Wrong Planet

For the sixth episode of Autism Talk TV, Alex and Jack snag an exclusive interview with Steve Silberman, known primarily for his work as a writer for Wired Magazine. Ten years ago, Steve published his article "The Geek Syndrome," one of the most famous magazine pieces on the topic of autism, addressing the apparent "epidemic of autism" in Silicon Valley. In this episode Steve shares his story about what got him so gosh darn interested in autism in the first place, and about his ever expanding research into "the ways that autism itself is a window into the larger question of neurodiversity." Plus, Autism Talk TV gets an exclusive sneak peak into Steve's up-and-coming book on the topic.

But wait- there's more! This is only part one of a two-part interview. Check back for episode seven of Autism Talk TV to learn more from Steve Silberman, including discussion of many amazing contributions to society and technology made by spectrumites.

Read on for the video!

Hello and welcome to episode five of Autism Talk TV. This time around, Alex Plank and Jack Robison talk with Geraldine Dawson, the chief science officer at Autism Speaks. Dawson, who's been involved in the autistic community for over 30 years, gives Autism Talk TV a sample of the research funded by Autism Speaks aimed at, not curing, but improving the lives of spectrumites.

We learn about some of the physical troubles autistic individuals sometimes face, such as sleep difficulties and GI problems, and how simply educating doctors could do a world of good. We also hear about the unfair segregation of autistic children in school communities, and how special education for aspies and auties could be made obsolete by simply raising awareness and educating teachers and school officials.

Read on for episode 5 of Autism Talk TV!

For the fourth installment of Autism Talk TV, I sat down with Peter Bell, vice president of Autism Speaks. In our interview, Peter Bell discusses his role at Autism Speaks in addition to what it is like to raise an autistic son. Peter also speaks about the controversial issue of finding a cure for autism and what it means to him as a father. Peter was also recently a guest star on NBC's Parenthood, in which an autistic boy is one of the recurring characters.

I enjoyed talking with Peter and I think you will be moved by his story. Hopefully interviews such as this will help to shed light on the similarities between those of on the spectrum against the notion of "cure" and parents who are trying to give their children the best life possible.

Read on for the video!

For the third episode of Autism Talk TV, I had the opportunity to sit down with Allson Singer who cofounded the Autism Science Foundation. This is the first video in our series of Autism Talk TV interviews conducted at IMFAR in Philadelphia last week.

Alison talks about what it was like for her brother growing up in the 1960s and 1970s with an Autism diagnosis. She discusses the history of Autism services and shares her views on the future of Autism research. In addition, Alison explains the roles genetics plays in finding future treatments for individuals on the Spectrum.

Read on to watch the interview of Alison Singer!

We sat down with Janet Price and Jennifer Engel Fisher, the authors of Take Control of Asperger's Syndrome: The Official Strategy Guide for Teens With Asperger's Syndrome and Nonverbal Learning Disorders.

Janet and Jennifer give tips about overcoming homework, making friends, and using technology, such as the iPod touch and the Palm, to help people with Asperger's stay organized.

Autism Talk TV is the new Internet television show about Autism.

Read on to watch episode two of Autism Talk TV!

Happy International Autism Awareness Day! To celebrate this day and Autism Awareness Month, we're releasing the first episode of a new internet TV show about autism. I think you'll all enjoy the first episode which covers social skills and how to survive group social settings.

We spent a lot of time on this episode so I hope you find it useful. In the future, we plan to cover new autism books, autism in the media, and other tips for surviving social situations.

Read on to watch episode one of Autism Talk TV!

I recently had the opportunity to sit down with economist Tyler Cowen, author of Create Your Own Economy: The Path to Prosperity in a Disordered World, an economics book that argues that the Internet is making our society more "autistic" and autistic individuals have a leg up in this new digital economy.

Tyler talks to me about Economcis, the way in which autistic individuals approach concepts differently than non-autistics, and how the autistic mode of thought can be more beneficial in certain situations. Read on for my interview with Tyler Cowen and you'll find out what he thinks about everything from Autism, to the terms "low-functioning" vs. "high functioning," and even bickering in the autism community.

Read on for the interview with Tyler Cowen!

Autism’s False Prophets: Bad Medicine, Risky Medicine, and the Search for a Cure is a well-referenced, historical work that explains the dangerous and unnecessary controversies that have put the lives of autistic children at risk. Offit sets up his book by explaining how he has become a major player in the field of immunology. He then explores the process by which the autism/vaccine controversy has been given so much attention. He describes how parents and physicians worked together to create treatments that when put under scientific scrutiny, have no real efficacy.

Offit sets the tone of the book by showing how secretin therapy and facilitated communication were exposed as scams. He then debunks Dr. Wakefield’s study of the MMR vaccine and employs the scientific method to show how thimerosal and other mercury-based theories have no relevance.

Read on for more about the book and a video with author Dr. Paul Offit!

