Falling between frames: Institutional discourse and disability in radio: Institutional discourse and disability in radio

Much commentary exists concerning the disempowering portrayal of disabled people in the media. Very little research exists that systematically examines talk-in-interaction with a view to uncovering how disability is constructed through and in talk. Even less research has focused on radio talk as a form of institutional talk with implications for the social construction of disability. Traditional studies of radio talk have tended to examine news interviews, radio call in shows and so on but relatively little work exists concerning the construction of disability in programmes that interview disabled people. This study explores the talk in an Irish radio programme about disability as an instance of institutional discourse. Drawing on frame theory as an analytical framework, the study demonstrates how the discourse of the interviews in the programme undermines the stated aim of the programme as being for and about people with disability. The explicit or stated aim of the programme implies at least the possibility of an alternative perspective to the traditional, medical, tragedy, of disability perspective. However, close analysis shows that the nature of the talk in this context actually sabotages the programmes stated aims and actually reinforces the image of the disabled person as Other. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.