Adoption Pop!

Haley Radke, Kristal Parke, and Sullivan Summer
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Welcome to Adoption Pop! where a podcast journalist, a filmmaker, and a cultural critic burst pop culture's favorite adoption tropes. Each episode, we'll dive into movies, TV, and reality shows, from prestige dramas to the classics, to ask what these stories are really saying, and not saying, about adoption. And we'll get real about representation: how the world sees us, and how we see ourselves.

  1. 1d ago

    Little Bird Episodes 4-6 (2023) – Adoption on the Small Screen

    E028 | Little Bird Episodes 4-6 (2023) – Adoption on the Small Screen   In part two of this two-part episode, we cover the last three episodes of Little Bird, the Canadian dramatic series following a First Nations woman adopted into a Jewish family during the Sixties Scoop as she attempts to reconnect with her family and heritage. Based on real events of the past and present, Little Bird was the winner of six Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Drama, Best Direction, Best Lead Performer, Best Supporting Performer, Best Ensemble Performance, and Best Achievement in Casting. Join Canadian podcast journalist Haley Radke and Opaskwayak Cree filmmaker Kristal Parke, alongside cultural critic Sullivan Summer, as we close out this emotional episode of Adoption Pop! Little Bird was created by Catherine Bainbridge, Hannah Moscovitch, and Jennifer Podemski. Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers is the director. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on June 17, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: The research debunking the myth that "babies are blank slates" is plentiful. Here are just a few articles: "Does My Baby Recognize Me?," Yale Baby School; "Babies Brainer Than Many Imagine," Science Daily (May 7, 2009); "Mythbusters II: We Do NOT Begin As Blank Slates," Psychology Today (August 10, 2011); "The Brain Might Not Be a Blank Slate After All," Technology Networks (February 20, 2024).  Allyson Stevenson "Selling the Sixties Scoop: Saskatchewan's Adopt Indian and Métis Project," Achieve History (October 19, 2017) Sullivan mentioned an article by an adoptive mother who said, had she known at the time she adopted what she knows today, she would not have done so. With the daily enshittification of the internet and internet search (thank you AI-obsessed overlords), we can no longer locate that article. We have, however, found this interview with adoptive mom "Diana," which gets to the same issue. So now Sullivan has read two articles. Kristen Tsetsi, "Adoptive Mother Regrets Participating in Oppressive System," Medium (November 22, 2024). Missing & Murdered: Finding Cleo, CBC Nick Zarzycki, "A Q&A with Little Bird Creator Jennifer Podemski," Toronto Life (March 20, 2024) Lorraine Carpenter, "Indigenous activist Nakuset on seeing her Sixties Scoop story told in Little Bird," Cult MTL (June 13, 2023) Because She's Adopted, a film by Kristal Parke Allyson D. Stevenson, Intimate Integration: A History of the Sixties Scoop and the Colonization of Indigenous Kinship "Our Indian Program" operated by Louise Wise Services: Different Eligibility Requirements for Different Children 1961 form letter The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com and on Instagram.

    52 min

  2. Jun 10

    Little Bird Episodes 1-3 (2023) – Adoption on the Small Screen

    E027 | Little Bird Episodes 1-3 (2023) – Adoption on the Small Screen   In part one of a two-part episode, we cover the first three episodes of Little Bird, the Canadian dramatic series following a First Nations woman adopted into a Jewish family during the Sixties Scoop as she attempts to reconnect with her family and heritage. Based on real events of the past and present, Little Bird was the winner of six Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Drama, Best Direction, Best Lead Performer, Best Supporting Performer, Best Ensemble Performance, and Best Achievement in Casting. Join Canadian podcast journalist Haley Radke and Opaskwayak Cree filmmaker Kristal Parke, alongside cultural critic Sullivan Summer, on this special episode of Adoption Pop! Little Bird was created by Catherine Bainbridge, Hannah Moscovitch, and Jennifer Podemski. Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers is the director. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on June 10, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: The Adoptees On podcast Episode 110: Dr. Raven Sinclair. Because She's Adopted, a film by Kristal Parke Allyson D. Stevenson, Intimate Integration: A History of the Sixties Scoop and the Colonization of Indigenous Kinship Sandra HayesGardiner, Crossing the River: An Unsettling Memoir "Our Indian Program" operated by Louise Wise Services: Different Eligibility Requirements for Different Children 1961 form letter The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com and on Instagram.

