British TV personality Piers Morgan mocked Daniel Craig for carrying his daughter. Photo / Getty Images
British journalist and television personality Piers Morgan lit up social media Sunday when he tweeted a photo of James Bond star Daniel Craig wearing his infant daughter in a baby carrier.
Many of Morgan's 6.5 million followers were less than impressed with the dad-shaming stunt. The response was swift and severe: The Brit was widely criticized for his skewed image of manhood, in which he claimed that Craig's choice of parenting gear was a sign of emasculation rather than practicality.
Some users responded by calling Morgan names -- like "insecure manbaby" and "sexist jackwagon." Others attempted a more rational approach by explaining the benefits of baby carriers, which allow parents to keep children close, yet have their hands unoccupied while strolling on the street.
Still others wrote that a father taking care of his child, even wearing a papoose, is attractive. A handful of men responded with photos of themselves wearing them.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.Morgan could not be reached for comment; neither could Craig, who recently welcomed his daughter with actress Rachel Weisz to the world.
It's not newsworthy to see that many men are engaged partners in parenting. They change nappies and handle late-night whimpers. They strap babies to their chests and go about the day's business, too. They're part of a generation whose mothers and fathers embrace their nurturing side and share the workload at home.
Morgan, a father himself, did not stand down or waffle; he maintained that papooses are "ridiculous instruments of emasculation."
Instead, he defended his honour on the social media platform, latching onto the steady stream of papoose-related content and goading President Donald Trump to share his thoughts on the baby carrier:
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME."Everyone else seems to be getting very worked up about them. I don't really have you down as a papoose kinda guy, but then you're full of surprises."
Trump did not take the bait. But Avengers actor Chris Evans did - along with numerous others on Twitter.
You really have to be so uncertain of your own masculinity to concern yourself with how another man carries his child. Any man who wastes time quantifying masculinity is terrified on the inside.
— Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) October 16, 2018
That’s a photo of Daniel Craig – a father with his child.
— Frank Luntz (@FrankLuntz) October 15, 2018
Imagine lacking so much confidence in your own masculinity that you think Daniel Craig has been emasculated because he carries his child around.
— Jessica Huseman (@JessicaHuseman) October 15, 2018
— 𝐎. 𝐀𝐥𝐚𝐧 𝐍𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞 (@TheAlanNoble) October 15, 2018
Calling the tweet-lashing a "ferocious Papoose-gate debate," Morgan's foregone conclusion was that there must be a change in James Bond casting. Clearly, he said, the world needs a "007 who looks sharp in a tux & wouldn't be seen dead in a papoose."
