The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a data analysis on December 3, 2021, suggesting 1 in 44 children are categorized as autistic by age eight in the United States. Is the 2.3 percent rate accurate nationally, using current diagnostic instruments? These data present a curious question: Why…
Category: Media
Media portrayals of autistics and autism, including books, articles, television, and movies.
Podcast Episode 0077, Season 5, Episode 8; 16 November 2021 Allen Wolf describes The Sound of Violet: The Sound of Violet is about a man who believes he found his perfect soulmate, but his autism keeps him from realizing she’s actually a prostitute. The novel allows readers to experience a love story between…
Podcast Episode 0074, Season 5, Episode 5; 26 October 2021 One of the ways bloggers and podcasters build their audiences is through hosting other content creators. We’re all in this together, sharing our stories and promoting a sense of community. This episode of The Autistic Me Podcast features Sam Mitchell,…
Neuro, the Greek-based root for Neurodiversity, neurology, and neurons, draws attention to the physical nature of the brain and the greater nervous system. With my doctorate in rhetoric, I get stuck on words and meaning. More accurately, my obsession with precise meaning and clear communication likely guided me towards the…
“What has changed since you started blogging in 2007?” The question from a Facebook follower prompted me to skim the older posts and compare them to now. What has changed over 13 years and a bit? What has remained the same? Have my attitudes changed dramatically, or only a little?…
Halfway through NeuroTribes and it primarily serves to reinforce history I knew after reading so much over the last 12 years about autism, yet the books adds important details. Overall, the names largely missing from history (often women) are given a nod by Silberman in his history of the autism community, something…
Duke University historian Nancy MacLean is currently a trendy historian who spent 2017 touring and promoting her book Democracy in Chains. The book has some serious scholarship flaws, which have been addressed by Henry Farrell and Steven Teles on Vox, a website considered progressive on most issues. MacLean has made the stunning…
Television now includes a surprising number of autistic and possibly autistic characters. We’ve already had shows with autistics (The Bridge, Touched, Alphas, Elementary, Parenthood, and more). There seem to be more, now, or maybe that’s merely my perception. I am not impressed with this trend. As with the novel and…
Time magazine has two stories on autism diagnostic rates. One report is on a careful census of adults, trying to determine if there is a real difference between generations. The second report is on a telephone survey that shows a sudden spike in rates based on poorly worded questions. I…
I was informed recently, “People like you should be progressive Democrats because Republicans don’t care about people.” Activists are always blinded by prejudices… and if you decline to state an affiliation, they assume the “worst” and try to save your political soul. And people wonder why there is so much…