Adoptee Thoughts on ”An Update on Our Family” ft. Hannah Cho on Family, Identity & Social Media

2025-02-07

Welcome to Adoptee Thoughts, where each week, we dive deep into the nuanced world of adoption—unpacking challenges, perspectives, and the tough conversations that too often go unspoken. Whether you're an adoptee, an adoptive parent, or simply curious about the realities beyond the mainstream narrative, this is a space for raw, thought-provoking discussions. In this powerful episode, we dive into the world of adoption blogging with one of the key figures from the documentary An Update on the Family--Hannah Cho. She is a trans...

In this powerful episode, we dive into the world of adoption blogging with one of the key figures from the documentary An Update on the Family--Hannah Cho.

She is a transnational Korean American Adoptee, small business owner, mother and wife. Even though she knew from a very young age that she was adopted - she didn’t start accepting and ultimately embracing her adoption story until her twenties. Thanks to finding an amazing community online, first on youtube and then other social media platforms, she is now creating a space in the beauty industry for people who look like her and who like her, didn’t see others like them when growing up.

We also discuss the darker side of influencer culture, the commodification of adoption stories, and how viral fame can shape (and distort) narratives around adoptees and family life. What happens when content creation blurs the lines between storytelling and exploitation? And how do we shift the conversation to center adoptees rather than views and engagement metrics?

Find Hannah here: https://www.instagram.com/hellohannahcho/

and https://www.tiktok.com/@hannahchobeauty

**Join us as we break down the complexities of adoption, social media, and the responsibilities that come with storytelling in the digital age.**

We don’t shy away from the hard topics—because they matter.

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#AdopteeThoughts #AdoptionEthics #FamilyVlogging #HannahCho #AdopteeVoices

Resources:

Adoption & Foster Parent Influencing:

https://www.thedailybeast.com/should-foster-parents-be-allowed-to-monetize-their-kids/

Who Adopts:

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db12.pdf

Family Vlogger Laws:

https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Family/parenting-influencers-speak-new-law-designed-protect-kids/story?id=111580202

Rehoming:

https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2018/11/children-who-have-second-adoptions/575902/

https://www.newsweek.com/how-this-legal-woman-exposes-child-rehoming-ad-adoption-agency-viral-video-1667464

Adoption Disruption and Dissolutions:

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-HE23_1200-PURL-gpo145740/pdf/GOVPUB-HE23_1200-PURL-gpo145740.pdf