Beth A. Haller (born 1961) is a professor of mass communication and communication studies at

Towson University Towson University (TU or Towson) is a public university in Towson, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1866 as Maryland's first training school for teachers, Towson University is a part of the University System of Maryland. Since its foundin ...

, specializing in the handling of disability in news and new media. She serves on the advisory board of the National Center on Disability and Journalism, and traveled in Australia as a

Fulbright Scholar The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the peopl ...

in 2015.

Early life and education

Beth A. Haller was born in

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

. She attended

Baylor University Baylor University is a Private university, private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas, United States. It was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Te ...

as an undergraduate, as a journalism major, and graduated in 1983. She earned a master's degree in journalism at the

University of Maryland College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD i ...

, and completed doctoral studies in mass media at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist ministe ...

in 1995, with a dissertation titled "Disability rights on the public agenda: Elite news media coverage of the

Americans with Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ...

Career

Haller joined the faculty at Towson University in 1996. She became a full professor in 2008, and retired in 2020. She serves on the advisory board of the National Center on Disability and Journalism, and is a co-founder and director of GADIM, the Global Alliance for Disability in Media and Entertainment. Books by Haller include ''Representing Disability in an Ableist World'' (2010) and ''Byline of Hope: The Newspaper and Magazine Writing of

Helen Keller Helen Adams Keller (June 27, 1880 – June 1, 1968) was an American author, disability rights advocate, political activist and lecturer. Born in West Tuscumbia, Alabama, she lost her sight and her hearing after a bout of illness when ...

'' (2015). Haller was co-editor of ''Disability Studies Quarterly'' from 2003 to 2006. In 2012, Haller was admitted into the Fulbright Specialists Program, and traveled in Australia as a Fulbright scholar in early 2015. While in Australia she spoke on such topics as disability in

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...

, film portrayals of disabled people, and disability in science fiction. Beyond academic publications, Haller is frequently interviewed on disability topics by fellow journalists.Kathi Wolfe
"At Last, a Role Model for 'Queer Crips'"
''Washington Blade'' (February 3, 2011).

References

External links

Beth Haller's website"Diversity Toolbox: Covering Disability Issues"
(essay by Haller at the

Society of Professional Journalists The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), formerly known as Sigma Delta Chi, is the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. It was established on April 17, 1909, at DePauw University,2009 SPJ Annual Report, lette ...

site) {{DEFAULTSORT:Haller, Beth American journalism academics People from Fort Worth, Texas Disability studies academics Towson University faculty 1961 births Living people Baylor University alumni University of Maryland, College Park alumni Temple University alumni American women non-fiction writers 21st-century American academics 21st-century American women academics 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American women journalists 21st-century American journalists