Our Events' Theme for 2026-27: Disability & Media Studies
Is technology built for us, or are we built for technology? Media created to help people with disabilities often predicts the application of technology for the broader public, a concept described by scholar Mara Mills as "assistive pretexts." In 2026-27, the Berkeley Center for New Media brings leading experts in disability and new media studies to the Bay Area, one of the birthplaces of disability rights, to explore the future of disability justice:
Thursday, September 10, 2026, 4pm
Beginning at 4pm, Hannah Zeavin, our new director, will lead a seminar discussion on disability and new media studies.
We invite you to download and read the introduction to Diminished Faculties: A Political Phenomenology of Impairment by Jonathan Sterne beforehand.
From 5 to 7pm, we'll have light snacks and refreshments, informal presentations on our events and certificate programs, and time to connect with fellow students and colleagues.
RSVP here and please invite anyone interested in learning more about new media at UC Berkeley!
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Monday, September 28, 2026, 5pm
AI & Disability: A Roundtable Discussion
with Jeff Nagy, Assistant Professor, Communication and Media Studies, York University; Renée Cummings, Professor of Practice, School of Data Science, University of Virginia, and Nonresident Senior Fellow and Co-Director, AI Equity Lab, Brookings Institution; and Os Keyes, Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Massachusetts, Lowell
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Monday, October 19, 2026, 5pm
The Promise and Pitfalls of Inclusive Design and Disability Technology
with Jutta Treviranus, Director & Professor, Inclusive Design Research Centre, Ontario College of Art & Design University, and Liz Henry, Executive Director, Grassroots Open Assistive Tech
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Monday, December 7, 2026, 5pm
An attempt towards the Autistic Image
with Perwana Nazif, Visiting Faculty, California Institute of the Arts, and Artistic Director, Los Angeles Review of Books
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Monday, March 1, 2027, 5pm
with Emily Lim Rogers, Assistant Professor, Cultural Anthropology, Duke University, and Olivia Banner, Director of Strategy and Operations, Center for Research and Education on Accessible Technology and Experiences (CREATE), University of Washington
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Monday, April 19, 2027, 6pm
with Carrie Rentschler, Associate Professor, Department of Art History and Communication Studies, and Associate Member of the Institute for Gender, Sexuality & Feminist Studies, McGill University; Mara Mills, Associate Professor, Media, Culture, and Communication, and Director of the Center for Disability Studies, New York University; Fred Turner, Harry and Norman Chandler Professor, Communication, Stanford University; and Tom McEnaney, Associate Professor, Comparative Literature and Spanish & Portuguese, and craigslist Distinguished Chair in New Media, UC Berkeley
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Image attribution:
"Adaptive yoga" by FiberArtGirl is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.