16 and Pregnant: MTV Tackles Teen Pregnancy
by MELISSA JUN ROWLEY, Contributing Writer
Teen pregnancy is on the rise for the first time in 15 years, and warranting much needed attention on the subject. Always keeping their targeted demographic at the fore, MTV is boldly documenting the taboo topic in the new show "16 and Pregnant." The cable giant has teamed with the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and the Kaiser Family Foundation to educate young viewers and provoke discussion on the issue.
The six-part series chronicles the lives of six teenage girls for five months, as they endure the trials and tribulations of being young expecting mothers. Each one-hour episode looks up close and personal at intimate moments the teenage mothers and fathers experience in real time, including some of the births. And new parenthood isn’t the only issue put under the microscope. The show explores a number of delicate subjects for young parents including finances, education, marriage and adoption.
In addition to the docu-series, MTV and the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy are providing educators and organizations with viewing guides for each episode. The network and the campaign leaders are communicating with health and sex education workers throughout the country to endorse the show and its message.
An online resource coinciding with the program can be viewed at www.stayteen.org. 16 & Pregnant premieres on Thursday, June 11th, at 10:00pm ET/PT.
UPDATE: 16 & Pregnant premieres tonight at 10:00 p.m. on MTV! Will you be watching? After the show, let us know what you think in the comments. Will this show help expose the reality of teen pregnancy? Too over-the-top? Too much drama? What do you think?
Image by mahalie, flickr
- Posted by Causecast
Related causes: Health
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watching this program brought back so many memories of what i went through when i was pregnat at 16,its wasnt fun then and isnt fun now,but im so glad that girls and boys can see this to show them how hard it is,i admire these girls for being so brave for doing a show like this...
I felt really sad, especially for all the couples who are mature and ready for kids that cannot have them. I am glad MTV is doing this. It does show how difficult it is. Farrah will grow up one day and come to realize her mom was smarter than she thought.
i am 17 and pregnant and i would love to be on this show to show others how being a young teen pregnant soon to be mom is the reality of life and all kinds of people can become pregnant. I'm a latina who lives in knoxville, TN.