Lana Whited at Roanoke.Com

It's a hot time to be a dad -- and not just because tomorrow is Father's Day. A slick new magazine called "dads" has hit newsstands, and former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Boomer Esiason, an investor, has been stumping morning TV on its behalf. Based on my reading of the first issue, I'd say it's worth stumping -- and the concept of fathers involved in their children's lives certainly deserves a platform.

The dad fad is also fueled by several other sources: parenting web sites aimed at men, books like Robert Franks' "The Involved Father," and media coverage of the recent Summit on Fatherhood in Washington, D.C. Books about boys' emotional lives, such as William Pollack's "Real Boys" and Michael Thompson and Dan Kindlon's "Raising Cain," provide a corollary to this trend. Perhaps the next generation of fathers won't need so many resources to be successful parents because we will have raised them to know how.

It's tempting to say that those who are busy being dads don't have time to read about it -- especially if they're new dads. But editor Eric Garland points out that dads need help, and if there are numerous print, electronic, and human resources for mothers, fathers "carry on in somewhat solo fashion. That independent, do-it-yourself impulse is ingrained in us . . . But that style is not really what works for a family."

Part of what I like about this magazine is its no-nonsense take on men. It lacks the "I am FATHER; hear me roar" tone that I feared I'd find. Instead, its approach is "Men want to be better parents; they face some biological and cultural hurdles women don't face, and they need some help." The editors' honesty is clear in Garland's statement that today's young fathers are "perhaps the first (generation) to act as substantial, almost equal, caregivers for (their) children." Note the "almost" there. We women couldn't take them seriously without it.

"dads" is a useful resource for every father who, handed a newborn, wants to ask, "doesn't it come with an owner's manual?" It provides a balance of brief tips and in-depth articles. The bulkier features in the debut issue are a profile of Cal Ripken, the Orioles' Iron Man, who talks about how he tries to keep his celebrity out of his family; a guide for surviving a trip to Disney World; a look at a new computer game from the makers of Sim City that allows players to simulate human relationships (think of it as a "make-your-own sitcom" game); and a more psychological article about keeping sons from being overwhelmed by "the boy code."

The briefer columns and departments also concern issues on dads' minds: how to continue sexual relationships after children arrive, the "terrible twos," selecting a computer for a child, standardized testing, school violence, family investing, body piercing, and how car makers are "souping up" the minivan so that dad won't be ashamed of it. There are regular reviews of books, videos, and music for both kids and fathers and even dad-friendly recipes.

I particularly enjoyed three articles in the premier issue. The first was "Breaking the Boy Code." Boys' liberation from the macho ideal is long overdue. The second piece was an examination of ABC's "Once and Again" dad. Adweek writer Debra Goldman explains why Rick Sammler, a divorced father of two, is too perfect. In the third article, James Reynolds (who researched HBO's award-winning documentary "Journey of the African-American Athlete") writes of his experience with the "N" word and provides useful tips for teaching children not to use ethnic slurs.

These articles may not win any magazine industry awards, but frankly, they're meatier than the ones in most mainstream women's magazines. Garland and staff have also made some shrewd editorial decisions: debuting the magazine in time for Father's Day gift subscriptions, capitalizing on men's interest in sports, and recruiting contributors with name recognition (Esiason, Ripken, Frank McCourt, Ben Stein). This staff appears to know its market.

If "dads" has a limitation, thus far it seems to be the magazine's aim toward fathers of older children. I didn't see much in the premiere issue that would interest expectant dads or men raising infants. There's health information for dad (vasectomy, Viagra, etc.) but no "Baby's Health" department, and parents of infants have a lot of medical questions. The M.D. with a Q-and-A column is a psychiatrist, not a pediatrician. I'm hoping that will rotate.

And sometimes it feels like too much of "dads" content is directed at fathers' concerns about themselves: Visit Disney World while minimizing your children's fatigue, hunger, and restlessness with lines. Drop these hints for Father's Day (no item cheaper than $55). Here are some beers you might want to try. But to be fair, there are two sides to most of these topics. It's not as though it's good for your kids to whine their way through a theme park.

Internet sites devoted to fathers are plentiful, starting with dads' electronic counterpart, edads, which so far looks like the magazine itself on line. Sites designed as true resources provide more breadth, and most provide developmentally organized links (following the child's development, not dad's). Here's a sample:

slowlane.com is devoted to the SAHD (Stay-at-Home Dad), "Leave It to Beaver" in reverse. It provides not only parenting advice but networking information and a link to dad-related news items. slowlane is maintained by a "webfather," not a webmaster.
babycenter.com has a special "dad zone" that outlines dads' roles during pregnancy and childbirth, as well as suggested gifts for expectant fathers and essays by men on raising children. Quirkier features include a searchable database of sporting events dad might miss for the delivery, and online polls. In a recent one, over half the men said their baby showers were coed and they had a good time; about a third said they had no desire to attend.
dadstoday provides the added benefit of a Spanish-language version.
father.com is receiving a lot of advance publicity and should go live this summer.

For too many generations, fathers have acted like assistant parents rather than co-parents. Many have seen their role as playing with the children and occasionally doling out discipline, while mom performs the true caretaker role. A few years ago, a man I know told me on the phone that he was busy "cleaning the kitchen for his wife."

Unfortunately, many men have tended to see child care as a favor to their partners, too, rather than as their inherent responsibility. It particularly annoys me to hear a man say he is "babysitting" his own children.

But with about three-fourths of mothers now in the workforce, some fathers have been forced into more integral roles. I was fortunate to grow up in a household with a dad who did most of the laundry and vacuuming and some of the cooking, as well as serving as my chauffeur to doctor's and dentist's appointments (and to the ice cream shop afterward). So I know that, contrary to popular myth, men have no genetic or anatomic differences which prevent them from performing these duties.

For all our progress where gender is concerned, we didn't get a parenting magazine for men until the cusp of the 21st century. Instead, here's what men have been reading: American Hunter, American Rifleman, Field & Stream, Outdoor Life, Hustler, Playboy, Penthouse, Motor Trend, Popular Mechanics, Sports Illustrated, and Men's Health. All are aimed at men and circulate at a rate higher than one million copies; Playboy alone has over three million subscribers.

I suspect a high percentage of computer and business magazine readers are male, too. It's worth noting that magazines directed at men focus on activities men usually do alone -- hunting, looking at pornography, working on cars or computers. For the most part, this is not reading which helps the average Joe figure out his role in a family.

A look at circulation numbers like these convinces me that "dads" magazine is filling not just a niche but a great big void. But there are goals to achieve, if the recent surge of interest in fatherhood is to be more than a fad. I'd like to see an OB/GYN's waiting room where fathers-to-be read the parenting magazines, too. (Should "Six Easy Steps to Potty Training" really have any more appeal to moms?) I'd like to see more moms coaching Little League teams, while dads pull a shift preparing hot dogs in the concession stand. I'd like to see the number of hunting, wrestling, and porno magazines decline because men are too involved in their family's lives to read them. I'd like to see "dads" outselling "Playboy."

Now THAT would be a step in the right direction.