TV and teen pregnancy.

[ColbertWatcher]

Here is something I read in the paper today:

Sexual trysts and pregnancy twists are common occurrences in youth-oriented TV land. And a recent study by Rand Corp., which tracked more than 700 12- to 17-year-olds, found that about 25% of those who viewed the most sexual content on TV were involved in a pregnancy, compared with about 12% of those who watched the least.

(...)

And though it is mentioned on "Secret Life," " Beverly Hills, 90210" and "Gossip Girl," abortion is never really an option. The bigger parts of the issue are glossed over, said Wynants, who has discussed plotlines from "Gossip Girl" with her class.

"There needs to be more mention of the three Cs: commitment, contraception and consequences," she said. "What's not fully explored is why these kids find themselves pregnant and what happens to them afterward. The whole reality."

(...)

And research suggests teens do want the awful truth: Three-quarters say they would like the media to talk more about the consequences of sex, according to a 2007 study by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

--Los Angeles Times

The question is:
What is Hollywood trying to say with this new trend in programming?

[panader0]

1. My girlfriend won't let me put a TV in the bedroom.

And we've both been fixed.

[L0oniX]

6. Huh? What are you doing in the bedroom? Oh but Tv is going to far?

heheh

[Believing Is Art]

2. Promotion of the Aryan Nation

90210? Friends? Bristol Palin? I'm noticing a trend. All the people involved are WHITE. Hollywood WANTS white people to have sex and get pregnant. The Census Bureau says that white people will be a minority by 2042 and Hollywood wants to put a stop to this by promoting white pregnancies! Nazis!!!

[ColbertWatcher]

3. LOL! That's hilarious! n/t

[Believing Is Art]

4. Yeah, sorry bout that

The last option was kinda like waving a red flag in front of a bull. A bull of facetiousness.

[ColbertWatcher]

5. Well, your reply was very truthy! n/t

[Gwendolyn]

9. Good lord, plse find a pill or a god or something to take the pain away. n/t

[Believing Is Art]

10. I assume that's a joke, since I was joking. n/t

[Gwendolyn]

13. Yes, mostly it was a joke too.

:)

[Believing Is Art]

14. I've always wanted to be a crazy conspiracy theorist!

Think I could pull it off?

[anonymous171]

11. I KNEW IT!!!1

[anigbrowl]

7. We're in it for the money

No, I don't work as a soap writer, specifically, but I write other kinds of screenplays. when it comes to plotting, you go for the highest stakes you can, the ones that'll make your viewers go 'oh noes'. Unwanted pregnancy ranks pretty highly, especially for teens.

[Quantess]

8. Or maybe, kids who have no lives get pregnant more often?

Life is boring, have a lame social life, don't care about school, don't do extracurricular activities, have no motivation to do anything but watch TV... Why not have a baby?

What do you think?

[anonymous171]

12. Because that would end the drama too quickly.

[AZBlue]

15. I don't watch these shows, but could Hollywood be trying to show the consequences of sex?

I mean, teenage pregnancy is no treat - are they showing it realistically? Because if they do, whether or not they mean to, they would be discouraging teens from having unprotected sex.