Wrong Planet

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Wrong Planet
Image:wplogo.png
URL http://WrongPlanet.net
Slogan The Online Resource and Community for Autism and Asperger's
Type of site Virtual community
Registration Optional
Available language(s) English
Owner Yellow Sneaker Media, LLC
Created by Alex Plank and Dan Grover
Launched 2004
Current status Active

Wrong Planet (sometimes referred to by its URL, WrongPlanet.net) is an online community for individuals with Autism and Asperger syndrome. The site was started in 2004 by Dan Grover and Alex Plank[1] and includes a chatroom, a large forum, a dating section, and articles describing how to deal with daily issues.[1] The footer of the website states that the autism organization is run by the limited liability company Yellow Sneaker Media, LLC. The site says that it has gained more than 17,000 registered members since its creation; of those, about 4,500 have made more than 10 posts to the forum and about 12,500 have made less than 10 posts.[2]

After a post to Slashdot describing an interview with Bram Cohen,[3] Wrong Planet grew; the success of the Cohen interview spurred the site to produce a series of interviews with other figures in the autism community such as author Temple Grandin, Jerry Newport, and movie producer Joey Travolta. The site conducted an interview with America's Next Top Model contestant Heather Kuzmich who frequently talked about her Asperger's during Cycle 9 of the show.[4] Wrong Planet has been referenced by the mainstream U.S. media.[5][6][7][8][9][10]

In 2005, a 19-year-old member of the site, William Freund,[11] shot two people and himself in Aliso Viejo, California.[12][13] Freund posted on other internet forums including Something Awful.[14][15] In 2007, a man who was accused of murdering his dermatologist apparently posted on the site while eluding the police.[16] Wrong Planet was covered in a Dateline NBC report on the incident.[17]

In 2008, Wrong Planet began getting involved in autistic self advocacy with the goal of furthering the rights of autistic individuals living in the United States. Representatives from the organization testified at the NIMH's Interagency Autism Coordinating committee.[18] Owner Alex Plank also began taking speaking engagements for various Autism conferences. For instance, Plank will speak with Jerry Newport and Stephen Shore at the Open Center for Autism's 2nd annual conference in New York.[19]

Wrong Planet was covered in MIT's Media Lab course 'Techno-Identity' (MAS.961) in 2006[20] and is on the syllabus of UCLA's 'Autism and Asperger Syndrome in the Media: Through the eyes of individuals with Autism' (Education 88S).[21] Wrong Planet comes up in the special education curriculum of many universities in the United States. A page is dedicated to Wrong Planet and its founder in a textbook used by various Universities such as the University of Virginia and George Mason University for introduction to special education courses.[22][23][24][25]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b PRWeb (July 1, 2004). "Autistic Teens Create Website for People with Asperger's Syndrome". Press release.
  2. ^ Wrong Planet members list. WrongPlanet.net. Retrieved on 2008-03-25.
  3. ^ "Interview with the Creator of BitTorrent", Slashdot, May 9, 2005. 
  4. ^ "Interview: Heather Kuzmich of America's Next Top Model" (Interview), Wrong Planet, 2007-11-29. Retrieved on 2007-12-08. 
  5. ^ "Creating an Asperger's Community", Washington Post, December 20, 2005, pp. HE02. 
  6. ^ "Does Ron Paul have Asperger's Syndrome?" (2008-01-09). Radar (magazine). 
  7. ^ "Gifted? Autistic? Or Just Quirky?", February 27, 2007, pp. HE01. 
  8. ^ "'Autistics don't want to be cured'", Chicago Tribune, April 2, 2008. 
  9. ^ "Does Ron Paul have Asperger's Syndrome?" (2008-01-09). Radar (magazine). 
  10. ^ "Gifted? Autistic? Or Just Quirky?", February 27, 2007, pp. HE01. 
  11. ^ Hann, Michael. A loaded discussion. The Guardian, November 14, 2005. Retrieved on 2008-03-07.
  12. ^ "Suicide message was posted before rampage", USA Today. 
  13. ^ "Web sites weigh problem of posted threats", AP, November 4, 2005. 
  14. ^ "Report: Orange County killer left angry, suicidal messages on Web site", The San Diego Union-Tribune, November 1, 2005. 
  15. ^ Killer Sought Solace Online; Before Orange County shootings, 19- year-old pleaded for help and pondered suicide.. Los Angeles Times.
  16. ^ Dermatologist's Accused Killer Apparently Blogged About His Emotions. WBBM (2007-09-13). Retrieved on 2008-03-20.
  17. ^ "Appointment for Murder". Dateline NBC. 2008-03-16.
  18. ^ Kristina Chew, PhD (March 15, 2008). The Ides of March. Autism Vox.
  19. ^ "ASA News", Autism Society of America, September 14, 2007. 
  20. ^ http://web.media.mit.edu/~alea/TechnoIdentity/technoIDwk7paper.doc
  21. ^ http://courses.gseis.ucla.edu/mod/resource/view.php?inpopup=true&id=9373
  22. ^ Hallahan, Dan (2006). Exceptional Learners: Introduction to Special Education (10th Edition). Allyn & Bacon. ISBN 0205444210. 
  23. ^ The Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia
  24. ^ George Mason University
  25. ^ http://oregonstate.edu/education/programs/syllabi/COUN548.doc

[edit] External links