new media at Towson Kimbrough says he is most proud of the exceptionally grateful for the changes University, Towson, Md., for the dialogue it generated.