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Top Fatherhood Stories of 2010

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During 2010, fathers and fatherhood were in the news quite a bit.  From scandals involving to dads to stories about studies stressing the importance of fatherhood, these highlights illustrate what the media is saying about fathers and fatherhood.

1. Sons of Teen Fathers Likely to Become Teen Dads Themselves

Young FamilyGetty Images / Digital Vision
A new study from The Yale School for Public Health finds that sons born to teenage fathers are twice as likely to become teen fathers as sons not born to adolescent dads. The researchers surveyed about 1,500 teenage dads in the study. This article from Yale's School for Public Health provides some good background on the issue and summarizes the findings of the study. Parents have such an important role to play in helping children form attitudes about families. One of the researchers said "that parents are a major factor in shaping adolescent attitudes and often communicate their values and expectations through their behavior."

2. The Tiger Woods Affair Aftermath

Tiger Woods StatementCourtesy of the Associated Press

Tiger Woods made a very public apology to his fans and his families for his multiple affairs.  While he and his wife Elin eventually divorced during the year, Woods' apology sparked a lot of commentary about infidelity and its impact on the lives of families and children.

3. Lots More British Dads Staying Home

Father and BabyCourtesy of Photodisc / Getty Images
According to The Guardian, the number of fathers staying at home to raise children has increased in Great Britain by ten times in the last ten years. Certainly, the growing trend of stay-at-home dads is a positive for father-child relationships.

4. The Ethan Stacy Tragedy

Ethan StacyCourtesy of the Layton, Utah Police Department

Ethan Stacy was a little boy killed by his mom and her fiance in the Salt Lake City suburbs in May of 2010.  His father, who lived out of state, had custody and Ethan was on summer visitation with his mom.  Ethan's dad had fought sending him to his mom for the summer because of her history and her fiance.   The case pointed out many concerns about the custody system that mandates visits, even when a child might be at risk.

 

5. Milwaukee Mayor and Brewers Promote Responsible Fatherhood

Milwaukee Mayor Tom BarrettCourtesy of the Barrett for Governor Campaign

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barratt and the Milwaukee Brewers baseball team struck a chord in their campaign for responsible fatherhood. Mayor Barrett and about 50 fathers and their children recently flew to Minneapolis to attend a Brewers-Twins game and talk about fatherhood with Brewers team members. The charter flight was donated by Frontier Airlines and the children attending each received a savings bond from a Milwaukee bank.

6. New Study from Boston College on New Dads

Family with BabyPando Hall / Getty Images
The Boston College Center for Work and Family has released a new study looking at today's new fathers and how they differ from past generations of new dads. The study found that new dads see their role less as breadwinners and more as needing to "be there" with the family. Researchers also found that the growing number of women in the workforce and recent corporate downsizing resulting in more stay-at-home dads have helped change some of these perceptions over the last several years.

7. The Obama Fatherhood Briefing

Barack Obama, Democratic Presidential CandidateObama for America, Inc.
On July 29, President Barack Obama's Office of Public Engagement hosted a briefing with 50 fatherhood organizations and advocates from across the United States. The briefing included presentations from the Office of Public Engagement, the Council of Economic Advisers and the Department of Health and Human Services. The event sparked a lot of commentary and blogging on responsible fatherhood.

8. Sons Benefit from Close Relationship with Father

Dad and Son on BeachDigital Vision / Getty Images
A 2010 study presented at the American Psychological Association conference confirms what fathers have intuitively known for years - that a close relationship between a father and a son blesses the son throughout his life.

9. John Edwards and Little Quinn

John EdwardsWilliam Thomas Cain/Getty Images

Former presidential candidate John Edwards affair was back in the news in 2010 as he admitted to fathering a daughter, Quinn, and subsequently separated from his wife Elizabeth, who died later in the year from cancer.  The impact of the Edwards affair played out in such a public way.

10. Eric Holder Speaks on Fatherhood

Eric HolderGetty Images News
US Attorney General Eric Holder spoke at a meeting in Washington DC about fatherhood. His forum was the Alliance of Concerned Men, an organization working on addressing problems facing young black men. He shared his personal experiences with fatherhood and the importance of spending time in a family situation. His comments were used around the country to express the need for fathers to be more involved at home.

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