Atlantic Cover Story Treats Abortion as a Given

At America’s most august publications, it is not truth, but nuance — even artificial, manufactured nuance — that is valued above all else. That is why Jeffrey Goldberg, editor in chief of The Atlantic, describes Sarah Zhang’s cover story on prenatal genetic testing for Down syndrome in Denmark and abortion in his publication’s December issue as “a model of great magazine writing.”

The article, a nearly 8,000-word behemoth, is no doubt a testament to its author’s talent. Zhang weaves together a number of threads related to genetic testing: feminism, public services, science, guilt, beauty, difficulty, parenting, and the concept of normality. And Goldberg is far from the only one to sing the praises of this lengthy piece of work.

“Thoughtful,” “sensitive,” “compelling,” and, of course, “nuanced” are some of the common refrains you see from those lauding it. One awed reader, echoed by Goldberg, observed that “the most powerful and important writing on abortion or disability is not polemical opinion pieces but sensitive, humane reporting.”

Certainly, there is room for sensitivity, humanity, compassion, and empathy in writing on these topics. Indeed, those traits should be demanded of all who participate in this discourse. But there’s a fine line between sensitivity and obfuscation, humanity and blindness, empathy and false equivalency. That line is crossed by Zhang more than a few times.

The very first story she explores, that of a couple whose daughter was born with an extra 21st chromosome despite testing negative for it, exemplifies this tendency. The couple waited until after the negative prenatal test to tell their loved ones about the pregnancy because they would have aborted the child had they known how she would enter the world. “So heavy are the moral judgments that accompany wanting or not wanting to bring a child with a disability into the world,” laments Zhang. This is a common theme of the piece: decrying judgment. Stigma — no matter its target — is rejected as retrograde.