    41 min

  3. Jun 3

    Annie (1982) – Adoption on the Big Screen

    E026 | Annie (1982) – Adoption on the Big Screen   We think you're gonna like it here on this episode of Adoption Pop! We're just thinkin' about 10-year-old Aileen Quinn in the role that would make her a star—in the film that became the blueprint for a better life. The 1982 big screen adaption of the 1977 Tony-winner, Annie was not well received by critics upon its release. It has just a 50% Rotten Tomatoes score, proving, if nothing else, that no one cares for you a smidge when you're in an orphanage. Give the maid the night off, and turn the kitchen light off—let's go to the movies with podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer. Annie (1982) was written by Carol Sobieski and directed by John Huston. It was based on the 1977 Broadway musical by Charles Strouse, Martin Charnin, and Thomas Meehan. The cartoon strip, Little Orphan Annie is by Harold Gray. More on him below. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on June 3, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: At the time of this recording, the legendary Carol Burnett is 93 years old. In 1998 hip hop artist Jay-Z sampled "It's the Hard Knock Life" from the 1977 musical for his song, "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)." It peaked at number 15 on Billboard's Hot 100, and was named by VHI as number 11 on their list of 100 Greatest Songs of Hip-Hop.  Actor Albert Finney was a cool 46 when he played bald billionaire Oliver Warbucks in Annie. (Sullivan regrets not calling out Kristal's hypocrisy on this one, because she distinctly remembers Kristal dogging bald men back on Episode 11: Love is Blind Season 1 UK (2024). But we guess that's what show notes are for.)  The song "Maybe" was made for adoptee resonance. In case you need it, here's a refresher. Harold Gray, creator of the comic strip Little Orphan Annie, does not appear to have had any connection to adoption. According to Wikipedia, he could trace his ancestry back to the 17th century, and his May 10, 1968 New York Times obituary mentions two wives, but no children. The Times also reports that Little Orphan Annie was modeled after a "street urchin" Gray met in Chicago. He made his cartoon Annie an orphan, "so she'd have no family, no tangling alliances, but freedom to go where she pleased." The book Annie is by Thomas Meehan. The audio version is narrated by Annie Potts. Five stars.  Kristen Martin, The Sun Won't Come Out Tomorrow: A Dark History of American Orphanhood (2025) John Huston, An Open Book (1980) Evelyn Keyes, Scarlett O'Hara's Younger Sister: My Lively Life In and Out of Hollywood (1977) Stanley Green, Broadway Musicals Show by Show, Ninth Edition (2019)     The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com and on Instagram.   We love you Miss Hannigan.

    41 min

  4. May 27

    Jersey Shore Family Vacation Season 8 (2025) – Adoption on the Small Screen

    E025 | Jersey Shore Family Vacation Season 8 (2025) – Adoption on the Small Screen   Before Bravo had a summer house in the Hamptons, MTV had a place on the Jersey Shore, where for six seasons Pauly D, J-Woww, Sammi Sweetheart, Vinny, Ronny, The Situation, and Snooki partied like it was the 2010s. The show spawned seven spinoffs, including Jersey Shore Family Vacation, back in summer 2026 for a ninth and final season. The gang is always up to something, including Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi who, last season, was up to reuniting with her birth mother for the very first time. Podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer have poofs and thoughts in equal measure on this one. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on May 27, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: If you, like Haley, struggle with the lingo, you can find a handy-dandy Jersey Shore dictionary here.  Nicole speaks to her birth mother on Jersey Shore Season 8, Episode 2 "Running … for Pizza."  The Adoptee Consciousness Model offers ways to think about how marginalized groups develop awareness about oppressive systems and structures both as individuals, and importantly as a collective, in order to engage in activism for social justice. It was created by JaeRan Kim, Susan Branco, Grace Newton, Paula O'Loughlin, and Stephanie Kripa Cooper-Lewter. Pamela Slaton is an adoptee, an investigative genealogist, and a DNA expert.  Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, "My Adoption Story," YouTube "Does Snooki Want to Meet Her Parents?" Jersey Shore Family Vacation on YouTube "Snooki Opens Up About Birth Mom Reunion, Next Steps, " TooMuchInfo on YouTube The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com and on Instagram.   Cabs are here!

