Thursday, October 26, 2006

PriMadonna

I had a bout of insomnia last night so I decided to turn on the television. Surprise, surprise! Oprah was on. It looked semi-interesting since Madonna was on albeit via satellite. This made me realize that it's not just serialized television shows that are in danger of extinction due to the latest technology. Even talk shows and award ceremonies have to watch their backs now. More and more celebrities are relying on satellites and web cameras thus, making less and less live appearances. Then again, the new technology could work to their advantage since they can interview celebrities and have them present or accept awards even if they're on foreign soil.

Going back to Madonna, she was talking about her Malawi adoption of a boy named David. At first, David's biological father gave his consent to the singer, thanking her. Then, he recanted saying he didn't realize that giving his son up for adoption meant that he'd never see David again. Some say Madonna shouldn't be surprised at the slow rate this is going. For one thing, the language of Malawi doesn't have a term for "adoption." Let alone established laws on the matter.

Although there's nothing fresh about this issue, what I found new was Madonna's slant on it. She blames the media for all this. She claims that they're the reason why David's father took back his consent. She says that anyone who lives a simple life and is suddenly thrust into the spotlight by the harassing media is bound to cave. Madonna states that her anger is fueled even more because by doing this, the media is discouraging other people to adopt. No one wants to go through the same difficulties she did and that means less children are coming out of Africa to lead better lives.

Although I see her point, I think that most people have their ideas made up about adoption. Either they plan to do so or they don't. Those who are seriously considering it already know that the adoption process is long and difficult whether it's here or abroad. They don't need the press to tell them that. In fact, it's the media that spreads the news about all these celebrities adopting in the first place. Without them, people wouldn't be encouraged further to adopt children from third world countries.

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