A Much-Needed Reality Check Against Anti-Choice Rhetoric

I’ve been a big fan of RH Reality Check since it started way back in, oh, 2006.

Yes, that’s right. It’s only been around for a year. Yet in a very short amount of time, the UN Foundation-supported site has become a major player in online political discussions, bringing together journalists, activists and medical experts on domestic and global reproductive health issues.

It’s now getting the attention it deserves. Writing at Women’s eNews, Sheila Gibbons gives a great overview of how RH Reality Check smartly counters anti-choice rhetoric, noting the contributions from well-known bloggers and its role as a “reference hub for material coming out of reproductive and maternal health advocacy groups, think tanks, universities and health research organizations.”

“We began as a simple little blog to introduce the concept to the leadership of the major advocacy organizations in the reproductive health community. Then we began to put the pieces together to grow what is a thriving new media site” says Editor Scott Swenson, who describes more about what RH Reality Check has in the works here.

RH Reality Check is also interested in coalition building among reproductive health advocates.

“The advocacy community is very strong but a lot of conversations seem to have been behind closed doors,” Associate Editor Amie Newman tells Gibbons. “RH Reality Check has the potential to bring the dialogue out in public. It’s a little scary for the reproductive health communities to have this out in the open, but through the site we can host articles from major leaders and writers who can discuss political strategies and a whole range of issues.”

RH Reality Check makes it easy for readers to customize news preferences and engage in dialogue with writers and other readers. Learn more about submitting articles and other ways to get involved, including becoming a wiki editor. Very cool.