Learning 'Bout the Birds and the Bees
Regardless of your thoughts on birth control and teen pregnancy, this blog by Maureen Johnson on Bristol Palin is excellent food for thought. I'm curious to know what you all think about the whole thing.
I admit I've become hooked on the ABC Family's new series "The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” which is about a young high school student getting pregnant. It's by the same creator as 7th Heaven, so yes it gets sappy and preachy at times, but it also is pretty edgy in terms of sexuality and there is some humor. Plus, hey, Molly Ringwald all grown up is the mom!
Somehow I don't think it's coincidence that a show like this can thrive on TV at the same time as a VP candidate has a teenage daughter having a baby at the same time people embrace 17-year-old Jamie Lynn Spears having a baby. Somehow the message being conveyed to a significant portion of today's youth seems to be yes, it's totally okay to have sex but not be responsible about it (i.e. don't protect yourself), and oops, scramble to deal with the very huge and life-changing consequences. It's not just about possibly getting pregnant; you're also risking exposure to a host of sexually-transmitted diseases that can seriously alter your physical health.
The show is all about communicating; at the end of each show they emphasize parents and teens talking to each other about sex. So far, in the show, I've seen them talk about abstinence paired with the Promise Ring and about if you get pregnant, then here's how you should best deal with the consequences, but, and now I haven't seen all the shows, there hasn't really been a stress on birth control and condoms and other forms of protection. I think they are missing a really big opportunity to educate the teen population here. If parents aren't going to do it, maybe they'll actually listen to actors on TV.
I admit I've become hooked on the ABC Family's new series "The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” which is about a young high school student getting pregnant. It's by the same creator as 7th Heaven, so yes it gets sappy and preachy at times, but it also is pretty edgy in terms of sexuality and there is some humor. Plus, hey, Molly Ringwald all grown up is the mom!
Somehow I don't think it's coincidence that a show like this can thrive on TV at the same time as a VP candidate has a teenage daughter having a baby at the same time people embrace 17-year-old Jamie Lynn Spears having a baby. Somehow the message being conveyed to a significant portion of today's youth seems to be yes, it's totally okay to have sex but not be responsible about it (i.e. don't protect yourself), and oops, scramble to deal with the very huge and life-changing consequences. It's not just about possibly getting pregnant; you're also risking exposure to a host of sexually-transmitted diseases that can seriously alter your physical health.
The show is all about communicating; at the end of each show they emphasize parents and teens talking to each other about sex. So far, in the show, I've seen them talk about abstinence paired with the Promise Ring and about if you get pregnant, then here's how you should best deal with the consequences, but, and now I haven't seen all the shows, there hasn't really been a stress on birth control and condoms and other forms of protection. I think they are missing a really big opportunity to educate the teen population here. If parents aren't going to do it, maybe they'll actually listen to actors on TV.