April 22, 2015
By Ned Holstein, MD, MS, Founder and Acting Executive Director, National Parents Organization
In a major coup for the shared parenting movement, The Wall Street Journal published a prominent article on April 17 (here) highlighting that approximately 20 states are currently considering shared parenting legislation. National Parents Organization was pleased to bring this important legislation to the Journal’s attention and grateful that the publication responded with national coverage that included a print story and WSJ video.
Entitled “Big Shift Pushed in Custody Disputes,” the article ran in a highly prominent position above the fold on page A3 with a large color photograph of Colorado activist Carl Roberts and his sons.
Reporter Ashby Jones quoted National Parents Organization member of the Board and Ohio State faculty member Don Hubin, Ph.D. He also quoted Roberts (and his ex-wife), and pro-shared parenting child development researcher Linda Nielsen, Ph.D. of Wake Forest University.
“There have been a lot of studies in recent years that show that when you share parenting duty — when both the mother and the father share at least 35 percent of the actual parenting responsibilities — the outcomes are very good for children,” Jones commented in The Wall Street Journal’s video report, which accompanied the online version of the story here.
This latest national coverage in The Wall Street Journal, which is the most widely circulated paper in America, is another step in our march toward achieving family court reform. We appreciate The Wall Street Journal’s interest in this issue, and believe that its attention represents tangible progress for our movement compared to as recently as a few years ago. We look forward to continuing to advocate for shared parenting and parental equality across the nation.
Credit also belongs to Massachusetts activist Terry Brennan, who first reported on shared parenting legislation being filed across the nation.