The National Center on Disability and Journalism (NCDJ) provides resources and support to journalists and communications professionals covering disability issues. The center is headquartered at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.
The center was founded in 1998 as the Disability Media Project to raise awareness of how people with disabilities are undercovered in the news. Freelance photographer Suzanne Levine established the Disability Media Project in San Francisco to serve as a bridge between the media and disability communities. An advisory board of journalists, educators and disability activists helped develop resources for working journalists and for schools of journalism and mass communication to integrate coverage of people with disabilities into their curricula. In 2000, the organization's name was changed to the National Center on Disability and Journalism to reflect its journalistic mission. The center was housed in the humanities building at San Francisco State University and for a short time in an office on Market Street in San Francisco. After moving to Boston in 2004, the NCDJ pursued an affiliation with a university journalism program.
In 2008, the center was moved to the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University in downtown Phoenix.
The focus of the NCDJ is to provide support, resources and guidance to reporters who cover disabilities as a beat as well as those who occasionally report on people with disabilities. Although one in four people in the U.S. live with some form of disability, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,[1] they are underrepresented in the mainstream media and coverage that does exist is too often inaccurate or incomplete. On the center's website, there is a newsfeed of the latest stories covering disability issues as well as various resources, including an oft-cited disability style guide explaining appropriate language and terms when describing disabilities and an interview tip sheet with best practices for reporters.
The NCDJ does not advocate a particular point of view; rather it focuses on the journalistic principles of accuracy, fairness and diversity in news coverage.
The NCDJ Advisory Board is made up of professional journalists and educators who help chart the course of the center and provide support and advice. Many of them also conduct training and give talks on disability issues.[2]
The Katherine Schneider Journalism Award for Excellence in Reporting on Disability was created in 2012 as the first national journalism award devoted exclusively to disability coverage. It is administered by the National Center on Disability and Journalism through a grant from Schneider, a retired clinical psychologist who also supports the Schneider Family Book Award. Entries from print, broadcast and online outlets are accepted and judged based on how they go beyond the ordinary in covering the experiences of people with disabilities and how well they highlight strategies for overcoming challenges. Cash prizes are awarded each year. See the most recent updates on the NCDJ website.
In 2021, the NCDJ and The New York Times announced a partnership to establish a fellowship at The Times for early career journalists covering disability issues.The NCDJ provides mentorship for the fellow and training for the newsroom.