By Renee Montalvan
Here’s what to expect when you are a pregnant teen: a reality show on MTV, temper tantrums, bursting into tears at any given moment and your face on the cover of a magazine.
In the beginning, the shows “16 and Pregnant” and “Teen Mom” seemed to capture the true reality of young motherhood.
But the show went sour when the girls’ faces were on the cover of magazines.
Suddenly, it was no longer about the struggle of teen pregnancy and young motherhood. Instead, the girls became instant celebrities.
“16 and Pregnant” only portrays the dilemmas on the outside, hoping to catch the girls doing something worthy of the front cover.
Health teacher Susan Fitch believes that TV shows don’t truly express the struggles of teen pregnancy.
“They show the drama, not the internal struggles of pregnancy,” said Fitch.
The shows were supposed to reveal the hardships of being pregnant at a young age. But MTV is promoting teen pregnancy instead of stating it as a serious problem in America.
MTV is implying that if a girl gets pregnant, then she has a one-way ticket to fame.
The shows only depict the girls yelling at their parents, boyfriends, and friends. They seldom focus on the girls’ lives involving their children.
There have even been rumors of girls trying to get pregnant just to be on the show.
Pregnancy doesn’t mean getting a shot to be on TV. It means taking care of another life and putting that life before your own, something the girls on the shows have not mastered.
In Cal High’s child development class, students learn what it takes to be a teen parent. They are given hands-on lessons about the struggles and hardships of being pregnant at a young age, which seem to be a lesson the girls on “16 and Pregnant” and “Teen Mom” should have learned.
Child development teacher Crista Haar thinks a lot of teens will see getting pregnant as a way of getting attention.
“Others will see it and think parenting can’t be that bad,” said Haar. “I hope they see the truth in it.”
There is no reality in the reality shows – only pregnant girls throwing hissy fits and their latest outburst being displayed across America.
They might think that getting pregnant will get them a spot on the show and hopefully their face in the next issue of People magazine.
But that’s only if they make a big enough fool out of themselves.
If TV producers were to make an honest show about teen pregnancy, then they should have to do it right.
They should have to focus on the struggles of being forced to grow up instead of filming childish temper tantrums or whether the pregnant girl’s going to throw a punch.
Or simply change the name of the show to “Here’s a Bunch of Misfit Girls with a lot Drama Who Just Happen to Be Pregnant”.
It may be a long title, but at least it’s honest.
