Seen on TV, but still not heard
While members of the deaf community welcome increased on-screen representation lately, many say it falls short of reflecting all experiences
While filming the reality series “Deaf U,” Rodney Burford wasn’t too focused on any effect he and his cochlear implants would have on viewers.
“In my own mind, I was like, ‘Yo, I’m really on Netflix,’ ” said the 22-year-old cast member of the show, which zooms in on a group of students at Gallaudet University, the nation’s only liberal arts university devoted to deaf people.
Things changed after the show debuted last fall. Parents of cochlear-implant users started reaching out to say how seeing Burford on the screen had made an impact on their children.
“So I would say, no question, I’m proud,” he said. “I am very proud.”
Many deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals have welcomed the increase in visibility that deafness and hearing loss have enjoyed on TV lately.
The latest season of “The Bachelor,” on ABC, features Abigail Heringer, who is believed to be the first deaf contestant and cochlear-implant wearer on the show; actor Angel Theory, who is hard of hearing, stars on “Kinderfänger” on Facebook Watch and plays Kelly, a character with hearing loss, on AMC’s “The Walking Dead”; and Disney+ has announced that a Hawkeye series in development would feature a deaf Native American actor, Alaqua Cox, as Echo, a deaf Native American superhero.
But for many who use devices like cochlear implants or hearing aids, on-screen representation still falls short by not reflecting enough of their experiences. Jessica Flores, a comedian in San Francisco who wears cochlear implants, grew up in a hearing environment, speaks English and uses sign language (which she learned later in life). Yet, she pointed out, deaf characters tend to be portrayed on screen as people who sign and don’t speak.
“Deaf U,” which follows students on campus as they date, party, gossip and flirt, was praised for showing a diversity of experiences, including those of hearing device users like Burford. But Gallaudet, which is in Washington, as an institution places emphasis on learning sign language and interacting with other people who are deaf and hard of hearing — experiences that not all people with hearing loss have.
“I have not seen really any perfect representation of my type of deafness” on TV, said Alexandra Dean Grossi, who received a diagnosis of profound hearing loss at age 2 and wore hearing aids before switching to cochlear implants as a teenager; she attended hearing schools and, like Flores, had speech therapy, but never learned to sign.
Growing up, the few deaf actors Grossi saw, such as Oscar winner Marlee Matlin, used sign language and were usually part of the “capital D Deaf ” community — a term used by those who embrace deafness as a cultural identity and communicate primarily through American Sign Language. “But I don’t feel that that represents the hardof-hearing and cochlear-implant experience very well,” said Grossi, a software designer for the IBM accessibility team.
Grossi, who has also worked as a production assistant and junior writer in Hollywood, expressed frustration at the misconceptions around the experiences of those who are deaf and hard of hearing — especially those of people who live primarily in hearing environments.
When she has tried to pitch shows that featured deaf protagonists whose experiences resembled her own, she said she would often get the feedback that the character was not deaf enough. “And I’m like, that’s the whole point,” Grossi said. “You know, there’s so much nuance that you’re missing.”
As a teenager, Flores felt the absence of thoughtful representation. She spent years “being like, ‘Oh, I’m alone,’ ” she said. “Nobody’s going to understand me,” she remembered thinking.
That is, until Flores came across Amanda, who also wore hearing aids, in a 2008 episode of MTV’s “True Life” documentary series. (Flores has only had cochlear implants for two years.)
Flores teared up, she recalled; seeing Amanda gave her hope and the awareness that there were others like her.
Flores, who had little contact with the “capital D Deaf ” community, discovered the power of cultural representation after she started a YouTube channel on which she discusses hearing loss. People started messaging her, sharing how much they identified.