Teen Pregnancy Linked to Racy TV Shows

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FROM THE SOURCE:

CHICAGO (Nov. 3) - Exposure to some forms of entertainment is a corrupting influence on children, leading teens who watch sexy programs into early pregnancies and children who play violent video games to adopt aggressive behavior, researchers said on Monday.
Researchers at the RAND research organization said their three-year study was the first to link viewing of racy television programing with risky sexual behavior by teens.

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Parents need to take steps to ensure that their kids are well rounded. sex ed in kindergarten IS NOT helping the situation...


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[edit on 3/11/08 by Jbird]

It is up to PARENTS to do their job.

Always upsets me when Christian mothers band together, to start demanding that video games, music, and TV shows be banned, because they cannot control their own offspring.

This is not surprising. It should be considered NEGLECT to force your will upon other people, insteading of being a parent.

My first thought was "Well of course..."

But it's a chicken-and-egg question to know whether these shows are making girls slutty, or the girls are acting out sexually because of other factors and the shows are simply capitolizing on what is there.

OTher than that I am going to completely agree with LostNemasis above me.

reply to post by drsmooth23


Its not societies job to raise their children, its the parents. Watch what your kid is exposed to, and stop trying to censor the world around him/her.

what exactly qualifies as a sexy programs? what qualifies as violent video games? is it the fact that these kids are watching this stuff or the fact that their parents don't give enough of a crap to stop their kids from exposing themselves to this crap that causes the problems.

if they don't care enough to stop the kids watching this stuff should we believe they give enough of a crap to stop them being stupid and anti-social.

[edit on 3/11/08 by pieman]

Parents need to stop using the TV as a babysitter and get involved with their children and what they do/watch. This reminds me of back when I was a teen in the 80's, you had the PMRC led by Tipper Gore campaigning against heavy metal music claiming it was a corrupting influence. Remember the issues with Ozzy Osbourne's "Suicide Solution" song?
Kids are going to act out for various reasons- to get attention, self-esteem, etc. I don't feel that music or TV is the one determining factor in all of these behaviours.
Lack of parenting certainly is.

I should add that some of the wildest girls I ever dated were from very religious families...'specially the catholic ones. Whoa.

[edit on 3-11-2008 by md11forever]

I'm convinced that the 'sexy programs' are a response to what's really happening, not the other way around. TV shows are created with some kind of inspiration and I bet the inspiration for these types of shows wasn't teenagers playing with dolls or toy race cars...

If parents think the TV shows are influencing their behavior then it may be true in some cases, but even decades ago before there were shows like that on television teens were getting pregnant. How do they explain that? Newspaper articles about prostitues and young mothers? I doubt it.

I wonder if mandatory sexual education lessons with the condom and the pill from age 7 would reduce teenage pregnancy, but then the lot that complain about tV shows are also the mob that are against child sex education.

i dont believe that for a minute.

teen pregnancy has been going on forever. it has nothing to do with tv. it has more to do with their peers in school. it is practically unacceptable to be a virgin in high school anymore, unfortunately. its not tv.

People are always looking for an external source to blame for their actions. (or their children's actions) It's like saying its Hershey's fault that your fat, or Jim Beams fault that your a drunk. I've been watching horror & violent movies for as long as I can remember, and I'm not a crazy killer. I don't engage in acts of violence either. It's ridiculous. People, you and you only are responsible for your actions. Parents, you need to parent your children. Teach them values. Talk with them, listen to them, spend time with them, and support them.

Originally posted by TeeJay
People are always looking for an external source to blame for their actions. (or their children's actions) It's like saying its Hershey's fault that your fat, or Jim Beams fault that your a drunk. I've been watching horror & violent movies for as long as I can remember, and I'm not a crazy killer. I don't engage in acts of violence either. It's ridiculous. People, you and you only are responsible for your actions. Parents, you need to parent your children. Teach them values. Talk with them, listen to them, spend time with them, and support them.

ooooo I love horror films! and yeah im definitely not a mass murderer because of it.

Hmm, blame everyone but the individual....My point, have sex, get pregnant. It's not that complicated of a concept. Holds true in all species. And I agree, a little less artificial parenting via XBox & Plasma Screen and a little more hands on parenting.

That's how I roll.

oh yeah, i think we can all be in agreement that parents need to have a stronger role. however, what about latchkey kids, or kids who come from a single parent home who must work two jobs to support the family?

as a kid growing up i never had cable and i still have a hard time forgiving my parents, haha.

do kids need sexual education in elementary school? i hope not, but, i dont have kids so i am certainly not very knowledgeable on the subject, but then again the same could be said for all my posts,

TV has clearly gone to s**t. Years ago, anything racy wasn't shown until the 10pm time block and now it is everywhere on the big three. Cable is even worse. Yes I love cable, but give me a break. The garbage just attacks all of the senses. If not the shows, its the Viagra and Cialis commercials. I can't wait to explain to my two year olds what EDS is and why a 4 hour woody is bad. I can't even watch a wholesome football game without that garbage.

Yes, parents can control what is in the house but it is everywhere. Internet, magazines, newspapers etc. Our standards have crapped out.

If your kid has values, and they know wrong from right, and they know how to think for themselves, then it doesn't matter what they see on TV or magazines.

For the very young children, I know that they ask a kazillion questions. It's difficult, because you don't want to lie, but at the same time, they just aren't ready for the truth. A friend of mine had to teach her daughter about sex when she was six years old. She did so, because her daughter was getting some very wrong facts and ideas about sex from other children. As parents, we can only do what we think is best. Too bad some don't.

Originally posted by TeeJay
If your kid has values, and they know wrong from right, and they know how to think for themselves, then it doesn't matter what they see on TV or magazines.

that is a very good point. me must teach our kids to deny ignorance! my parents used to make my friends come over to dinner just to make sure they werent insane and whatnot.