Glmaorizing Teen Pregnancy Essay

Media, specific exclusivelyy telecasting has codn the issue of juvenile gestation to a whole other level. The orients 16 and Pregnant, Teen mammary gland, and The Secret Life of the American teenaged document the lives of raw teenage girls facing the issue of universe a expectant teenager. Originally created to show the controversial subject of teen pregnancy, all of these shows shortly began to change. As the seasons continued in all deuce-ace of these shows, the controversial subject of teen pregnancy soon became a glorifying concept. What was first viewed as just a fantasy is now bonnie a realness for many teenagers.Viewers of these shows atomic number 18 now perceive that teen pregnancy isnt all that bad it may even be considered normal gibe to MTV and ABC Family. The teenage celebrities on these shows are making it by dint of life just fine delineation that anyone else can too. Yes, these teenagers may wipe forbidden faced hard times in the beginning, an d at the nullify of the day, their lives are unrealistically viewed as ordinary. Both MTV and ABC Family depict the lifestyle of world a heavy(predicate) teenager to be somewhat glamorizing. The reality television show 16 and Pregnant was first air out on MTV on June 11, 2009.This show follows the stories of four pregnant teenage girls Farrah, Maci, Amber and Catelynn that are in racy school dealing with the hardships of teenage pregnancy. Each episode follows a five to seven month end in the life of a teenager as she navigates the bumpy terrain of adolescence, growing pains, rebellion, and coming of age all trance dealing with being pregnant (MTV. com). During the first few episodes of season one, the struggles of dealing with teenage pregnancy seemed difficult and nearly impossible.MTV portrayed each girl as if they were not going to make it through this crisis they were about to face, and their lives were soon coming to an end because being a pregnant teen was not acceptab le. As the show continued and episodes passed, these so called hardships, no longer seemed to be that difficult. With all the support from their families and/or boyfriends that they collectd, these teenage girls were able to hurt through this bump in the road pretty well. Not only did they get support from mountain they knew, they received the most(prenominal) of their support from MTV.While teenage pregnancy might have started out rough, becoming an MTV celebrity could not have been too bad. According to Arienne Thompson, author of 16, Pregnant and far-famed Teem florists chrysanthemums Are TVs New Stars, All four women are mainstays on ground forces TODAYs Celebrity Heat Index, which measures media exposure Portwood Amber topped the list for October, beating out Angelina Jolie and Prince William. The moms are regularly on the covers of People and Us Weekly and have Facebook fan pages dedicated to them (USA Today).Putting the stars of these reality shows on a magazine cover puts them in the selfsame(prenominal) place as any other famous person. The message that is being sent out to girls is that if they get pregnant as a allow of being sexually active, then they too can end up on TV or on a magazine cover. Being sixteen and pregnant may not be the most ideal lifestyle, but becoming more popular than an experienced, well-known actress at the age of sixteen is another(prenominal) falsehood. Viewers of 16 and Pregnant now see that if they become pregnant at a young age, they also can have the chance to become famous alike Farrah, Maci, Amber and Catelynn did.MTV did not try to stop there though. As if these girls were not famous enough, as a continuation of 16 and Pregnant, MTV ethereal Teen Mom on December 8, 2009, only six short months after(prenominal) the broadcast of 16 and Pregnant took place. This show takes the four teenagers from 16 and Pregnant, and documents their first few age of motherhood. Receiving more attention than before, MTV ha s millions of viewers watching Teen Mom each week, making these teenage celebrities even more famous. Teen Mom executive producer Morgan J.Freeman says, The concern for teens, however, is what else they may see in the show. While the Teen Mom stars have their share of struggles on the small screen each week, paparazzi shots and tabloid covers manage to rip them out of the context of MTV and place them in the realm of celebrity (USA Today). Even celebrities agree that the characters on these shows are becoming too idolized. Kim Kardashian boldly states that It seems like shows like Teen Mom are all of a fast making teen pregnancy look cool in the eyes of young girls.She even goes a step farther and says that the girls from the shows have become almost like celebrities, but girls these are not people you should idolize (Jadebt13). Along with MTV, ABC Family decided to air a show following the life of a pregnant teenager. On, July 1, 2008, ABC Family aired the show, The Secret Life o f the American Teenager, which became the networks most watched serial publication in the 12-34 demographic (McKay 1). This show follows the character Amy Jergen through her pregnant life, and also through her life of being a mother.In the first season, Amy realizes that she has become pregnant, and does not know how to tell her friends or family. This season shows the struggles that Amy faces while being pregnant, but as the season comes to an end, life become simpler to Amy. The Secret Life of the American Teenagers glamorizes her teen pregnancy by having the schools marching band play their instruments as Amy first returns back to school after finding out that she has become pregnant which is a little unrealistic.Not only does this event take place, but also Amys boyfriend, which is not the father of her soon to be son, proposes the idea of getting matrimonial and helping her take care of the baby. At the start of the second season, Amy has her baby boy, named John. With the bir th of John everything soon turned into a fairytale ending, and her life completely turned around her boyfriend problems fall into place, and she started to receive support from her family, friends and community.This season sent out the message to its viewers that if you become pregnant as a teenager, you will have support from surrounding people, when that is not always the case. In conclusion, television is glamorizing the lifestyle of pregnant teenagers. The shows 16 and Pregnant, Teen Mom, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager all have different story lines to them, but in the end, they all show that some good can come out of being a pregnant teen. 6 and Pregnant and Teen Mom are both reality television shows that idolize the glamour of being pregnant by the publicizing these girls not only on MTV, but also in outside sources such as magazines. The Secret Life of the American Teenager on the other hand, is a scripted television show that depicts teen pregnancy as being a j oy, fun, and simple by showing how great life can be having a baby at such a young age. Both MTV and ABC Family chose to air similar concept shows around the same time period that glamorized teen pregnancy when realistic having a baby in your teen years is not ideal, nor a pleasure.