I believe that shows like “Teen Mom” and “Sixteen and Pregnant” do glamorize teen pregnancy more than before. I know when those shows first came out it scared a lot of teenagers into what reality of being a young, sometimes single, parent really is. But after the show gained so much popularity that “scare-factor” has been left behind. Now people watch the show as just a means of entertainment. In fact it seems like more and more the episodes focus of social problems the girls are having with relationships for example then the actual child-caring part of being a parent. I think if they would have made the show more documentary like and not so soap-opera like it may have limited the “star” factor that the show has now. Plus if they would have limited each show to one girl or just used a girl’s story once and then move on maybe people wouldn’t get so attached to the girl’s. I think “Sixteen and Pregnant” still has a little more reality to it for that reason but I believe that “Teen Mom” has just turned into a soap-opera style show.
That is a really interesting way to think about it. I know I am guilty of getting sucked into “Teen Mom.” The more I think about it, you’re right. I watch it for the soap-opera style, not to watch people change their baby’s diaper. “16 and Pregnant” does do a better job at depicting the hardships that come along with teen pregnancy.
When I think about it, you are definitely correct. I wasn’t remembering when the shows first came out. I know people who watched it that would talk about how terrible it would be to be a teen mom, but now they have favorite characters and talk about who is the better parent. The “scare” factor has definitely gone away.
I agree about the documentary. It would be so much more realistic and would bring the scare factor back. I think that right now the shows are entirely too dramatic and don’t even come close to showing what being a teen parent is truly like.
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