Over the past two years, parents have struggled to find ways to adapt to the ever-shifting parameters and challenges of the pandemic, even as they work through all the frenzied complexities it has wrought. Yahoo Life aims to showcase all aspects of parenthood, from the celebrations and successes to the overwhelming fears and anxieties, striving for inclusive stories portraying all parents.
Yahoo Life prioritizes content for parents, with short digital series / specials featuring conversations with experts, celebrities, and real families dealing with specific challenges from health issues to generational obstacles, offering our viewers helpful information and support.
Prior to the pandemic, juggling career and kids was every mother’s ongoing challenge; however, the global pandemic added infinite layers of difficulty and hardship. The emotional strain on our children is a big concern and families everywhere are dealing with the pandemic's effects on their kids’ physical and mental well-being.
Pandemic anxieties and changes aside, Black mothers face completely separate fears. The aftermath of George Floyd’s murder and the incessant headlines have further cemented trauma within the Black community, and we knew it was essential to elevate the stories of mothers within the Black community.
In 2021, Yahoo Life’s original content portrayed both the joys and fears of parenting, catering to our diverse community of parents.
Yahoo Life’s ongoing parenting series, So Mini Ways, features experts and celebrities opening up about the challenges and joys of child-rearing. Padma Lakshmi, Idina Menzel, and Allyson Felix are among those who have shared their personal parenting experiences, while experts and influencers like Dr. Becky, Charnaie Gordon, Dr. Wendy Mogel, and Melina Wenner Moyer have dispensed advice on navigating parenting challenges.
A Woman’s History Month special, Reset Your Mindset: Pandemic Parenting welcomed celebrity moms including Kristen Bell, Mayim Bialik, Sherri Shepherd, Drew Barrymore, Kathie Lee Gifford, Soleil Moon Frye, Gail Simmons, Vanessa Williams, Candace Cameron Bure, Jodie Sweeten, Tia Mowry, and Cameran Eubanks. These guests offered their stories of struggle and successes and the tips that helped them survive throughout the year. Kristen Bell described how quarantine has shown her the importance of flexibility as she interacted with her children, while Drew Barrymore candidly described her stint as a homeschooler and how it buoyed the spirits of other working home-bound moms. Holly Robinson Peete proudly shared her austistc son's accomplishments and how hard she worked to help him make them possible. We also heard inspiring stories from mom-preneurs, moms working on the frontlines of the fight against the novel coronavirus, LGBTQ moms, and many others around the country offering their insights, empathy, and coping tips.
“Unmuted” is Yahoo Life’s ongoing series amplifying the voices of diverse change makers in unfiltered conversations about overcoming obstacles and representing marginalized communities.
Understanding that black parents face unique difficulties, Yahoo Life interviewed a mother and son about the constant barrage of headlines detailing the death of young Black men at the hands of law enforcement. Like many mothers of Black children, Price has had “the talk” with her three sons about potential threats from the police. As a parent, Price felt like it was important for her to be transparent with her sons about the realities they would face as they grew from Black boys to Black men.
Yahoo Life also interviewed a mother with autism raising two sons who are also on the autism spectrum and the unique challenges of living in a society that doesn't understand ASD, especially as a Black family. She expressed the importance of community and access to resources as a huge help to neurodiverse families.
For those who grew up with absent parents, parenthood can be especially daunting. Yahoo Life spoke with Charles Daniels of Fathers’ Uplift, an organization that helps men of color become more present fathers through mental health counseling and mentorship.
Yahoo Life spoke with CNN’s Rene Marsh who experienced every parent’s worst fear of losing their child. After tragically losing her son to cancer, the number one cause of death from disease among children, Rene decided to honor her son by raising awareness and funds for pediatric cancer research to help spare others from suffering the same fate.
Other interviews cover topics impacting LGBTQ and BIPOC communities, living with a disability or mental health issues, and the everyday struggles of parenthood exacerbated by the pandemic and other current events, while celebrating the commonalities parents around the world share.
These unique and heart-warming messages resonated with the Yahoo Life audience, garnering over 330M content views across all of our parenting content in 2021. So Mini Ways touched and inspired 9.4M users, while the Pandemic Parenting livestream and VOD content brought advice and support to 8M total viewers.
Parenting is already challenging enough and the pandemic unleashed problems that most parents have never faced. We successfully showcased a path forward from a diverse and wise group of parents, who raise us up with their supportive stories while showing us that we are not alone.
