Media & Disability

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Guide on media & disability

Advertising Commercials

It is not just in broadcast programmes that disabled people are absent. Although most people know, or know of, someone with a disability, they are missing from the vast majority of advertising campaigns too.

Disabled people are ordinary consumers, just as non-disabled people are. By portraying disabled people and representing them fairly in advertising, hopefully everyone will come to recognise that they are not an invisible minority but a substantial part of our community.

In the past few years the Images of Disability Steering Group in the UK has been encouraging advertising agencies to go beyond the usual stereotypes and be creative in disability portrayal. Images of disability shouldn’t rely on the obvious depictions of wheelchair users and partially sighted people with white sticks. Advertising has so much more creativity and scope than this.

An “image” of disability can be anything from a photo, a graphic or a character in a storyline, to a visual association or an aural clue – disabled people can be heard as well as seen.

Using a little thought and some effective characterisation, images of disability can positively reflect how disabled people are part of our society, not separate from it. They can show how disabled people have the same likes and dislikes, views and ideas, talents and weaknesses as everybody else.

The way disabled people are viewed by society is heavily influenced by the way they are portrayed in the media. Advertisers and advertising personnel have the power to change things for the better.

Using disabled people in advertising campaigns can also help others to understand the range of impairments that exist, from those affecting mobility to learning difficulties.

In the UK, The Central Office of Information (COI), and the Department for Work and Pensions lead an initiative that aims to increase the disability representation in mainstream government advertising. The COI also has a policy of casting only disabled actors for disabled roles.

What You Can Do…

• Think about disability early in your campaign planning, so you can integrate it into your message rather than try to fit around it.
• Incorporate images of disability as the norm, in the same way you would reflect gender and ethnicity.
• If you’re concerned that an image of disability may overwhelm your ad, remember it can actually amplify your message.
• Make sure you let your colleagues know how they can incorporate images of disability into their marketing proposals and campaign pitches.
• Try not to worry about offending anyone by using an image of disability. Research shows disabled people would prefer to see some portrayal of disability rather than none at all.
• Remember, it’s often attitudes towards disabled people that create barriers for them rather than the impairment itself. So try to think of ways you can help promote the benefits of social diversity.
• Get support from disabled people and their organisations. Discuss your issues and creative ideas with them.
• Use disabled actors in your campaigns.

With thanks to the Images of Disability Steering Group www.imagesofdisability.gov.uk