Frances Grandy Taylor

In the following viewpoint, Frances Grandy Taylor contends that Internet adoptions may leave adoptive couples vulnerable to fraud. Taylor argues that while many Internet adoption websites are reputable, the Internet has allowed many unscrupulous adoption brokers to exploit hopeful couples. Because of the anonymity of the Internet, many brokers simply shut down their websites and start their businesses in another state. She insists that until adoption facilitators are federally regulated, unethical adoption brokers will be permitted to operate. Taylor is a staff writer at the Hartford Courant, a daily Connecticut newspaper.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. Why does Taylor claim that Internet facilitators operate within a “gray area”?
2. According to Penny Rearick, how do facilitators find couples that are desperate to adopt?
3. What “red flags” should prospective adoptive parents...