There's a show that runs on MTV that is in its second season called "16 and Pregnant". After watching several episodes from Season 1 and several from Season 2, and I'm of the opinion that if I'm a 16 yr old girl thinking about having a baby, this show would do absolutely nothing to discourage me!
Often times people really lambast BET for its choice of programming. However, I think as bad as BET's programming is, this show can be far more damaging than ANY of the coonery and bafoonery found on BET. To me, this show serves no other purpose than to glorify and glamorize teen pregnancy. Of course MTV argues the opposite. MTV, says that this show sheds light on the difficulties and struggles of teen pregnancy. All the while billing its trailer like this, “16 and Pregnant” returns with new girls, new stories and all-new drama". Does this sound like it's trying to illustrate the negative aspects of teen pregnancy to you?
It is important not to generalize about the potentially negative outcomes of teenage pregnancy. Not all instances of teenage child bearing are detrimental for either the mother or child. Nevertheless, most teen pregnancies are unintended. In fact, 8 in 10 of these pregnancies are unintentional and 81% are to unmarried teens. "The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the industrialized world. The Center for Disease control says that one-third of girls get pregnant before the age of 20."(livestrong.com).
With numbers like that, is this really a show that needs to be airing on one of the most watched stations by teens and young adults?
In the age of over-night sensations, and viral videos, what's to keep a young girl seeking her 15 minutes of fame from getting pregnant just to have her own episode? This is a failure of epic proportions by this network.
Well, that's the Green Chimp's take, what's yours?
U kno BET MTV and VH1 all owned by the same people right
ReplyDeleteYes, I know that. However, they have different target demographics for each network. Also, the fact that they are all owned by the same conglomerate is irrelevant to this blog post.
ReplyDeleteAgreed... They are all owned by the same people now. But I definitely agree with the "Green Chimp"... Stupid is what stupid does!!!
ReplyDeleteWhen everything that's considered "hip" comes from television and pop culture, for MTV to be airing a show like this is socially irresponsible. Obviously, all that matters are the ratings.
ReplyDeleteI agree 100%, Derrick.
ReplyDeleteYes this is awful! That's y my children are only watchers of Disney, Nickelodeon, and DVDs purchased by me! Sad!
ReplyDeleteI have to agree that if you are trying to show the negative about teen pregnancy, that is not the way to go. We have to show these young women that yes, if you are going to have sex; since there is really no way to stop them is to pratice safe sex. Having a baby is not suppose to be fun or a pact made between friends. Those stations are only trying to boost ratings, they do not care about those girls.
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