The Today Show Drops the Ball. Again.
Posted on 17. Jun, 2009 by Brian Reid in General
Full disclosure: I think that the men behind the New York City at-home dad group are wonderful guys. They are well-spoken, thoughtful and — as best I can tell — excellent fathers. Nothing I am about to say should reflect poorly on them. Also, full disclosure: the Today Show producers sometime show strokes of genius (sarcasm).
That said … c’mon, Today Show. There are so many different ways into the at-home dad story (or, better yet, the New American Family story … which includes some sort of acknowledgement that women, too, are part of the equation) that today’s broadcast was a huge disappointment.
I swear that every single TV package on at-home dads runs exactly the same way: there is a day-in-the-life montage of one dad, a brief interview with that guy, a clip from “Mr. Mom” and a scene shot at a local park. So take a look at today’s clip:
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Now compare it to this clip FROM THE VERY SAME SHOW, in January:
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
THEY USE THE SAME GUYS. The same tagline. The same “Mr. Mom” clip. This from the top-rated morning show.
Lazy.
(And I won’t even dwell on the recurring and extensive use of the agonizing phrase “Mr. Mom.”)
Matt
17. Jun, 2009
I especially liked that they called us the “Real Househusbands of NYC”
Jeremy Adam Smith
17. Jun, 2009
The publicist at Beacon pitched me to appear on Today, and they considered it, probably for this very segment. My feeling right now is that I dodged that bullet. They’re obviously not interested in taking the discussion to the next level. The question is, why? Why not take it to the next level? Is it just laziness? Yes, probably, but it’s also true that Today is risk-averse. The higher you go on the media ladder, the more rigid the script.
Robb Tavill AHD Since February
17. Jun, 2009
I have to admit that I am very disappointed with NBC especially since they have had you as a guest on the show I believe. NBC also has to do far better follow up versus recycling the story that was done four months earlier. NBC continues to want to downplay the change within today’s World that At Home Dads are growing for what ever reason and NBC needs to reach out to dads like myself that did not loose careers based on the change of the economy and chose to become at home dads. Laziness abounds by NBC and this is very disappointing. Maybe we should ask NBC to come to Omaha in October to see the Convention and talk with even more dads about this change in society.
Gina
17. Jun, 2009
The segment on the Today Show led me to find your blog via search. I agree they had a chance to go higher with this. Here’s a great essay by Charlie LeDuff, “Stay-at-Home Dad” which is part of soon to be published anthology of stories about what it means to be a good man.
http://www.goodmenbook.org/selected-essays.html?essay=47
CK_Lunchbox
18. Jun, 2009
It seems like the media dances around this issue like a knock-kneed freshman at his first prom. They might be in the gym, but they’re standing at the punchbowl unsure what to do with themselves.
The longer that I’ve been a SAHD, the more I’ve resented the Mr. Mom tag. I was thrust into this role over a year ago, and have worked too hard to have all that effort dismissed by a label.
In some respects SAHDs are in a no win situation. The media has conditioned society into believing that if dad gets stuck with kids, you better up the insurance premiums and have the Doofus Patrol on speed-dial.
Yet on the flip side you have stay-at-home-moms going, “big whoop. welcome to the club.” I got in the middle of this issue after being interviewed as a SAHD blogger. In the comments moms misinterpreted the article to be a cry by SAHDs for a pat-on-the back. Not so.
I’d be the last person to take anything away from SAHMs. But some people need to understand how hard it is for some men to re-evaluate what their self-image is built on after becoming a SAHD. For others fathers it’s easier to reconcile, maybe because they were comfortable with who they were from the start.
In any case, just like with all socialogically categorized groups, SAHDs will always be working against misperceptions.
Cameron Dauler
18. Jun, 2009
I hate that shit. I am a stay at home dad and am always sickened by these fluff pieces that follow a unidimensional story line of fallen wall street success relegated to the lowly job of raising his children. My situation is simply a matter of economics. My wife is a pediatric dentist and I am an Ivy League liberal arts graduate. She makes 300,000 grand and I make maybe 30,000 so I stay at home and love it. Beyond that I would venture to say that I am probably better at this than she would be because I have a bit more creativity and possess an inordinate amount of patience.
Cameron Dauler
18. Jun, 2009
Let’s get together and create a reality show about real house husbands-although I imagine as men we tend to get along better than women so it may not be that great of a pitch
CK_Lunchbox
18. Jun, 2009
Cameron, there’s actually a SAHD reality show in the works. It’s being pitched to networks right now. More info to follow.