eISBN: 978-1-912656-24-0

The portrayal of disfigurement in the UK media must change. This policy brief is based on recent research that found a general negative and sensationalised attitude towards disfigurement in the media.

Disfigurement is a condition that can affect anyone at any time in life regardless their social or demographic background due to accidents or health conditions or be congenital. In the UK, one in 111 people have facial disfigurements.

In order to improve the ways in which media portray disfigurement, this policy brief argues that media should move away from sensationalised coverage on disfigurement and focus instead on the lived experiences of individuals with this condition. It recommends strengthening diversity-oriented editorial practices and training as well as media literacy education. In addition, it addresses the lack of guidelines on the portrayal of disfigurement and urges regulatory bodies to be more efficient in handling complaints.

DR DIANA GARRISI is Lecturer at the JS School of Film and TV Arts, Xi’an Jiaotong – Liverpool University, China. She is currently co-editing with Jacob Johanssen a book exploring media portrayals of disability from a global perspective. DR LAIMA JANCIUTE was Research Fellow of the Policy Observatory at the Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI), University of Westminster. DR JACOB JOHANSSEN is Senior Lecturer at the Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI), University of Westminster. His monograph Psychoanalysis and Digital Culture: Audiences, Social Media and Big Data will be published by Routledge in 2018 and with Diana Garrisi he is co-editing a book exploring media portrayals of disability from a global perspective.

Appearance, Media Studies, Social Science

License: CC BY-NC-ND