Dialogue on Disability

2025 Media Access Awards with Easter Seals • WXXI-TV

A celebration of disability in media with Ali Stroker, Marlee Matlin, and Henry Winkler.

2025 Media Access Awards with Easter Seals airs Monday, January 12 at 9 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming live on the WXXI app.

Honoring excellence in disability representation, hosted by Tony winner Ali Stroker, with Oscar winner Marlee Matlin, breakout star Marissa Bode (Wicked), and visionary creators Liz Meriwether and Kim Rosenstock (Dying for Sex), with special appearances by Emmy winner Henry Winkler (Happy Days) and performances by Rick Allen (Def Leppard) Brian King Joseph (AGT) and Lazylegz (Paris Paralympics).

2025 Media Access Awards with Easter Seals repeats Tuesday, January 13 at 5 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming live on the WXXI app.

This program is presented as part of Dialogue on Disability, a partnership between WXXI and Al Sigl Community of Agencies – in conjunction with the Herman and Margaret Schwartz Community Series. Dialogue on Disability is supported by the Fred L. Emerson Foundation with additional support from The Golisano Foundation. The weeklong initiative runs January 12-18, 2026.

WXXI and Al Sigl have been hosting Dialogue on Disability since 2005. In 2014, with the support of businessman and philanthropist Tom Golisano and the Golisano Foundation, Move to Include™ was formed. This initiative enables WXXI to present and develop programming that promotes inclusion year round.

Independent Lens “Life After” • WXXI-TV

A gripping investigative documentary, “Life After,” coalesces the missing voices of the disability community in the contemporary debate around assisted dying.

Independent Lens “Life After” airs Saturday, January 17 at 4 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming live on the WXXI app.

This Independent Lens film is an essential and thought-provoking film that uncovers abuses of power while amplifying the voices of the disability community fighting for justice and dignity in an unfolding matter of life and death.

Award-winning disabled filmmaker Reid Davenport (“I Didn’t See You There”) trenchantly probes the legacy of Elizabeth Bouvia—a disabled California woman who, at the age of 26, sought “the right to die.” Her 1983 case provoked a national debate about the value of disabled lives, and Davenport sees echoes in chilling contemporary cases of disabled people dying prematurely—at their own hands and from a broken health care system. Through moving and modern interviews and rich archival material, “Life After” looks critically at where progressive values of bodily autonomy collide with the devaluing and fear of disabled lives. “Reid challenges our assumptions about disability.

Disabled people continue to face premature death—whether through the case of Michael Hickson, who was left to die by a Texas hospital, or the choice of Jerika Bolen, a Wisconsin teen who received support from her community to end her life.

Davenport’s exploration takes him to Canada, where regulations surrounding medical aid in dying (MAID) have been expanded to allow disabled individuals unprecedented access—even when their deaths are not reasonably foreseeable. In Ontario, Canada, Davenport meets Michal Kaliszan, a disabled computer programmer who once considered MAID as his only option to avoid entering an institution. In a society where ableism and inadequate healthcare often limit true choices, “Life After” exposes the tangled web of moral dilemmas and profit motives surrounding assisted dying. The film challenges the notion that assisted dying always represents a free choice, revealing how it can sometimes be perceived as the only option.

Photo: Jeffrey McElfresh rides through the industrial area along the Ohio River
Credit: Provided by APT

American Masters “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore” • WXXI-TV

Learn about the life and career of 4-time Emmy nominee Marlee Matlin as she shares her story in her native American Sign Language.

American Masters “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore airs Thursday, January 15 at 8:30 p.m. and again on Sunday, January 18 at 1 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming on the WXXI app.

The documentary takes a closer look at Marlee Matlin’s life as a groundbreaking performer, whose meteoric and tumultuous rise to fame started in 1987 when she became the first Deaf actor to win an Academy Award for her role in Children of a Lesser God. At the age of twenty-one, Matlin was thrust into the national spotlight, becoming for many Americans the first Deaf person they saw on TV and overnight becoming the de-facto representative of the Deaf community.

Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore boasts never-before-seen home video filmed over the course of Matlin’s 37-year career by her longtime interpreter and producing partner Jack Jason—including footage of Matlin behind the scenes on the sets of some of her most iconic roles including Children of a Lesser God, The West Wing and Seinfeld. For the first time in her own language, Matlin will reflect on her relationship with actor William Hurt, her place in the Deaf community, her fight for roles and accessibility in Hollywood and what it means to be “the first.”

Photo: Marlee Matlin
Credit: Provided by PBS

Caregiving • WXXI-TV

Created with executive producer Bradley Cooper, this film highlights the challenges and triumphs of caregiving in America.

Caregiving airs Friday, January 16 at 4 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streams live on the WXXI and PBS apps.

Narrated by Award-winning actress Uzo Aduba, who share her own experience as a caregiver for her mother, this documentary interweaves the broader context of the cultural and economic conditions in the U.S., centered on the personal experiences of caregivers providing for loved ones, and the challenges and triumphs they face each day. Caregiving examines the historical and contemporary efforts to address this often unrecognized and rapidly increasing need, leading to a care system tipping into crisis.

Photo: Caregiver Malcoma Brown-Ekeogu and her husband, Kenneth, dance on their wedding anniversary. Both are featured in Caregiving.
Credit: Ark Media

ASD Band: The Movie • WXXI-TV

Musicians on the autism spectrum embark on a journey to record their first studio album.

ASD Band: The Movie airs Thursday, January 15 at 3 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming live on the WXXI and PBS apps.

Follow the members of ASD Band as they embark on the journey to record their first studio album and proudly own their unique perspectives as individuals on the autism spectrum. Audiences will also experience heartfelt accounts from friends and family members, focused on fostering a community that understands, accepts and values their children.

POV: Fire Through Dry Grass • WXXI-WORLD

Wearing snapback caps and Air Jordans, the Reality Poets aren’t typical nursing home residents.

POV: Fire Through Dry Grass airs Monday, January 13 at 7 p.m. on WXXI-WORLD

In Fire Through Dry Grass, these young, Black and brown disabled artists document their lives on lockdown during COVID, their rhymes underscoring the danger and imprisonment they feel. In the face of institutional neglect, they refuse to be abused, confined, and erased.

Photo: Reality Poets Vince, Jay, Tito, Pete, and Var • Credit: Elias Williams

Tell Me More with Kelly Corrigan “Judy Woodruff” • WXXI-TV

Broadcast journalist Judy Woodruff reflects on her perspectives on the changing American political landscape and raising a child with spina bifida.

Tell Me More with Kelly Corrigan “Judy Woodruff” airs Friday, January 17 at 8:30 p.m. on WXXI-TV and streaming on the WXXI app.

For five decades, Judy Woodruff has delivered exceptional coverage of politics to the American public. In this episode, she reflects on her career highlights, her perspectives on the changing American political landscape, and raising a child with spina bifida.

Travels with Darley “New York’s Empire Trail” • WXXI-CREATE

Darley travels along New York’s Empire State Trail, which stretches from New York City to the Canadian Border, and makes a stop at Letchworth State Park Autism Nature Trail and features Rochester Accessible Adventures.

Travels with Darley “New York’s Empire Trail” airs Saturday, January 18 at 5 p.m. on WXXI-CREATE and streaming live on the WXXI app.

Travels with Darley follows five-time Emmy nominated host Darley Newman as she travels with local people in beautiful and awe-inspiring locations to experience history, culture, food, music, art and adventure.

Each episode introduces viewers to diverse cultures and traditions and what makes each location truly unique.

Darley’s on-camera local counterparts are the true stars of each episode, as they lead Darley through their world.

Viewers learn about places and cultures that are less publicized by traditional media, as well as new things about places they thought they knew, bridging global cultures and inspiring viewers to look at the world in a new way.