MTV’s 16 And Pregnant Is Sad, Cautionary And Important

The concept has trainwreck written all over it, yet this is probably the best advertisement possible against getting pregnant while you’re still a kid yourself.

When I came home tonight Stef was on the couch. The lights were low. The TV was on. She looked a little better, but I know she’ll be flu’ish for a while.

The show on the TV was compelling–MTV’s “16 and Pregnant.” The concept has trainwreck written all over it, yet this is probably the best advertisement possible against getting pregnant while you’re still a kid yourself.

Tonight’s show features Leah and her boyfriend Corey, high school students from West Virginia. Every part of their young lives has been turned upside down after the birth of their twins. Beyond that none of the usual high school conflicts, like an ex-boyfriend still in Leah’s life, have disappeared.

Most reality shows are anything but. This show is raw and gritty. It’s full of emotion and lots of sadness. Actually it’s overloaded with sadness and people living their lives on the edge of tragedy.

“16 and Pregnant” is on MTV, a channel I usually associate with promoting society’s shortcomings. On the other hand this show is a long form public service announcement–albeit a very sad one.

“16 and Pregnant” should be required viewing for those who are 16 and dating.

3 thoughts on “MTV’s 16 And Pregnant Is Sad, Cautionary And Important”

  1. Geoff,

    You are right that every teen should see this show. I just heard that Bristol Palin is going to do a PSA about safe sex. I bit my lip so I wouldn’t groan on that one.

    I don’t want to say ‘back in my day’ but, I didn’t know of anybody my age when I was in school who was pregnant, and we had the ‘black and white films’ and crazy things what we were told back then. Yet, none of us had gotten pregnant. Not at the schools that I went to here in Connecticut, or the High School in New York.

    I know when my son was in High School, I was a little afraid to ask him if anybody in his class were pregnant. I just wanted to make sure of the consequences though if it happened to he and his girlfriend. I wouldn’t turn my back on them, I just wanted to make sure they knew what they were getting into. Luckily I didn’t have to worry about that.

    I wish that this show would be shown in schools. Maybe, just maybe it would get the point across.

    I hope Steff feels better.

  2. I have heard of this show, but like the Dr. Phil show, rehab shows…I have difficulty seeing others in pain.
    My daughter was born when my son was 13 years old. She was a colic baby. Best birth control ever! He saw first hand the difficulty in raising a newborn, crying all the time ect. We also had many talks about protection. I feel it is very important to talk to your kids, no matter how uncomfortable the subject. After some time he felt comfortable coming to me with questions and concerns.

  3. yea I started wating this show last year, right before I had my own little girl. I was 17 when I got pregnant, me and her dad had been dating a year but it was still heard for us. I was a Jr. in high and everything got turned upside down. me and her dad are still together and it been almost 3 years now this summer and it will be her first birthday and I am finshing my senior year. It is so heard to do things I want to do because I have to tink about her now, Caylee is the first person who I think of when think about College and how everything will work out. So before you teenagers have sex think about everythng that you will have to give up, everything you have to think about and how much everything is going to cost you in the long run….Don’t get me wrong I love Caylee to death but I should have waited to have sex.

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