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So I ask the plethora of publications pandering to a new population of parents: How can you call yourself a "parenting" magazine if you cater mostly to mothers??? You're not fooling anybody with your recipes for how to make the perfect spinach salad for mommy group or your disappointing discussions on how to find the perfect head band for your baby- we all know who your target audience is, and, well, that hurts our feelings (the stay at home dads and the first-time fathers that deserve to be recognized for their efforts). How are we supposed to feel like we are valued when you marginalize us on every page with your ads for nipple cream and your editorials on "how to deal with his meddling mother (as if yours is a prize)?"
Why don't you just come out and say it: "Dads, you're not worth our time because there's no money in it for us!" Sure, I applaud the efforts of an emerging group of father bloggers who do a fantastic job of pontificating the plight of New Dads, but we are just one small voice versus the thousands, if not millions, of compensated mommy bloggers that drown us out on every on-line outlet. Do you really think we don't get the pervasive message you are sending us... Mom's are important; Dads are an after-thought.
Am I insane for putting this on paper- possibly, as it will insure that I will never be approached to contribute commentary to any of these exclusive mediums, but that's not a worry of mine. What I do worry about is the message being sent to all the hard-working, hands-on fathers that feel like their contribution (beyond their genetic material) is unnecessary and/or unappreciated- not by their wives but by an industry and a society that doesn't see the dollar value in dad-dedicated diatribes (like this one).
So to all the "parenting" publications that choose to ignore the coming trend, what I call the "Fatherhood N' Force" movement, you are missing a great opportunity to reach an emerging market that has strength in numbers. Call yourselves whatever you want but "Parenting" is a word us fathers take very seriously and we don't appreciate your definition of the term, and we plan on reclaiming it very soon.
You've ignored us for too long, and we're not going to take it anymore!
Links:
http://www.parents.com/parenting/dads/issues-trends/new-face-of-fatherhood/
http://soc.sagepub.com/content/40/2/335.shorthttp://fatherhood.hhs.gov/CFSForum/front.htm
http://dadtrends.com/category/new-dads/
http://getdaddysomegin.com/?tag=2011-trends
Facebook Pages for Dads:
Fodder 4 Fathers
Single Dad Laughing
Diary of an Accidental Dad
How to be a Dad
Fatherhood isn't for Wimps
A Blogger and a Father
Dada Rocks
DadLabs
The Daddy Yo Dude
Daddy Mojo
Daddy Knows Less
Randomness of a stay-at-home dad
The Dude of the House
The Poop Deck Captain's Log Fan Page
One Funny Daddy
Daddy's in Charge
Daddy's Home. Inc.
WonderDads
Noah's Dad.com
Life of Dad
The Dad: Informed
All for my Boy
The Misanthropic Father
Clark Kent's Lunchbox
Empowered Papa
DadSquared
Life Before the Bucket
Dad Does it Different
Dad v Autism
Adventures in Fatherhood by Jeff Allanach
Single Daddy to Autism X3
Up and Coming On-Line Communities for Dads:
http://www.daddy-blogs.com/
http://www.dad.info/
http://www.fathers.com/
http://dadcentral.ning.com/
http://www.dadlabs.com/
http://www.dads-space.com/
For more, check out the Fodder for Fathers Facebook Page, or visit us on Twitter to see who we follow. And if you "like us", don't be shy.
Fodder 4 Fathers Fights 4 Your Right to Par-take!
Join the revolution, and tell us your worst on-line parenting magazine experience in the comments section below:
Mumsnet (by parents for parents) and their feminist section in the forums. Makes for some interesting reading!
ReplyDeleteVery "interesting."
ReplyDeleteHmmmm..well said!
ReplyDelete*golf claps*
ReplyDeletekeep doing what you do darlin!
If you need a mommys voice you sure have my big mouthed one in your corner!