TALKING DISABILITIES

Talking Disabilities (Indonesian Netizens' Conversation Analysis on Disability People in Social Media)

Abstract

People with disabilities are considered vulnerable, especially when they are present on social media. They often experience bullying in the form of insults and hate speech directed at their physical disabilities. This is especially true when there are legal cases or immoral behavior involving them. Nevertheless, there are always dynamics and nuances in every netizen comment regarding individuals with disabilities. This study aims to examine how netizens discuss disability groups based on their status and social roles. These individuals are divided into two categories: those with disabilities with celebrity status (public figures) and those with non-celebrity status (public figures), or those with general disabilities. This research focuses on the dynamics of netizen conversations with three individuals with disabilities in Indonesia who are not involved in legal issues or other scandals concerning morality. This position was chosen to maintain neutrality, as responses to them are not influenced by external factors that degrade their status as vulnerable individuals. The results revealed differences in netizen treatment of the three study subjects. Non-celebrity individuals with disabilities are more likely to experience digital bullying than celebrities. This shows the still poor quality of our netizens' literacy towards vulnerable groups and the persistence of the mindset of social class fragmentation and the celebrity-non-celebrity dichotomy.

Keywords: Conversation Analysis, Disability, Interaction, Social Media, Netizens