Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 147 Document Number: C23441
Notes:
Reports on other topics featuring interviews with rural Americans can be found at www.wkkf.org., This report is part of a project seeking to understand how various groups perceive rural America, its challenges and strengths. "Perceptions of rural America" looks at how certain news organizations report on the rural population. Researchers analyzed the events and issues making news, the sources quoted, and the opinions these sources expressed about the current and future state of rural America. Researchers conducted a content analysis of news coverage during the six-month period from Jan. 1, 2002, through June 30, 2002, in a sample of major newspapers, news magazines and television networks.
Studies of the demography of disability in rural America show that non-metropolitan areas have the highest percentage of people with disabilities, including people with severe disabilities. What are the barriers to dissemination of information to rural people with disabilities? This brief article outlines several barriers, including rural isolation, which can create communication barriers when the sources of information are people perceived as "outsiders."
5 p., Ari Mwachofi, Ph.D., principal investigator of the research project titled "Developing a Rehabilitation Service Delivery Model for Minority Farmers With Disabilities," describes how personal contact, developing trust with farmers, and collaborating with community leaders enhances his study. The project's purpose is to build an effective model of service delivery to minority farmers who have traditionally been underserved. The study involves farmers from the Lower Mississippi Delta states of Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.