‘AN UMBILICAL CORD TO THE WORLD’

Abstract

Communication technologies have historically isolated D/deaf and hard of hearing people from information in mainstream society, for example, the telephone, radio, and television are all inaccessible to D/deaf without relay services or subtitles. This paper therefore begins by examining the consequences for D/deaf people's personal information landscapes of their exclusion from traditional off-line Information sources. It then goes onto examine how D/deaf people are using the Internet to access general and Deaf information sources, and how these practices are affecting their information capacities, and social relations. The paper concludes by reflecting on some of the constraints on Deaf people's abilities to make full and effective use of this information and communication resource and the complex, and sometimes paradoxical roles, the Internet plays in relation to D/deaf people's integration in hearing society. It important to know more about how the Internet is currently benefiting/failing to meet the needs of this group in order to further develop appropriate information resources and services for D/deaf people.

Keywords:

• Deaf people
• disability
• Internet
• integration
• exclusion

Acknowledgements

We wish to acknowledge the support of the AHRC which funded the research on which this article is based.

Notes

Rogers (1998) reports that when fires ravaged California in the 1970s hearing impaired people burnt to death because they were unable to hear public warning announcements.

The D/deaf person types the information they wish to communicate, a hearing telephonist then calls the hearing person and verbalizes the information to them, and then in turn types the response back to the D/deaf person.

The concept of integration has been controversial because it is often associated with the notion of adaption to the norms and values of majority society.

Selwyn (2004) argues that Internet use is not necessarily ‘meaningful’ unless the user has control and choice over the technology and its contents. It is this which produces meaning, significance and utility for individual users.

They are however, expensive to make and hard to amend which means in a space like the web where information is fluid these clips can be quickly outdated.