“sexy” Shows Linked to the Escalation of Teen Pregnancy

In mass communication and media speak, television is considered a cold medium. TV depicts the height of participation or reaction of interpretation of messages by audiences. It is detailed in teen pregnancy studies that teens take messages from society and reflect them in their personal lives. It seems as though the media is more influential than parents of today. Parents need to serve as role models and possibly heroes to their children, not the fantasy images displayed in characters on TV.

Pop culture does not define role models. In Childhood Education’s “Parents or Pop-Culture,” Kristen Anderson emphasizes that “parents and educators must take pains to expose children to wider variety of potential role models than popular culture does.”

Correlating the rise in teen pregnancy with suggestive television shows expresses that if there wasn’t so much sexual behavior and language on TV, teen pregnancy would not be such an issue. Such an example can be related to many effects of the media. Cultural messages begin at young ages in the shaping process of identity, character and self-image.

If fictional sexual behavior portrayals in entertainment programs are going to account for amplified teen pregnancy, the media will also need to account for fictional violent portrayals. Individuals receive views of violence via mass media. For instance, many attribute violence and aggression to TV violence, conveying that if there wasn’t so much TV violence, our society wouldn’t have as much crime, aggression and violence. While media effects on teen pregnancy and the association between violence in the media represent different meanings, they both influence the youth of today and project cultural messages.

In the Journal of Sex Research, Dale Kunkel highlights, “sexual content is a common, if not prevalent, aspect of the overall television landscape. Portrayals of talk about sex, as well as sexually-related behaviors, are a potential source of socialization for most young viewers. Although most sexual behaviors shown on television are relatively modest, intercourse is frequently included. Collectively, these sexual messages provide an opportunity for the television industry to communicate an important and realistic view of the true risks associated with human sexual activity.”

Sexual portrayals in the media influence its audience and the depictions are not going away; sexual content on TV will not disperse. In other words there are always going to be TV shows about romantic relationships and with this comes sexual innuendoes, sexual behavior and at times risqué material. Enter parents and educators once again. Attitudes in the media can predetermine real life actions and possible mistakes, but only if people let it! Responsibility and risk concerns accompany several “sexy shows” and serve as a warning within its cultural message!