Media Criticism Archives - Disabled Journalists Association

Featured Special Project

How Disabled Journalists Work: Sean Kelly

When I started working in media in 2009, at a music publication, I didn’t have the knowledge and skills I...

By Sean Kelly

January 13, 2026

Featured Special Project

Analysis: The Atlantic’s ‘Accommodation Nation’ is an Ableist Abomination

On Dec. 2, The Atlantic published a piece titled “Accommodation Nation” that calls into question the validity of some...

By John Loeppky

December 16, 2025

Featured Special Project

Journalist Sonali Gupta wearing a purple shirt with black pint, seated at a table with a laptop open in front of her

How Disabled Journalists Work: Sonali Gupta

In this series, DJA journalists share their experiences and tips for getting their work done, how they find the...

By Sonali Gupta

November 11, 2025

Media Criticism

a white woman with blonde hair sat in a wheelchair. I’m wearing a sleeveless brown/taupe dress.

How Disabled Journalists Can Resist being Pigeonholed

Many journalists, whether they identify as disabled or not, face a similar conundrum: write about your trauma and risk being pigeonholed or hide it. While data about Disabled journalists is sparse—for many reasons, including the fact that newsrooms are often unsafe places to identify publicly—feeling that they need to shrink to fit the industry is a common one.

By John Loeppky

June 18, 2025