Still the ‘trusty anvil’?: media perspectives on adoption reform in England

Although media influence has long been recognised within adoption, there has been relatively little research into the nature of coverage. This article focuses on press articles from five national daily newspapers and their Sunday sister papers in the years 2010-14. This broadly coincides with the period of coalition government and the focus is on its reform programme. Findings reveal strong support for the government’s reform programme, its rationale within child welfare and many of its specific measures, but additionally divisions between newspapers, with critical comment found almost entirely within one pairing.

Particular themes developed are those of excessive bureaucracy and politically motivated opposition to adoption. Race and ethnicity emerge as the most frequently covered issues, dominated by critique of barriers to transracial adoption. Principal themes are often developed with inaccurate, misleading or exaggerated reporting, which in turn raises the question of how adoption agencies might respond to this.