Father's Day, Without Children

08/14/2017 - 10h50

A North American study revealed that the predominant theme in the news media in the United States around the time that Father's Day is celebrated is their absence from the family. This, in turn, led to a series of analyzes on the role of the press in defining and propagating the "paternity crisis" and on the damage caused by the resulting vacuum in a significant portion of families.

This crisis can be attributed to new family configurations. Many fathers have children from different marriages, making them absent from those who are outside of the primary nuclear family. Criticism of the media focuses on its role in cementing stereotypes and prejudices regarding the roles of men and women in child rearing.

On last Sunday, the 6th, the magazine sãopaulo, from Folha, was published with a special edition about Father's Day, in which it profiled five men who "reconcile [raising] children with hobbies like scaling the Himalayas or going to Iron Maiden shows". In the illustration on the cover, there was an image of a father with two sides: one side was wearing a t-shirt and had a hand holding a potted-plant; the other was wearing a dress shirt and the hand was holding a tennis shoe.

The internal title declared: "Super dads", followed by an explanation that the lives of those fathers went beyond their professions and taking care of their children, because they worked hard at practicing their hobbies. The text highlighted their superpowers like: "creativity", "navigation", "directing", "reconstruction", "running", "swimming", "cultivating", "preserving", "surfing", "music".

And the kids? What did it say about them? They didn't show up on the cover illustration or in the internal pages. The report concentrated more on describing the hobbies of the fathers than in showing how they relate to their children. Even though it stressed how much the kids were called to participate in these activities, they seemed like forgotten appendages.

The banal and superficial coverage of the father-child relationship set off a reaction in readers, especially among female ones. "Where are the kids?! What century did Folha land in?! It's disappointing to see the newspaper perpetuate the notion that the responsibility is only of the mother", wrote one.

The indignation spread through the comments section of the online newspaper and on social networks. Readers complained that those fathers managed to reconcile everything, except their relationship with their children. Others complained that the newspaper ignored that being a parent means maintaining affectionate and responsible bonds.

"Parenting is completely secondary in these stories. Who is taking care of the children while their fathers are enjoying their hobbies? What is the level of participation of these men in raising their children? How do they share domestic tasks with their partners? Why are they considered as good father figure references?", questioned another female reader.

One feminist blogger wrote that, after going through initial indignation, she had to thank Folha "for showing in such a clear, raw and practically banal way the disparity" in social expectations regarding maternal and paternal roles.

For Matheus Magenta, editor of the Culture section, and Roberto de Oliveira, editor of the sãopaulo magazine, "the life of the fathers portrayed isn't limited to parenting, but that doesn't mean that their kids are excluded from their lives. The five want to show their children other options in life that aren't merely working. In seeking a balanced life, they want to be better people with and for their children."

Magenta and Oliveira said that "children are cited at the beginning of the texts and highlighted on the pages" and that "the majority of the criticisms were limited to the cover taken out of context and ignored the content of the special edition."

Some of the criticisms can in fact be rebutted in this way. It becomes clear when reading the comments that many didn't even read the article at all but simply went along with the wave of condemnation based simply on the cover illustration. I do agree with those readers that complained that the newspaper should be careful with its responsibility to not perpetuate prejudices and stereotypes.

From a purely journalistic point of view, the attempt to take a different approach to an obligatory and relatively banal agenda failed. With so many relevant themes regarding what raising children demands of parents to choose from, the magazine allowed itself to be seduced by the image of supposedly different fathers and created a disconnect with readers.

The controversy reflects the relevance of the theme. Measures need to be taken. Psychologist and educational consultant Rosely Sayão left her column at Folha to pursue other professional directions. The first step is to invest in a substitute with the same levels of talent and of the anguish that the theme provoked among readers.

Translated by LLOYD HARDER

Read the article in the original language