Comment On Loving The Trainwreck

Renee posted a very thoughtful comment on my attempt at understanding the Britney/VMA phenomenon as it relates to youth and technology.

You're right that teens don't have an army of publicists and media handlers to help them overcome the little and large humiliations of adolescence.

But today, teens learn that, to be noticed, they must transform themselves into a commodity. In reflecting on the personal, psychic and cultural implications of this new world for developing young people, we must acknowledge that social networking and technology tools can greatly intensify an already stressful period of life.

Anastasia, you hope that teens are getting thicker skins — but I wonder if this is actually itself a real problem, where our ability to empathize and make an emotional connection to another's lived experience is diminished?

The satisfaction we get in watching the celebrity trainwreck is not something that we should offer to our children with pride. It is– and should be — a guilty pleasure, because embedded in it is an objectification of a complex human being.

While it may generate attention that brings in revenue, it doesn't reflect the sort of values education that will help children and young people become caring and responsible adults.

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