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Media Remains Vigilant In Defense of Integrity of Biological Families

Dec 30, 2008
By .
Adoption

Journalists, remember: if you report about somebody's kid, and fail to point out prominently that this kid was adopted — even if it's 35 years later — you run the terrible risk that someone will conclude an a kid who was adopted into a family is just as much a family member as a kid who was born into a family.

And we can't have that.

people

Rest in peace, Lark Previn — I'm sure you will be mourned by your parents just as profoundly as any biological child would have been.

Last 5 posts by Ken White

5 Comments
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5 Comments

  1. Patrick  •  Dec 30, 2008 @5:11 pm

    We fear that which is different. The media thrives on playing up the different, and fear.

    I'll bet that whoever wrote the story never stopped to think about whether it was appropriate to throw in that word. Of course, I think it's sick that we live in a country where the deaths of people who aren't famous, but are related to famous people, get reported as news. Poor Lark should have been remembered in the obituary page on A-18, as you and I will be.

  2. Ken  •  Dec 30, 2008 @5:12 pm

    Well, if I have another day like today, I'm taking some people with me. So I'm aiming for at least page 3 of the Metro section.

  3. Paula O.  •  Dec 30, 2008 @8:52 pm

    Well said, Ken.

    One of my best friends – who happens to be adopted – lost her (adoptive) father a couple of years ago. Throughout the service, I was taken aback by the number of times my friend was referred to as the "adopted daughter" in the family, while her sisters got to be their father's plain ol' daughters, without the qualifiers.

  4. E  •  Dec 30, 2008 @10:25 pm

    I had the exact same reaction, especially when the final graf says "her son", referring to her biological son. I was pissed!

  5. Amy  •  Dec 31, 2008 @11:04 am

    This is totally maddening.