Tuesday, June 22, 2004

The final Father's Day wrapup follows, but let me make a quick, self-important note about at-home bloggers. This year, for the first time, at-home dads with blogs have become spokespeople of sort for the dad-at-home setup. Russ Louch of the Daily Yak has received some nice attention, as has Mike from Full Time Father (see below). Greg at Daddy Types has become something of a media star, too. It's not a bad changing of the guard: a lot of the usual suspects in the at-home dad game -- Jay Massey, Hogan Hilling, Bob Frank -- are busy raising teens and thinking about their next move. The folks who are filling their shoes -- the Yakkers and the Full Time Fathers -- are still in their preschool years and bring back that perspective. I'm not saying that raising a 3-year-old is easier or more newsworthy than raising a 13-year-old, just that the range of voices has expanded, thanks in no small part to blogs.

Washington Post: Russ and Mike get mentioned in this business section commentary about dads who are "Trading Business Suits for Brownies," which gets bonus points for referring to the American University study on union treatment of family matters.

Rochester (NY) Democrat and Chronicle: Good Page One play for this detailed story on modern at-home fatherhood. Major bonus points to reporter Chris Swingle for this sidebar noting that "Parents are made, not born." The upshot: dads can do this job just as well as anyone.

Baltimore Sun: The Sun goes with a column, rather than a straight news story, that takes an interesting perspective: where in all the "mommy mania" currently gripping the media, is the discussion of the dads? Well worth the read.

Brainerd Dispatch (MN): Leave aside the "Mr. Mom" in the headline, and what you see is a nice profile of a rural at-home father, with good details on how the household operates.

The Jackson (MS) Clarion-Ledger: Profile of Mississippi dads serves as a reminder that this isn't a local phenomenon -- this is happening everywhere.

Rocky Mountain News (CO): Great bit here, which I can second: "She's also sick of reading stay-at-home dad stories that go like this: Man has job. Man loses job. Wife must find work or work more. Dad stays home with kids. Dad suffers identity crisis. Dad wakes up one morning and realizes how precious the time with his children has been.

'Why does this situation always have to be bad first?' Sara asks.
"

Hampton (VA) Daily Press: Extra credit for the author's effort to explain why our numbers are swelling. Her best bet? The increasing acceptance of women in the workforce.

Fond du Lac (WI) Reporter: Another great set of anecdotes, especially the red-winged blackbird one. And if you don't believe at-home dads are poised to overrun Wisconsin, check out the Green Bay Press Gazette's take.

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: The standard fare, but extra credit for exerpting Buzz McClain's masterwork.

Stamford (CT) Advocate: Dorothy, I don't think we're in Stepford anymore.

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