    50 min

  5. May 20

    Virgin River Season 7 (2026) – Adoption on the Small Screen

    E024 | Virgin River Season 7 (2026) – Adoption on the Small Screen What do you get when you take sweeping mountain views, added to a fictional town of 627 people, with a magical sprinkle from the vivid imagination of a showrunner who is also a proud adoptive parent? You get the wildly problematic, seventh season of the cozy Netflix drama, Virgin River. Listen in as podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer read between the lines of this Pop! Star favorite: thank you to Dalia, Lisa, and Karri for suggesting! Virgin River is based upon the books by Robyn Carr. Season 7 Episode 7, "It Takes a Village" was directed by Ruba Nadda, and written by Becky Hartman Edwards, Robyn Carr, and Ildiko Susany. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on May 20, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Throughout this episode, Sullivan mistakenly refers to the showrunner as "Sean Patrick Smith," as he is named in one of the articles. His name is actually "Patrick Sean Smith." We apologize. (If only everyone were such sticklers for accurate representation).  Nellie Andreeva, "'Virgin River' Showrunner on Shocking Season 7 Life & Death Cliffhanger, Mel & Jack's Adoption Journey, Medical Utopia, LGBTQ Representation, & More," Deadline (March 12, 2026) John Griffiths, "Life with Fathers," televisionacademy.com (June 18, 2015) The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com and on Instagram.

    46 min

  6. May 13

    Law & Order "Charity Case" (2007) – Adoption on the Small Screen

    E023 | Law & Order "Charity Case" (2007) –Adoption on the Small Screen For more than 30 years, the people of New York City have been represented by two separate, yet equally important groups: the police, who investigate crime; and the district attorneys, who prosecute the offenders. This is just one of their stories. Join podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer as we take on a television institution, Law & Order, and just one of the adoption stories it ripped from the headlines over the years. A celebrity adoptive mother, an African AIDS orphan, and those two, iconic notes: duh duh. What could go wrong? Law & Order "Charity Case" aired on January 12, 2007. It was written by Nicholas Wootton and directed by Michael Pressman. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on May 13, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Dallas Real Housewife LeeAnne Locken's exact quote is: "I'm exhausted. My weave is exhausted. The pantiliner on my underwear is exhausted." And we're exhausted from looking for this video. You can watch it here.  Licensing the L&O theme song is well beyond the Adoption Pop! budget—even the iconic scene change duh duh is copyrighted music garnering royalties for composer Mike Post. Watch him talk about it, and listen to the real thing, here. Free of charge.  Mamuno is a small village settlement on the Botswana side of the Botswana-Namibia border in Africa.  Madonna's I Am Because We Are (2008) documentary was directed by Nathan Rissman. Journalist Jacques Peretti's counternarrative, Madonna & Mercy 'What Really Happened' is available in six parts on YouTube. Part 1 is here.  Koh Ewe, "These Adoptees Were Brought to the US as Babies. Now Some Fear They Were Stolen," Vice (April 27, 2022). Anna Chlumsky (pronounced CH-lum-skee) plays personal assistant and nanny Mary Calvin to Jennifer Beals's Sofia Archer in this L&O episode. Anna entered the GenX zeitgeist as Vada Sultenfuss in 1991's My Girl and, more recently, played reporter Vivian Kent in Netflix's Inventing Anna, about New York City con artist, Anna Delvey. This is a lot of Annas for one entry.   The text of the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 is here.  Robin F. Hansen, Prison Born: Incarceration and Motherhood in the Colonial Shadow (University of Regina Press, 2024). Listen to an interview with the author here. You can read more about forced separation of incarcerated mothers and children in Susan Hatters Friedman et. al, "The Realities of Pregnancy and Mothering While Incarcerated," The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online (May 2020). Saving Our Sisters is a registered 501(c)(3) organization empowering families, and providing education and resources to make truly informed decisions in the face of unplanned pregnancy.  The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and wherever you get your podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com, on Instagram, and on Substack.  RIP Thomas J.

    54 min

  7. May 6

    Mommie Dearest (1981) – Adoption on the Big Screen

    E022 | Mommie Dearest (1981) – Adoption on the Big Screen   For adoptees, Mother's Day can carry complexity and tough emotions. So we decided to lean all the way into the discomfort with a film legendary critic Roger Ebert called "unremittingly depressing," writing that he could not "imagine who would want to subject themselves to this movie." Roger Ebert obviously never met podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer, all of whom subjected themselves to a film that is two hours and nine minutes of pure activation for adopted people: Mommie Dearest. This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on May 6, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Mommie Dearest by Christina Crawford (1978) Christina Crawford on the Phil Donahue Show (1978) "Method" refers to a style of acting preparation developed by actor and director Konstantin Stanislavski, and popularized in the US by Lee Strasberg by which the actor makes use of experiences in their own lives to bring them closer to the character.  In the episode, Sullivan references a study showing a prevalence of narcissism in adoptive mothers. She was referring to this study which, to clarify, looks at infertile women, not adoptive mothers specifically.  Joan Crawford, My Way of Life (1971) A. Ashley Hoff, With Love, Mommie Dearest (2024) Charlotte Chandler, Not the Girl Next Door: Joan Crawford, A Personal Biography (2008) Faye (2024) directed by Laurent Bouzereau American Film Institute's 100 Years … 100 Heros and Villains American Film Institute's 100 Years … 100 Movie Quotes Roger Ebert, "Mommie Dearest Review" (January 1, 1981) The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com, on Instagram, and on Substack.

