Teen Pregnancy in North American Media

General Information

Teen pregnancy can be defined as a woman who is impregnated under the age of 20. Often, it is associated with lower levels of education and higher rates of poverty. On average, these women have more medical problems during pregnancy such as premature labour and anemia . As well, they face struggles related to their socioeconomic status . Unfortunately, due to the nature of the pregnancy and their age, many of these women face pregnancy alone. Without supportive family or the child’s father willing to help, the women are more likely to struggle with anxiety, depression, and stress disorders. Furthermore, the decision upon first sign of pregnancy of whether to keep the child, abort the pregnancy, or give the child up for adoption is not only a difficult decision for those surrounded by support, but extremely difficult for those who do not. Race, class, gender, and socioeconomic status all greatly affect the options available to young women. Often, the decision of what to do with the child is what is featured in media most commonly. This segment does not discuss the portrayal of teen pregnancy in books due to the fact that the simple act of reading a book is not as prevalent within the entire demographic of North American youth whereas, they are more likely to be familiar with music, film, and television.

Synopses of Media with Relevant Information

Television

There are many television shows that show case both fictional and non fictional situations of teen pregnancy in North America.

MTV’s 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom

In 2009, MTV aired two television series that followed the lives of pregnant teenagers. Both 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom featured young women go through the struggles of pregnancy. Most often, the hardships associated with physical, familiar, and relationship aspects are highlighted. Despite the reality of these shows, young women were compelled to watch what happened to the girls featured. Although the shows are filled with nasty fights and many hardships, it is extremely popular. Many of the girls featured on the show have remained in the limelight, becoming famous for their young pregnancy and most often, for their mistakes with which they choose as their partners, drug abuse, and crime . . When discussing these shows there is a clear intersection between race, social class, socioeconomic status, and power roles. Majority of the women featured on the shows do not fall into the white privilege category. Plagued by childhoods filled with crime, substance abuse, and poverty, these young women face struggles that may not occur for a white privileged upper class pregnant teen. Although this may seem arbitrary, it is important to delve into these details, as it is relevant to how accurate the portrayal of teen pregnancy is. In this case, it shows girls who, despite already dealing with the physical aspects of pregnancy, have to deal with visitation rights with the fathers and parents, how they are going to afford to feed and clothe a child, and who they will turn to for support. Countless numbers of the women featured have parents in prison, parents with substance abuse problems, and overall, unsupportive and helpful families . It is safe to say that these young impregnated women may not have had the knowledge and support needed to know their full reproductive rights and thus ended up keeping a child with whom they have no stability to care for.

In opposition, the few women who came from higher-class backgrounds were more often than not, given support, financially and emotionally, when it came to their pregnancy. Although they may not have necessarily had less struggles, they were vastly different. Lower class young women may lack support and substantial medical care. Although this is quite different for Canadian women and American women because even underprivileged Canadian women have access to free health care and can, if wanted, receive prenatal care or abortion at very little or no cost. Unfortunately, for the American women, their socioeconomic status plays a much larger role in their health and their reproductive knowledge. If they lack the funds to seek support, mental and physical, for aborting a child, they are unlikely to do. If they lack the funds to prenatal care, they may make decisions that are unhealthy to both the children and to themselves. They may also lack funds for additional support such as therapy after abortion or adoption, or counseling to help deal with stress of a pregnancy. For these reasons, race and class play a large role in the physical and mental health that arises within young women dealing with pregnancy.

Heather Latimer’s discussion of reproductive politics is strongly seen amidst these realities shows as well. These young women rarely discuss options such as abortion or adoption. They may not be fully aware of how to choose something other than having the child or may be scared due to the lack of information they have access to .

Film

Juno

Released in 2007, Academy Award winning movie Juno discusses the ups and downs of a young women dealing with her unplanned pregnancy . Despite this movies excellent portrayal of the struggles associated with decisions in regards to teen pregnancy and relationship hardships, it brings to light issues of gender roles in pregnancy. With an assertive woman who is pro-choice of her own body, the movie shows the many problems that arise during a pregnancy between men and women. Masculinity wanting to brood versus the women choosing what to do with her body is a common frustration that occurs between partners when a pregnancy occurs . Juno accurately portrays teen pregnancy through the eyes of an upper class white privileged girl. Despite originally wanting to abort the pregnancy, Juno rejects the idea once entering the office. This anti-abortion outlook adds to the larger pro-life campaign in reality. Although she does initially discuss the idea, it is quickly disregarded. This ideal promotes pro-life for young women who watch it. Unfortunately, it some cases it is a viable option to abort a pregnancy and when it is not featured in the media it creates a less realistic option to those who are thinking about it. The discussion about women’s reproductive rights is termed “reproductive politics” by Heather Latimer. Her several articles discussing reproductive politics in media enlighten readers unto the many intersecting trends found within different media sources .

