Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Rebecca and Sharon Flynn of Eugene, Ore., had a baby girl. They named her Hailey and last May submitted a birth announcement to their local paper, the (Eugene) Register-Guard. Managing Editor Dave Baker declined to publish the free announcement with both of the women's names, saying that the paper publishes only the names of the biological parents if the couple is not married.

The Flynns submitted a complaint with their local Human Rights Commission, which wasn't surprising, since Rebecca is a member of the Commission. That left the paper in the uncomfortable position of covering itself as the subject of a meeting. The item was relegated to "in other business" treatment; it appeared in today's newspaper at the bottom of a story about the commission's decision not to act on a recommendation to city hall about including transgendered residents in anti-discrimination laws.

The six paragraphs summed up the story:

In other business, commission members said Tuesday they remain hopeful of persuading The Register-Guard to revise its policy on the publication of birth notices.

Commission members last month voted unanimously to place the issue on their work plan, after a same-sex couple protested the newspaper's refusal to include both their names as part of their child's birth notice.

Earlier Tuesday, Managing Editor Dave Baker said the newspaper plans to stick with its current policy.

"We've heard some complaints and concerns, but our policy is that  we don't include in birth announcements the names of unmarried partners unless they're biological parents," Baker said.

The issue first surfaced last May when Rebecca Flynn and Sharon Flynn asked that the newspaper publish the notice of the birth of their daughter, Hailey. Sharon Flynn gave birth to the child; because the couple wanted a child with both their features, they arranged for Rebecca Flynn's cousin to provide the genetic material.

In a letter to the newspaper in October, the Flynns said the newspaper's refusal to list their daughter's birth, alongside both their names as parents, was "upsetting and shocking." They said they decided against submitting an announcement listing only Sharon Flynn, so as not to "create the inaccurate impression that Hailey has only one parent."

Rebecca Flynn, an attorney and homemaker, is a member of the Human Rights Commission. Sharon Flynn is an internist.

It's an interesting issue. Baker told me yesterday that he queried several other independently-owned newspapers, only to learn that none of them had been confronted with similar requests. He asked me if I knew of any and I don't. Many large newspapers don't face the issue because they don't run birth announcements. I suspect most papers employ a sort of "don't ask, don't tell" policy on birth notices.

In a way, I think this issue is easier than the question of whether to publish same-sex marriage announcements (for a quick history of the newsrooms and marriage announcements, see this AJR article). Most newspapers do not require proof of parentage. Most don't even ask for a copy of the official birth certificate. Ultimately, whatever standard a newsroom creates must be enforced uniformly. If the standard for birth announcements is listing only the biological parent(s) when partners are not married, that will be tough to enforce. Baker said his strategy is to simply ask. The paper will not require any documentation.

Anyone know what other newspapers across the country are doing to accommodate gay and lesbian parents?
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