“Teen Mom” Madness
Written on September 15, 2010 – 3:33 pm | by msathmar
What is society’s obsession with pregnant teens on television? From a Lifetime movie about the Massachusetts pregnancy pact, to the MTV hit show “Teen Mom”, networks everywhere are cashing in on the immense popularity of these shows. Interestingly enough, teen pregnancy is currently at it’s peak – the highest its been since 1990.
Some media critics speculate that despite negative connotations of teen pregnancy in shows like “16 and Pregnant”, the fact that the shows even exist glamorizes the experience for naive and impressionable teen viewers. Liz Goodwin, a blogger for The Daily Beast, explores this somewhat disturbing phenomenon.
5 Responses to ““Teen Mom” Madness”
I, for one, refuse to support these shows in anyway. I know have acquaintances who are into watching this, and it baffles me when I hear them speak about as those it’s something to make light of. Though I don’t believe MTV and other such channels started airing these shows with the intent of glamorizing teen pregnancy, I find it so frustrating to see them continue to produce these programs. Who is the executive cashing in on this? I hope he sleeps well at night…
This is just another example of the media’s and pop cultures portrayal of women; Hank Stuever, last weeks guest speaker, touched on this, and I was glad he did. It is not discussed nearly enough.
I have to correct that, because it’s irking me:
“I have acquaintances who are into watching this, and it baffles me when I hear them speak about it as though it is something to make light of.”
This is a full-on blog post, not an interstitial! Also, it’s/its – careful. 4/4
I was very upset after watching an episode of “Teen Mom” where one of the young mothers was yelling and screaming at her one year old to “shut up”. MTV is displaying this behavior but there is nothing there to show why this is wrong. I think this is another example of how reality shows are showing women in a negative light.
Just to add to that, Forever 21 now has a Maternity 21, which is a section in the store for young mothers. This blog just reminded me of that, and the idea that this is only promoting teen pregnancy.