A Fine Line

The way media is presenting these "disasters" is sending the wrong message to lots of immature teens.
I live in Brazil where teen pregnancy is epidemic, and our biggest TV network (Rede Globo) is the one to be blamed the most because of its teen soap opera, "Malhacao", aired in the afternoon, that induces teenagers to be sexually active.

"TEACH THEM TO SAY NO AND MEAN IT THEN TEACH THEM TO HIT THE GUY WHERE IT COUNTS"
Well what if they don't want to say no? What if they want to have sex? You do realize that teenage girls can enjoy sex just as much as the guys. Teach them to say no for when they really don't feel comfortable with the situation - but besides that, you need to teach them how to be safe and protected for when they want to say yes.

Also, how can anyone say that teens having sex isn't "normal"? Obviously it isn't ideal in our society because many are being completely irresponsible and not using contraceptives, but just because we don't like it doesn't mean it isn't normal. Is sex not normal then? Because in every other animal, once they reach sexual maturity, they begin to reproduce. It's just natural. The problem isn't that teens are having sex - that has and always will happen - it's that teens aren't being safe or responsible about their decisions.

The media seem to be creating this "fine line" all on their own. They act like there are only two options: glamorizing teenage pregnancy, making it look easy and romantic, or trashing teenage mothers, making them look terrible. Why can't the media just show it how it is? Obviously anyone who has ever had a child, and most that haven't, know that raising one is not at all a simple task. It isn't something glamorous and "fun." However, that doesn't mean the media has to make teen mothers look bad. Why not just tell the story the way it happened, without all the hype? Take a story about a teen mom, explain that the decision to have sex and not use birth control caused her pregnancy, and then show how it really is. Use the media to portray that having a child is hard, no matter what your age, but that especially as a teen it makes it more of a struggle. You just tell the story. That doesn't mean that anyone looks bad, or that anything needs to be made to look easy. If you explain what happened, the pros and cons of the situation, what should have been done differently and how it will now affect everyone involved... how can people argue with that?

It is too easy for a teen bo become a public supported parent. I feel that a new mother applying for public welfare should be granted assistance ONLY after the FATHER has been identified. Then all possible efforts should be made to collect from these fathers. If the father is also a teen, his parents should be assessed the cost of the public welfare. I know in the end, there still may not be any assets to tap to pay the bill, but at least more parents of teen boys would be impacted by the financial demand of a welfare baby.

NO teen should be getting pregnant in this day and age! There are to many"birth control" methods. And with all this talk about the teen mother - the real victim is the baby. Never mind the mother is now not persuing an education but she (the teen mother) is setting her child up for failure. The time to plan for your child is befor you get pregnant. As for Jamie Lynn as a new mom - ask her how it's going in 15 years. All she did was get pregnant - she is NOT a successful mom yet.

we should teach our children to think about consequences BEFORE they pose the act. Teach them to weigh the pros and cons of their actions. we need to be better parents. Yes, we are to blame. We allow it to happen in our houses, in our beds, and we don't object because we think it is NORMAL. NO, it is not normal. STOP the madness. Parents, take back your dominion. Be parents.

to gabby:


Your story is positive, but please remember that it isn't the norm. Most teen dads simply disappear and it's up to the mom to make ends meet. I would say that out of all the teen parents I've taught over the years, maybe 5 were dads (and 5 is really pushing it).

Jamie Spears is not going to be the last teen to get pregrant and sure in the hell isn't the first. You see people at your school a lot more than you see the magazines and the is where the biggest influence is coming from anyway. Most people could care less about celebries having babies, I am one. I can't count on my finger how many of my friends where pregrant in high school, but I still at the age of 23 have no kids and don't plan on having any. People choice their own futures if you want to have a kid you have sex, if you choice not to have a kid you don't, that the best way to put it. Stop blaming the media and the parents, because kids choice to do what they want.

to gabby:

Never mind, you already answered my question. Best of luck to you and your family. : )

