1. Provide the title of your story or series and the names of the journalists involved.
Health and Wellness episode: The Challenges of Breastfeeding Correspondent: Dr. Jen Ashton Producer: Jessica Goldman Producer/editor: Natalie Jimenez Senior Producer: Michael Wuebben
2. List date(s) this work was published or aired.
First published on CBSNews.com on April 20, 2010
3. Provide a brief synopsis of the story or stories, including any significant findings.
In the Health and Wellness segment, "The Challenges of Breastfeeding," we wanted to confront two common misconceptions to breastfeeding. One, that formula feeding is generally considered better or just as good for the baby, and two, that it's a lot of hard work. We reached out to a prominent New York lactation consultant Freda Rosenfeld to take us through the benefits of breastfeeding and some of her tips to make learning to nurse easy. Our correspondent Dr. Jen Ashton, a practicing OB-GYN, also struggled at first with nursing and was able to relate to the nursing mothers in our story. As a result of this piece, we received a huge wave of positive feedback from breastfeeding advocates for our frank and informative approach and we were able to continue the discussion online through Dr. Ashton's blog.
4. Explain types of documents, data or Internet resources used. Were FOI or public records act requests required? How did this affect the work?
We did consult the International Lactation Consultants site at ILCA.org. We also did extensive research on nursing support websites such as BestforBabes.org and lalecheleague.com where we discovered a large community of mothers and their families yearning for answers and advice on a subject the mainstream media has been reluctant to cover.
5. Explain types of human sources used.
As a practicing OB-GYM, Dr. Jen Ashton brought her years of experience to the discussion. And we sought out New York's best known lactation consultant, Freda "The Breast Whisperer" Rosenfeld. We also consulted Felina Rakowski-Gallagher, founder of "The Upper Breast Side" nursing store.
6. Results (if any).
We were able to deliver a unique and informative video segment that will live online in purpetuity and hopefully it will be part of a new wave of positive coverage on breastfeeding.
7. Follow-up (if any). Have you run a correction or clarification on the report or has anyone come forward to challenge its accuracy? If so, please explain.
We have not run any corrections or clarifications nor has anyone challenged our accuracy but BestforBabes.org did break down our segment in a glowing review on its blog: http://bit.ly/bSv1au That spurred a response from Senior Producer Mike Wuebben to share a very unique challenge his wife had that became an inspiration to many mothers of children with special needs:
http://bit.ly/9fpSJ5
8. Advice to other journalists planning a similar story or project.
Our editorial team knew we wanted to cover this subject because we had each had personal experiences that touched us, but the overwhelming online discussion convinced us it was vital that we try to set the record straight. Our jobs as health journalists are to answer questions. The first step, then, is to find out what pressing questions the audience needs answered.