The Perils of (Bad Reporting on) Home Birth

Just when you think we’ve gone beyond safety issues with regard to homebirth — what with the findings in this study and, more recently, this one, among others — the Today show goes and airs “The Perils of Home Birth,” a seven-minute segment so poorly reported, so one-sided and salacious, that instead of feeling defensive and outraged — I laughed. Out loud. Alone!

Here’s what I learned: women choose home birth because it’s “hedonistic,” and the equivalent of a spa treatment. Furthermore, reporter Peter Alexander suggests that women choose home birth because famous people like Meryl Streep and Demi Moore had some babies at home. Home birth, Alexander says, is “fashionable, trendy and the latest cause celebre.”

Spa treatments? Cause celebre? (Demi Moore?!) Continue reading »

Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington and Other Celebrities’ Birth Stories

One thing that had been sorely missing from homebirth advocacy was a celebrity spokesperson. Then Ricki Lake and her documentary, the Business of Being Born came along. Suddenly, it seemed, home birth was taken out of the patchouli saturated communal tent and brought into mainstream Americans’ living rooms, where they were sitting in blow-up kiddie pools having babies.

The media started talking about home birth as a reasonable and safe birthing option for many, many women — not just crazy cult Christians and yoga instructors. Continue reading »