About SocialWorkersSpeak.org
SocialWorkersSpeak.org gives you a chance to influence how the entertainment industry and news media depicts the social work profession and issues social workers care about. The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) developed this site to allow social workers and the general public to critique and improve the way social workers and social issues are covered in the news media, and portrayed in the entertainment industries.
The site is sponsored by the NASW Communications Network (NCN), which represents educators, researchers, practitioners and policymakers throughout the social work community. NCN was designed specifically to help producers and writers understand what social workers do and to ensure that social work issues are portrayed accurately in the entertainment media. Since being aligned with the NASW Foundation in 2008, NCN has co-sponsored a successful Hollywood forum with the Entertainment Industries Council (EIC) on women’s health issues, and consulted with hundreds of journalists on numerous consumer and social issues.
This interactive site serves as the latest step by NASW to improve public understanding of the social work profession’s strengths and expertise.
Feedback: Tell us what you think and how we can serve you better.
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I would love to receive a monthly newsletter and reminders from your site. Is there one available? How do I sign up?
Thank you!
Christina D.
MSW Student
at Wayne State University
Detroit, MI
Congratulations on this website. I was involved with the NCN when it was first started during Sue Dworak-Peck’s NASW presidency…back in the 1980s, I think. We worked with various media to enhance the accuracy of the portrayal of social workers. I see more and more social work characters on TV and in movies now, but still, the social worker is often left out on medical shows, for example. This site will help bring attention to social workers and social issues in the media.
Linda Grobman, MSW, LSW, ACSW
Publisher/Editor, THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER Magazine
http://www.socialworker.com
I am pleased to see a site that concerns intself with our profession and professional role in the media. I recall a TV show (maybe in the 80s) with George Scott called “East Side West Side.” I think it was an excellent portrayal of the social worker’s role as clinician and advocate. Also, I remember that the NASW (NASW NEWS) gave it good reviews at the time. Since then, there was a TV show in the 90s and into the first few years of 2000 in which a well known acress portrayed a social worker in a family agency or child protective agency. Cannot recall her name or the name of the program; however, it was a reasonable portrayal of the social worker’s role I thought.
As I have expressed in a previous posting I am very happy about this site. If the organization moves forward with securing our professional title and banning any non-licensed, non-MSW from using the title social worker I am MORE THAN happy to get involved…email me….
I will stand on capital hill:)
Basically I just want to express my appreciation for this website. I believe it will play a positive role in advancing the profession on a number of different levels.
Ernest A. Wahrburg, MSW, LCSW (NY & NC)
More and more I’m working with forensic mentally ill clients. If I had known the necessity of taking criminal justice courses in graduate school, I would have gotten a dual degree. As the last of the State Hospitals are being closed, the prisons will be the new homes for many of the unmanageable mentally ill clients. I wonder what the pay scale is for social workers in the prison system?
I’m currently nursing a big purple bruise on my leg where a client decided she didn’t like the way her family meeting was going, so she shoved the table into me. No, I didn’t press charges, although I’m sure the next person she injures won’t hesitate to educate her on assault charges and she will learn about the prison system first-hand.
My boss made sure I knew it was a big deal to give me a 2% raise this year… We have to be the most disrespected of all professionals. And I must say, when people ask me about getting their social work degrees, I tell them to really think about not being able to afford to retire themselves, or not being able to send their own children to college.
I really like the idea of a site that looks at how social workers are portrayed by the entertainment industry, in books, films, etc. The opportunity for social workers to provide feedback to writers and producers about the roles of social workers could be very useful and enlightening and our members with expertise in various areas would enjoy doing this. I also note, however, that we have a policy manual called Social Work Speaks that could be integrated into this project, so that the public as well as social workers can refer to this document for guidance. It would be excellent to weave it into this website as a research component because it is not well known to even many of our members and I expect that site will be popular so that people will refer to it frequently. The various articles could provide links that reference the various parts of the policies so that people will get used to asking the question – what is the policy and what does the profession have to say about this?
Best wishes and keep up the good work!
I think it’s a tragedy that when a Social Worker begins to hold higher degrees or licenses, that they forget where they originally came from-a BSW.
I have a BSW and I AM A SOCIAL WORKER. I do my job day in and out. I follow the Code of Ethics. I keep up with the NASW, in fact I’m a member. I pay my dues; I do my research. I read the journals and apply it to my practice when appropriate. I keep a mentor and have clients who count on me.
I may not have an MSW or my license. But maybe part of that is because in this economy, I’m lucky I was able to finished my Bachelors.
I am a social worker.
i am glad this website is available. It’s a wonderful idea.
Social Workers we must keep educating others about this wonderful profession!!!!!