Recently, the organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) launched a new ad campaign entitled, "Got Autism?", misleadingly implying that the consumption of milk is associated with the cause of the autism spectrum. PETA is misinforming the public about autism and thus joining a long line of unscrupulous groups that have sought to try and spread fear about autism as a means of pushing their particular agendas.

If You Could Say it in Words is a great new film about an autistic protagonist Nelson and his experience with love. The film is premiering at the Derby City Film Festival on October 8, 2008 at 9:00 PM. I wrote about my initial impressions of the movie and conducted an interview in February. You will also find clips from the movie in my previous article.

The film explores Nelson's Asperger's Syndrome without mentioning the diagnosis. The choice is intentional because many individuals with Asperger's remain undiagnosed. A recent documentary, Billy the Kid, similarly did not mention the protagonist's Asperger diagnosis, but If You Could Say it in Words is the first narrative feature film I've come across that explores Autism in such depth without hitting the audience over the head over and over again with the fact that it's about autism. Additionally, the film appeals to an audience greater than the autistic community because the questions it raises about love apply to autistics and neurotpyicals alike.

Autistic Dr. Temple Grandin, a designer of livestock handling facilities and a Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University, is an icon in the Autistic Community. Her life has been a beacon and an inspirational story and after a long negotiation is getting her biography brought to HBO. Claire Danes is in negotiations to star as Grandin in the film which is currently moving forward after nine years.

"I made a commitment to Temple that I was going to make it and make it right," said Emily Gerson Saines, one of the executive producers, who has a son with autism. "I never pushed to get it made until now, because now we got it right."

As many of you have already heard, this past week talk radio personality Michael Weiner, better known on the air as Michael Savage, made several outrageous remarks in regards to autism, including, "Now, you want me to tell you my opinion on autism, since I'm not talking about autism? A fraud, a racket…I'll tell you what autism is. In 99 percent of the cases, it's a brat who hasn't been told to cut the act out. That's what autism is. What do you mean they scream and they're silent? They don't have a father around to tell them, 'Don't act like a moron. You'll get nowhere in life. Stop acting like a putz. Straighten up. Act like a man. Don't sit there crying and screaming, idiot."

Remarks like these spread ignorance about autism and threaten to return us to a previous era where parents were blamed and labeled as "refrigerator mothers" for having autistic children. Not only have Michael Weiner and Talk Radio Networks refused to retract these outrageous comments - they have added to them by claiming, unsupported by science of any kind, that the autism spectrum is an overdiagnosed medical condition. This is part of a broader pattern of statements attacking people with disabilities and our families.

Wrong Planet has joined a coalition of disability rights organizations calling for the sponsors of Talk Radio Networks and the Savage Nation to pull their support. Read on for the joint letter regarding Savage's remarks.

X-Files: I Want to Believe star Amanda Peet has spoken out against the "fringe medical groups and parent advocacy groups who claim that vaccines cause autism, or that they have too many "toxins," or "viral challenges" for our tiny babies' bodies to handle." In an article in Cookie Magazine, Peet is quoted saying "Frankly, I feel that parents who don't vaccinate their children are parasites."

Peet's comments are consistent with the medical community's growing concern that parents will not vaccinate their children out of a false fear that such vaccinations could cause Autism. Scientific studies have repeatedly found no link between vaccines and Autism and parents' fears to vaccinate their children are leading to outbreaks in the United States. Thiomersal, which contains mercury, was largely removed from vaccines a couple of years ago and the rate of autism diagnoses has continued to increase.

Read on for more information and links.

After the negative publicity Autism Speaks received for threatening to sue a 14 year old autistic girl for her perfectly legal parody website, you would think that the organization learned their lesson. Unfortunately, they're at it again, this time threatening an autistic blogger's t-shirt company with legal action for a shirt that read "'Autism Speaks' can go away. I have Autism. I can speak for myself." The organization claimed the t-shirt was a violation of copyright, despite the fact that such a t-shirt is protected as free speech.

Autism Speaks, which claims to speak for autism, has no autistic employees or board members with autism and is viewed as a bully by many autistic individuals who feel that the organization engages in tactics that marginalize their voices and contribute to an environment that hurts the lives of those with Autism. Their most recent move certainly supports such an argument.

Read on for the details and links.

Autism Western Cape (AWC) of South Africa is launching a fundraising campaign next week called Jail4Bail. The executive director of AWC plans on locking himself in a jail cell at a local mall until $128,000 dollars is raised. The promotional material for this event depicts a young girl locked in a jail cell followed by the text 'Help raise $128,000 dollars for Autism.'

Please note that I do support fundraising campaigns for autism if their purpose is to better the life of autistic people and if they ensure that the lasting image of autism left in its participants’ minds furthers the acceptance and inclusion of autistic people in society. Unfortunately, Jail4Bail does not meet this criteria and actually feeds a negative stigma in the media that hurts autistic people and their families.