Susan Douglas, co-author of the “The Mommy Myth,” has been tempted to lock her daughter in a dog crate in the basement. Most days she doesn’t experience the “festival of lights” that the media, she says, make motherhood out to be. And just because women would rather read a novel once in a while than play endless games of Barbie, they do not have attitude problems.

Click the “Listen” link to hear Susan Douglas talk about images of motherhood in the media, how realistic they are, and how they’ve undermined women.

Guests:

Susan Douglas, professor of communication studies, University of Michigan. She is co-author of the new book “The Mommy Myth: The Idealization of Motherhood and How It Has Undermined Women.” She is also the author of “Listening In: Radio and the American Imagination” and “Where the Girls Are: Growing Up Female with the Mass Media.”