    45 min

  8. Apr 29

    Wuthering Heights (2026) – Adoption on the Big Screen

    E021 | Wuthering Heights (2026) – Adoption on the Big Screen   We went deep into the canon for this one, dusting off and stitching together a whole undergraduate English literature syllabus (with Cliffs Notes, Sparks Notes, note cards, and whatever else we were using to make it through our book reports pre-Chat GPT) to bring you our take on Emily Brontë's 1847 gothic romance classic, Wuthering Heights. Whether you're pro the most recent Emerald Fennell blockbuster, or prefer to stick closer to the original text, you won't be disappointed by hot and steamy (and cringey) adoptee-centered takes from podcast journalist Haley Radke, filmmaker Kristal Parke, and cultural critic Sullivan Summer.  Thank you to Pop! Star Justin for suggesting we cover Wuthering Heights! This episode of Adoption Pop! aired on April 29, 2026. In it we discussed and/or relied upon: Haley's high school literature faves are: Lord of the Flies by William Golding (1954); 1984 by George Orwell (1949); and Animal Farm, also by George Orwell (1945). Can you say "adoptee dystopia?" If you too could use an Earnshaw-Linton family tree, you can find one here.    Fun fact: Actor Tom Hardy, Heathcliff in the 2009 Masterpiece version of Wuthering Heights, went on to marry Charlotte Riley, the actress who played his Catherine, and who probably doesn't want to hear Kristal talk about her husband's top lip.    Heathcliff is 6 or 7 years old when Mr. Earnshaw returns with him from Liverpool. Catherine is around 17 when she marries Edgar Linton, and dies the following year, making her one half the age of the actress who plays her in the 2026 film version. Eyebrow raise.  Licensed Clinical Social Worker Leslie Pate McKinnon does work in the area of genetic sexual attraction. You can hear more from her in Episode 65 of the Adoptees On podcast.   Actress Alison Oliver played Isabella Linton in the 2026 film version. Five stars.  Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights (1847) has been adapted numerous times. We watched the following versions: directed by Emerald Fennell and starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi (2026); for Masterpiece starring Tom Hardy and Charlotte Riley (2009); directed by Peter Kosminsky and starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche (1992); directed by William Wyler and starring Laurence Olivier and Marle Oberon (1939).   Winifred Gerin, Emily Brontë: A Biography (1971) Muriel Spark and Derek Stanford, Emily Brontë: Her Life and Work (1966) Norma Crandall, Emily Brontë, a Psychological Portrait (1957) Jackie Kay, Red Dust Road (2010) Maja-Lisa von Sneidern, "Wuthering Heights and the Liverpool Slave Trade," ELH (1995) Reginald Watson, "Images of Blackness in the Works of Charlotte and Emily Brontë," CLA Journal (2001) The Adoption Pop! theme music is The Chase by Audiogreen. We'd love to hear what you thought of this episode, and what you'd like for us to cover in the future. Find, follow, like, and subscribe to Adoption Pop! at our website, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.  Podcast journalist Haley Radke is at adopteeson.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.  Filmmaker Kristal Parke is at kristalparke.net, on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.  Cultural critic Sullivan Summer is at sullivansummer.com, on Instagram, and on Substack.   Heathcliff = 3. Catherine = 0.

    44 min
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About

Welcome to Adoption Pop! where a podcast journalist, a filmmaker, and a cultural critic burst pop culture's favorite adoption tropes. Each episode, we'll dive into movies, TV, and reality shows, from prestige dramas to the classics, to ask what these stories are really saying, and not saying, about adoption. And we'll get real about representation: how the world sees us, and how we see ourselves.

Information

  • Creator
    Haley Radke, Kristal Parke, and Sullivan Summer
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    30
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025
  • Show Website
    Adoption Pop!

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