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Breastfed Baby Dies on Chicago Hope

© Jessica Williams

Over the last few weeks, breastfeeding advocates have been stirring. A rumor about an upcoming Chicago Hope (Wednesdays, CBS) episode has spread like wildfire. Why all the fuss? Because this episode is said to portray breastfeeding as a killer.

When Helen Hunt's character, Jamie, on the popular NBC sitcom Mad About You had her baby, letters from breastfeeding advocates and mothers poured into the station's mailbox. Each expressed their own view differently, but the main message remained: Jamie should breastfeed her baby. Whether the producers responded to the wish of their faithful viewers, or had already planned her feeding method is unclear, but Jamie did breastfeed. As Chicago Hope's episode air date creeps up, the rumors have evolved into more constructive information. As I watched this information form, I began to see why people were getting so upset.

At the CBS web site, this blurb was shown for the episode, which airs tomorrow, Oct. 21, 1998:

When the woman arrives in the E.R. with a dead infant, Grad suspects the parents of starving their child to death. The new mother was following the hospital's recommendation to breastfeed, and her child wasn't getting enough milk, but Grad, incensed for personal and professional reasons, files charges.

The episode is named: "The Breast and the Brightest", and no one really knows what will transpire. The character "Grad" may be motivated to file charges against the mother of the dead child because of personal reasons, as implied by the above blurb, but what those reasons are, we just don't know...yet. Regardless of how the scenes play out, a plan of action has formed.

Some of the world's top organizations for breastfeeding education and child health have teamed up to counter the episode with a 90-second video news release (VNR). Medela, one of the leading breastfeeding accessory companies, formed this news release with La Leche League International, Well Start, the International Lactation Consultants Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics that informs mothers on how to determine if her child is getting enough milk.

Local affiliates of CBS, along with the other top broadcasting networks (NBC, ACB, FOX, etc.), will have the opportunity to receive this VNR via satellite today and tomorrow (Oct. 20-21) with the option to air it voluntarily before, during or after the Chicago Hope episode. A 1-2 minute "B-roll" will also be available for those stations who wish to do a full story on this topic.