The Role Of The Celebrity 'Bump' In Teen Pregnancy
Posted by anastasia on 06-23-2008
Pact or no pact, the rash of pregnancies at a Gloucester high school have certainly grabbed the nation's attention. Teen pregnancy is not a new issue, especially to Ypulse commenter Edi, who wrote:
I guess if I didn't work in an urban high school, this teen pregnancy pact would shock me as well. I guess no one realizes the high rate of pregnancy among disadvantaged, at-risk, or whatever title we wish to use. These girls want to be pregnant, as do the boys! Can you imagine talking to teen boys who can tell you what they want to name their daughters? The parents expect and accept it. These students don't understand movies like "Juno" because they don't understand why teen pregnancy is such an issue. It's a bit sad that society doesn't realize how common this is, particular when you consider the at-risk factors the babies will face.
The blame "Juno" argument feels weak to me as well, but as I mentioned on Friday, I do think there has been an excessive amount of coverage and fascination with celebrity moms — especially younger moms. Whether it's Nicole Richie, Christina Aguilera or now, Jamie Lynne Spears, the fascination and feteshizing of the "bump," the baby gifts from other celebs, the millions spent by magazine's on obtaining exclusive baby photos, and how quickly these celeb moms shed their baby weight feels over the top.
The New York Times (reg. required) reminded us today about of the rising power of celebrity endorsements in ad campaigns:
Starlets and aging rockers are likely to continue popping up in ads for a very simple reason: Celebrity sells. If consumers believe that a certain star or singer might actually use the product sales can take off.
Obviously these celeb moms and the weeklies that publish this content aren't trying to sell pregnancy to teens — but the reality that teen girls make up a huge chunk of the readership for these magazines should give any editor at a celeb weekly with a conscience some pause. For girls who may be swimming in a sea of teen hormones, trying to figure out who they are, the role of motherhood (especially when glamorized) holds a powerful appeal.
Finally, on a related note, the "Baby Borrowers" is premiering on NBC Wednesday night — while most teen moms won't have the dad around as an active participant, this still seems worth watching and discussing, especially for adults working with teens…See a related AP article here.
Do you think coverage of celeb moms is playing a part in the up tick in teen pregnancies? Share your opinion in the comments.
June 23rd, 2008 at 1:30 pm
I think that the socio-economic and psychological factors that create a POV that having a child as a teen is a viable life plan are too complex to be blamed on the media. If these are teens who want pregnancy & child, sex ed won't work. These are teens who must not see college or career as an option; and based on comments in other posts about this, see 20something as "old" to have a child. I also imagine seeing/caring for "real live babies" doesn't work, because otherwise schools with higher pregnancy rates would see decreases after the initial group as peers saw the negatives of having an infant to raise. But, that doesn't happen.
Re celebrity angle: I am a bit fascinated how in 50 odd years we went from Ingrid Bergman condemned to what we have now. If I had the time, I'd be researching old magazines and papers to try to see how this evolved.
June 23rd, 2008 at 1:41 pm
I would almost say it seems to feed on it self. Pregnancy among disadvantaged teens has always been high. And I would almost call a lot of these young celebrities disadvantaged as well, even if it is in a completely different way.
With so much pressure and control from the outside world I could imagine a person retreating to a place they can't be controlled, their bodies. Having a baby was something they could make their own choice and in the end also give them something to do that isn't part of their career.
With these celebrities taking control it only encourages others to take control as well.
The reason I shy away from blaming movies like Juno and Knocked Up (besides the fact that I loved both movies) is that these movies are about dealing with irresponsibility and mistakes. But when you come to the real world it does seem to be that teens are clearly actively choosing to get pregnant.
Am I wrong? A lot of this is right from the gut where Colbert has taught me to think from.
June 24th, 2008 at 7:15 am
I wonder if, without the initial "pact" drama, this would have been news at all. Certainly teens choosing to have babies is nothing new. I think it's the pact aspect that made people sit up and pay attention. It might also be the demographics — working-class, white kids in a small New England city as opposed to disadvantaged kids, often of color, in more urban environments, where choosing to be a teen parent isn't that unusual. (Left out of this whole discussion, I am noticing, is whether any of the fathers "chose" to go along with any plan that may have been in the works!) At any rate, it's a wake-up call that teens need more info on how to make better choices.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:11 pm
I think personally until we stop patronizing and frankly pitying people with "I'm white middle class make me feel good" terms like "disadvantaged" and "at risk" and "of color", and the disgusting racism and classism of low expectations of the "other" they imply, we'll never begin to understand the issue.