When 16 and Pregnant debuted in 2009—followed soon after by its spinoff Teen Mom—critics decried it as the ultimate in exploitative programing. Pundits declared that turning unmarried teenage mothers into celebrities would glamorize what society knew and data demonstrated was a destructive behavior. This pair of shows is often cited as the most crass of the reality genre, making entertainment out of the serious emotional problems and poor life choices of its subjects. Amber Portwood, one of the season one stars, was arrested and convicted for a domestic violence incident shown on the show. Farrah Abrams, another season one star, has been arrested for drunk driving and has launched a porn career. It is hard to imagine anyone arguing that two shows seemingly focused from the outset on documenting inevitable trainwrecks could make any kind of positive impact on the lives of its audiences.
Friday, December 26, 2014
MTV has done more for the US teen birthrate than decades of policy
MTV has done more for the US teen birthrate than decades of policy
When 16 and Pregnant debuted in 2009—followed soon after by its spinoff Teen Mom—critics decried it as the ultimate in exploitative programing. Pundits declared that turning unmarried teenage mothers into celebrities would glamorize what society knew and data demonstrated was a destructive behavior. This pair of shows is often cited as the most crass of the reality genre, making entertainment out of the serious emotional problems and poor life choices of its subjects. Amber Portwood, one of the season one stars, was arrested and convicted for a domestic violence incident shown on the show. Farrah Abrams, another season one star, has been arrested for drunk driving and has launched a porn career. It is hard to imagine anyone arguing that two shows seemingly focused from the outset on documenting inevitable trainwrecks could make any kind of positive impact on the lives of its audiences.
When 16 and Pregnant debuted in 2009—followed soon after by its spinoff Teen Mom—critics decried it as the ultimate in exploitative programing. Pundits declared that turning unmarried teenage mothers into celebrities would glamorize what society knew and data demonstrated was a destructive behavior. This pair of shows is often cited as the most crass of the reality genre, making entertainment out of the serious emotional problems and poor life choices of its subjects. Amber Portwood, one of the season one stars, was arrested and convicted for a domestic violence incident shown on the show. Farrah Abrams, another season one star, has been arrested for drunk driving and has launched a porn career. It is hard to imagine anyone arguing that two shows seemingly focused from the outset on documenting inevitable trainwrecks could make any kind of positive impact on the lives of its audiences.
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