It’s 02:01am (GMT) here in the UK and here I sit, awake as usual, waiting for sleepiness to pull me up the wooden hill to bed.
In an attempt to occupy myself during these small hours I read blogs, catch up on news and generally surf the net. On my random web travels I end up clicking a link that takes me through to an article on the Daily Mail website (I know, I know, bear with me) entitled:
‘Aren’t they a bit big for that now, Britney? Singer insists on carrying her sons everywhere‘
I read down the article. The top three sentences imply that Britney supposedly carries her children ‘everywhere’, point out what she was wearing (evident from paparazzi shots from two separate sources) and bring to our attention that her youngest son has a dummy in his mouth. The rest of the article has no relevance to the headline whatsoever and waffles on about Britney’s new partner and how her mum would like them to marry.
Now, I’m not particularly a huge fan of Britney, but I do think the press have given her a rough ride these last couple of years. Fair or not? I don’t know. That’s not what incensed me about this article.
The thing that really got my goat was the blatant criticism of her parenting ability to draw readers in. The article contains enough ingredients to make my blood boil. So what if she carries her children? She was quite obviously surrounded by a pack of bloodhound paps, each one angling for position to make their next buck. I’d certainly be carrying my children in that situation. As for the dummy, some children become attached to them and need them in stressful situations (like being chased by hoards of paparazzi maybe?). If her child had been screaming the headline would still have been a criticism.
Does carrying your children and letting them have a dummy make you a bad parent? I think not. In a world where the daily news shocks and abhors me these things are irrelevant. I carried my almost 3 year old round B&Q today as he was tired out. He also had a dummy until February 2009. Would the Mail like to write about me too? I sincerely doubt it.
Linda Jones wrote a great post recently on why she won’t be buying the Daily Mail anymore in the wake of the Jan Moir article. I don’t buy the Mail. I do, obviously, sometimes find myself on their website. I can’t honestly say that I’ll never go on their web pages again, but I won’t be going there intentionally, that’s for sure. For this very reason I have not linked to them on this post.
This piece made me react, in I suspect, exactly the way the Mail intended. I was angered at the hinted criticism of Britney’s parenting style in the headline and drawn into reading the piece. I’m flabbergasted, quite frankly, at the very fact that someone got paid to write it in the first place. The article will certainly get many more hits, the (obviously search engine friendly) headline alone will see to that.
The thing that I am kicking myself for most though is actually being drawn into reading the damn piece.
This is not good for my blood pressure. I really should step away from the Daily Mail.
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Here here! I grew up as a snob cos my parents read the mail and I believed everything I read, now I read it and just laugh and take it all as a load of upper middle class crap!
I must admit I love Britney! I have two children with a similar age gap to Brintney and am the same age as her and my weight yo yos like hers to I feel quite an identity with her (excpet for the money and fame lol).
Anyway with young kids I have learnt its anything for an easy life if that means, dummies, bottles, carrying, letting them run wild in cafes then so be it!!!
Joseph still has a dummy at 3 years and 2 1/2 months, somebody put me against a wall and shoot me!
Mine have both had dummies and I quite often carry Little S around at 4, especially when he is tired or needs comfort. Who are the Daily Fail to tell anyone that's the wrong thing to do?! They obviously can't get hold of real stories so are content with attacking parenting skills. Shame on them.
Is the daily mail at all like the guardian? (all I know of english newspapaerage i have learned from Tim Minchin songs) But yes, child with dummy (good grief – shock – some six year olds still have them at bed time) and yes, if i was being chased or even if i wanted to move at somewhere faster than the speed of an arthritic snail it became necessary to carry children up to age 5…sigh…newspapers..
my 11 year old has a security blan…nope..RAG and has carried it around held against her nose up until the age of about 6, it then became a bed time thing only but under times of stress she says "my nose needs snuggly". Don't forget all those reporters berating dummies are sucking on cigarettes and chewing pens – they are both just dummy replacements – I hate most of the british press – I have found myself reading the Times recently – it seems to have some news in it!
I can't stand The Mail and have always stayed away from it. Like you, it makes me angry that they draw readers in with such a crass headline. And don't you think it's always the mum that gets the hard time? I can't ever imagine a celebrity dad being criticised for his parenting skills.
I loathe that right wing rag but I do often find myself online clicking onto their stories about celebrity children and reading the legions of comments (which probably makes me as bad as the people who comment in some respects). I agree that the mums are always getting a bashing – why is Suri Cruise always being carried (because of the paparazzi crowding round perhaps?) why isn't she wearing warmer clothes, why does she still have a bottle, why are Angelina and Brad Pitt's girls not wearing pretty dresses, why is Kate Moss never seen with her child?
I can't understand the mentality of being so judgmental on other people's children and parenting skills. Why is it anyone's business?
I'm going to try and refrain from reading any more of the Mail because I always feel horrible afterwards but it certainly does epitomise the way motherhood is often viewed in this country.
I loathe that right wing rag and always feel horrible after reading it online but I do sometimes get drawn into reading the comments section when they write stories about celebrity children. Whenever they write about Suri Cruise or the Jolie Pitt children the message boards go mad…why are they being carried, why aren't they wearing dresses, why have they still got bottles, where's Kate Moss's daughter? Why are people so judgmental? Why is it anyone's business?
I know I shouldn't read them because it makes my blood boil and serves no purpose. Only sadness and curiosity as to why the Mail is so vicious and why people are so quick to condemn them.
The Mail makes me blow a gasket every time I get close to it. My family occasionally get it and then stand by to watch me go bright red and have steam come out of my ears. It is exactly because of articles like that that I can't read it.
If my children are tired, I carry them. So what? They are about the same age as Britney's kids.
I confess to reading the Mail online just to see how ridiculous their stories are. I even commented on the Britney story that I would probably carry my kids if there were papparazzi everywhere. Can you imagine being three feet tall and having pushy fat guys chasing you everywhere?
The Daily Mail is a pernicious little rag!
My colleagues all think the same. Which is why I don't understand why it is always the first to be picked up each morning in our office when we do our daily trawl of the papers….sometimes, by me !
Just another example of the pressure mothers are under to be perfect. 'You have to breastfeed', 'what you're still breastfeeding?', sleep with your child, put them in a cot and let them cry, feed them this, feed them that. It just goes on. I felt a lot of pressure with my first child to 'do thing right'. Once you have a second, it's just whatever you can to get by, be it dummies, carrying etc.
I don't leave the house without a dummy (we call them binkys) for my 2 1/2 year old. I'm not even going to try to take it away from her as we're about to have another baby (in 34 days!) and then we're moving to London in January. She'll need all the comfort she can get – but I'll be watching to see how you resolve this. Can't wait to read The Mail!