Music

While music does not often feature content as important as teen pregnancy and abortion, Madonna’s Papa Don't Preach explicitly discusses them. Faced with criticism for the content, this song still landed as top in the Billboard Hot 100's. Featured again in 2009 on the television show Glee, when a pregnant teenager sang the song amidst the comedy-musical show.

Pregnancy Prevention in Media

Although various media sources regularly depict teenage pregnancy, there are very few examples that are specifically targeted towards teen pregnancy prevention. Often consisting of satirical nature, brands such as Durex and Trojan do a good job of advertising their brand and promoting contraception as a whole through the use of condoms. Not only do they advocate for pregnancy prevention, but also eliminating the risk of sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV and AID's.

Durex Commercial

Commercial's such as these have the ability to promote the use of condoms and educate the public about options that are available. If more media outlets supported the advertisement of contraceptives in North American media, then perhaps teenage pregnancy rates would decrease over time.

Pros/Benefits of Teen Pregnancy in Media

Portraying teen pregnancy outwardly brings the issues into the medias eye and just how prevalent it is in American teens. The television series 16 and pregnant does discuss the negative qualities of teen parenthood, such as loss of activities and putting own goals aside, which in turn, can prevent teen pregnancy . Although young women say they want to be educated of sex by their parents, they say they receive most information about sex, pregnancy, and birth control from TV, movies, and magazines . As well, teens are waiting longer to have sexual intercourse and more frequently use condoms than past years however the number of teen pregnancies in America is much higher than other post-industrial countries . Mass media plays an important role in sex education, and if used properly, could be an excellent foundation for educating all of youth.

The many media portrayals of teen pregnancy allow for analysis of the intersection of the different factors affecting it. While some are reality TV and some are fictional films, they bring to light the many different options and situations a young girl can be faced with during a pregnancy. We can see situations where the child’s father is either in and out of the picture, where they give up the baby for adoption and where they abort the pregnancy. However, women with low income are unlikely to have the resources to look at other options besides keeping the child and are more likely to face serious medical issues during a pregnancy.

Cons/Disadvantages of Teen Pregnancy in Media

A study conducted at the University of Michigan provided an in depth analysis of the television show 16 and Pregnant. In this study, researchers watched the first 3 seasons of the show and took note on many aspects of it resulting in exceptional conclusions being drawn. While it does accurately portray the struggles teen parents face, the show omits issues dealing with contraception, prevention and abortion. Most importantly, they neglect to discuss what should be the next steps after a teen pregnancy, how to learn to prevent another one .

Each individual film, television episode, or song will display a different view of teen pregnancy and sexuality. Some display pro-life, some display abstinence-only and some display pro-choice movements. Although it is extremely beneficial to explain all the options available to young women dealing with pregnancy, the confusion that arises when given so many portrayals of the “right choice” leaves young women stressed, frustrated, and scared of their situation . Due to the intersection of this topic with issues of race, gender, class, and power, the realties of pregnancy can be misconstrued if the viewer is not in the exact same category as the media being show. An underprivileged girl with no familiar support will not get accurate information as to what her options are and how she can go about doing them if the film shows a privileged girl whose family is 100% supportive.

Young women may be educated on factors such as birth control and sexual intercourse, however there is little information on STD’s and making decisions after the birth of a child . The lack of discussion on abortion disregards both positives and negatives associated with abortion. By not discussing it in media, viewers are not aware of the ways in which one can receive an abortion, how the procedure works, etc. Also, they are not given information on possible consequences such as “post-abortion syndrome” and pain. It is extremely important that both young women and young men are given all the information about options relating to pregnancy. Due to the high level of sexually explicit content in media, it is prudent for all options and situations to be shown. This way, there is more information out their for those who do not have access to it through the medical system, school system, or familiar support.

List of Media that Has Relevant Content

Music

• Tupac →Brenda’s got a baby
• Eric Chuch → Two pink lines
• The Verve Pipe → Freshman
• Reba Mcentire → You’re gonna be

Film

• Precious
• Saved!
• The Pregnancy Pact
• Crossroads

TV

• The Secret Life of the American Teenager
• 90210
• Gilmore Girls
• Reba
• Private Practice
• Grey's Anatomy