Being a teenage mother, I think that the media portrays teen pregnancy to be easy. In the end its not! I'm turning 20 in October and my son will be 4 in January and it is the hardest thing I have ever done. I was with his father for almost 5 years and he is still there for our son and I thank god everyday for that. But the girls who are just getting pregnant by whoever don't seem to realize how hard it is when the father is not around. No more partying except when you find a babysitter, and a whole mess of things come with having a kid. I was on birth control-Othro Evra Low and still got pregnant. I also know many girls who were pregnant at the same time as me who got pregnant on the same pill. I came from a broken home and had a lot of issues, but I still to this day do not think that it justifies having a child. It is cheaper to been on birth control than to have a baby, and like I said its not as easy as it is portrayed to be. I mean yea I got my high school diploma and am in college but I'm just trying to make it by in this world and with the media portraying having a baby to be so easy, it really makes me mad because it is far from easy. Take it from me, WAIT until your married or at least until your old enough to take care of yourself and a child too.

to the comment below.my baby may have food stamps and wic,but he does not go without anything else.he has clothing,books,toys and an unbelievable amount of love,that no other family could ever give him.my child will never go without.my sister in law got pregnant young,and hre kids have NEVER gone without.there's no reason to give them up b/c you may not be rich.even though i am 18,i have done everything for my baby to help in the future.
i may be poor,but i have saved up money from when i worked,and my b/f does the same now.we both finished school while our moms watched him.and we both plan on going to college after we get into our new house.it may be difficult,but it can be doone w/o your kid going withouht anything they want and plenty of love.

to "parent with morals".
it is not the parents fault at all.kids are going to do things whether or not the parents want them too.you can preach to your kids for hours,doesnt mean they'll take it all in.and i am a teen mother.me and my b/f got pregnant at 17 and had our son at 18.he's 8 months now and it is hard hard,but i dont regret it.my b/f was there through all of it and we take care of him together.we dont pawn him off or anything.so not everyone is bad if htey get pregnant.and its not the parents fault.me and him were ttogether since we were 14.we've been in love and still are.no,being a teen parent isnt glamourous,but i love it.even through all the dificulties.and i dont think i lack moranls at all.i wasnt sleeping around.and obviously,my b/f wasnt just in it "for the sex either.its wrong to judge.

Lemets:

The reason adoption hasn't come up because more and more teens (at least the ones I work with) are opting to keep their babies. They tell me they feel a responsibility for their child and they don't want some stranger raising their kids. *sarcastic laugh* Even if that means the baby has to be raised in government housing living on food stamps instead of being adopted into a loving couple's home who are financially stable and have more than enough resources to care for that child.

The media assists in glamorize alot of bad things. The movies, newspapers and authors write in how cool it looks to smoke, drink, have affairs, rape, and teen pregnancy.

Why does no one ever bring up the subject of adoption?? There are thousands of couples
who want children and are financially and emotionally capable of caring for them. If more
children were available for adoption, there would be less child neglect, abuse, welfare, etc.

It's disgusting how everyone wants to blame the media and Jamie Spears and everyone else they can think of. Don't get me wrong, they are partially to blame. But the ultimate responsibility falls on first the parents to education their own kids, THEN on the kids themselves. Teenagers are known for wanting to "be treated like an adult." So, ok, here's to all your wanna-be adult teen parents: Get over it, raise your OWN kids (don't put it off on someone else) and stop crying about how the media and everyone else "made you do it."

I believe that it is glamorizing teen pregnancy, however it is a subject that has been around for years to come now and that we need to do more in society to educate our teen age youth. I feel that if it was an african american who had a baby at the age of 17 and out of wedlock, she would have not been on the front magazine cover. That just goes to show how America is still racist and if a white american can do it it is fine, but if it was a black teenage girl, then there is something wrong within her community and she comes from a broken, single parent home. Just in the case of former American Idol Fantasia Barrino, who had a baby at a young age and how America turned against her for her decision to have her child and the media has been glamorizing Jamie Lynn Spears for having a baby at the age of 17 and is not currently married. The magazine needs to be more cautious of who you put on your magazine cover and the morals that you portray to ALL OF AMERICA, NOT JUST WHITE AMERICA!!!!!!!