Miss Rhino
I can safely say that sixteen and pregnant is something I’d never want to be, but after watching MTV’s new reality show, aptly titled “
16 and Pregnant,” I thought to myself, hey, that might not be so bad.
With its Juno-esque appeal, MTV follows the lives of teenage girls about to become mothers. Fascinating. If Ellen Page could pull it off, why can’t the rest of us? And that is how I felt as I watched Farrah, a cheerleader in high school, endure hours of labor in full make-up and hair. I had to laugh. The girl is about to become a mother yet she still had time to put on eyeliner for the cameras. If I wasn’t wondering about her priorities before...
“16 and Pregnant” has good intentions. What started off as a series to educate and hopefully prevent teen-pregnancy has now become a novelty that seems to normalize this growing phenomenon.
In a follow-up with Farrah, she said that having her baby has made her a better person. She is going to college, has a job, even competed in the National American Miss Pageant. Farrah is happy and independent. Inspirational? Yes. Sending mixed signals to teenage audiences? Definitely.
Getting pregnant out of wedlock is bad. But, if it happens, don’t worry. You can still compete in pageants.
Don’t get me wrong. I will continue to watch religiously. And it does have great things to say to teens who may be in that situation themselves. I am waiting for the episode in which the young mother decides to give her baby up for adoption. Until then, I will continue to shake my head during commercials, but I’ll be sure to flip back to MTV before I miss a second of this new reality series.
Have you seen this show yet? What are your thoughts?
Comments (93)
whoa... i'm not so sure about this show.
i did kinda think that at first, but farrah was kind of a brat, and she probably wouldn't admit if it did suck anyway. you should watch the one with maci. hers is a little more down to earth. but that's one episode no offense, one persons life. if people can't figure out that their different than juno and farrah they need to wake up.
i saw this show & i think it makes it look ALOT easier then it is.
im pregnent at the moment & the things farrah had to go through are what i am dealing with at the moment.
it IS sending mixed signals. yes its bad, but they are glamming it up.
TV tends to sensationalize. If I were you I'd rather not take TV for its face value.
i cant help but say this... but.. JUNO WAS PARTLY FILMED AT MY SCHOOL LOL.
@yvonneeeeeeeeeee@xanga - hahaha.
i don't think it sends mix signals. we are all different. we are raised different. and sometimes the families will help and sometimes they want. who knows if that girl put on a front, i mean, seriously, she was the high school cheerleader who got pregnant in high school...do you know how many jokes are made about that?
just because someone else could handle it, doesn't mean everyone else can at that age or any age for that matter.
xo
quite frankly i lived that "reality" befor it wuz popular my mom wuz 15 & my dad 16 wen i wuz born & just speekin azza survivor of ther fukdup lyfe togethur i thot it sukd big chunky wadz imho
@pansybradshaw@xanga - what did you just say?
i do think that, in part, it's likely doing a smidgen of something to help other pregnant teenagers feel better about their situation.
what they're not showing are the sudden outbursts, crying, weight gain, stretch marks, etc. my best friend just had her baby. it was nine months of hell for all four of us- her boyfriend, myself, her, and her then-unborn fetus.
I saw the show and to younger people it might be an appealing situation. But as i was watching it I would not want to be in her situation, of going through that stage trying to figure out who are your real friends. All that petty bs added on to the huge fact of being pregnant. No thanks. mtv are evil little buggers.
I get that it may show kids it's not an easy thing but it also desensitizes watchers.
What a crazy show. Hopefully it does not start a huge trend of teenage mothers. We already have enough. I'm not saying they are bad people but it makes their lives harder and it is just not good. We don't need young teens seeing this show and then getting pregnant at 13! Oye... this just makes me question television show makers.
i havent seen this show, but i would like to say that that the main picture for this post looks pretty fake lol.
But really, i dont like the way that alot of things these days are making teenage pregnacies sound glamourous and giving people a sense of responsabilty or something. It's the person itself behind it all that makes it that way. If the person is irresponsable and highly dependent, having a baby might not change all that.
@xjadersx@xanga - Word.
Wow. MTV, E! and those kind of channels are really messing up with people's mind. This is crossing the line.
I'm gonna start making more bad life decisions just so I can have my own reality show!
Shows like this and that darn "Secret Life" show on ABC Family are disgusting. It's bad enough we've got society that is letting kids think it's ok to have children when they're still kids themselves; we don't need to enforce it with culture. And about the show specifically, who wouldn't find it easy with the money of MTV to back you up? They can hire nannies, pay for diapers and doctor's appointments.
If they want to show some knocked up teen on tv, they should have it be an indy show with no budget. Then you can watch her struggle to tie her apron around her 6-months along belly just so she can work an 8 hour shift at Denny's. Maybe we'll teach some girls something for once.
lolz, this is actually one MTV show that i wouldn't mind be watching
On the car-ride to the hospital she probably texted her bff, "OMG! babez comin! LOLZ"
I don't think having a baby out of wedlock is bad...
As much as I agree. Let them fail at life because of their hormones. I knew a girl who got pregnant at a young age, she dropped out of high school, never bothered with college, continues her abusive drug habit and hardly pays attention to her child. Hell, I'm actually HOPING more of these dumb chicks will get pregnant so that females who are actually STRIVING for something have a better chance of success in life without all those other people in the way.
That's just me.
-Kunoichi
@quicksandbuddy@xanga - LMFAO
I haven't watched it, and I don't plan on watching it. It bothers me a bit that movies like Juno and Knocked Up give some viewers the idea that "everything is gonna be okay" no matter what they do. But the same goes for all movies, right?
Sometimes things turn out well, sometimes they don't. Fortunately the two teen pregnancies that happened to two of my friends turned out well--one is happily married. The other is certainly happy with her child as well, but not without bumps along the way. She's now a single mother working really hard and managing to return to community college after almost two years off. She has friends all around her so it's good. But that's not to say it will always turn out that way.
On a side note, when you put cameras on an "everyday situation," it's no longer a reality show.
I don't watch MTV or any of those "random noise channels," but this whole show, which sounds like a winner in the ratings in the days where Jon & Kate + 8 make CNN headlines, sounds like a complete loser of an idea for actual people. It sounds much more like one of the topical episodes of Law & Order SVU.
It'll give audiences the wrong idea if they're utter morons. When you think about it, though, plenty of people are, in fact, totally idiotic. If they have any common sense they'll realize that it's different for everyone, that MTV is glamorizing it for more viewers, etc.
I am not pretty sure about that show, but my point of view is: pregnant at 16? How can I give my baby a good life if my own life become a disaster at this very young age. No offense, if there are.