The idea of orphans as entertainment is certainly not new, but it's not often I see two stories on the theme in the same day.

The first was review of a horror flick called "The Orphanage" which takes place in Spain.

The review isn't great, but the film appears to deal with both old and new orphan themes.

At the same time, Daniel Radclliffe, who has played three orphans and little else in his almost-decade-long career, is interviewed about his various parent-less roles.

His... more

A story in the New York Times brings the history of adoption in America into the news of the day, providing a perspective often unknown and frequently ignored.

The NYT article details individual bits of history collected by what was once known as the New York Foundling Asylum, but now goes by the same sans the asylum bit.

The New York Foundling is a 137-year-old family services agency in Manhattan, and its collection of documents, photos and memorabilia... more

In a follow, a 'Part Two', actually to the Al Jazeera attempt at adoption bashing I wrote about recently, a writer for Carolina Hope continues an excellent dissection, including a well-thought detailing of the prejudicial language that set the tone of the program. His 'Part One' is here, with the YouTube video.

Anyone needing evidence of how nasty people can become need... more

In a dramatic turn of events, the birth mother of little Max, the infant at the root of the Missouri adoption fiasco that appears to be all about prejudice against fat, has gone public with her disgust with the present situation.

Having her cousin's family, the Stocklaufers, raise her child was her adoption plan, and her goal for Max. As birth parents will attest, this is not a decision made lightly nor without pain. To overturn or overlook her choice for her child seems the height of arrogance.

News out of Australia suggests that parents there are... more

I recieved this this morning and am passing it along almost exactly as it came to me. At this time, I have no other information, but with this as time-specific as it is, I decided to post the information without taking the time ... possibly the weekend ... to verify the details.

A bureaucratic nightmare has forced the stoppage of Haitian children from receiving their U.S. visa and joining their forever families here in the U.S. A simple phone call from the U.S. Department of State to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security would quickly and easily resolve this situation. To date, no such phone call has occurred and Haitian children continue to suffer needlessly. We are... more

Adoption Media, LLC, the company that had the remarkably good sense to hire me to write this News Blog, the International Adoption Blog, and the geezer-aimed Older Parent Adoption Blog, has recently distributed around 400 cuddly bears to adoption-related service organizations, and has another 700 or so to donate to kids in the process of being adopted.

Adoption.com teamed up with the Build-a-Bear Workshop and that Joint Council on International Children's Services to put bears in the arms of kids waiting for families.

Happier... more

Fiction's most famous orphan since Annie is doing it again.

Daniel Radcliffe, the 18-year-old who's been film's version of Harry Potter since he was eleven, is playing another orphan in a family drama called "December Boys". An Australian story based on a novel by Michael Noonan, it's about four orphaned boys on holiday and the tension created when it appears that one may be close to being adopted.

Demanding compensation for ruined childhoods, an organization in Israel, Children and Orphan Holocaust Survivors, is ... more

In a very sensible move, Madonna's publicist, Liz Rosenberg, has publicly stepped forward and announced that there is no new news on the adoption of Malawian-born David, the toddler Madonna and husband brought home a year ago next month.

Seems a silly thing to make a 'to do' over non-happenings, but so goes the world of celebrity anythings.

Ms. Rosenberg has informed the media that there has been no interference, no "use... more

Given the journalistic ugliness that my Monday kicked off with... see today's International Adoption Blog for details ... I'd like to start of this week's News Blog with something pretty ...

How about Brad Pitt?

Not only is he easy on the eyes, when he talks about his kids he radiates a dad beauty that has the perfect touch of real: "I love it and can't recommend it any more highly - although sleep is non-existent."

He sure looks to be holding up well,... more

Starting today's news with a shocker, the follow-up to the Gary Stocklaufer story has many people, me included, fuming ... and wondering what the heck is going on with the world.

Can an adoptive father go much further than to put himself under the knife to prove how important a child is to his family?

Please read Deb's blog post today for a deeper look, and ways to help.

The Wall Street Journal has ... more