Popular culture to me affects the person that I have come to be. Popular culture influences every decision that we make for example, how one chooses to dress, certain food one consumes, and what type of activities one does. The media contributed to how I physically valued myself at a young age. Every teenage girl thinks about whether they are pretty and if they are well liked. I dreamed about what it would be like to be one of them, the “beautiful people” in the magazines, perfect makeup, hair, clothes, and accessories. What I did not know at the time was how much of an impact this would have on what type of person I would become.
As time passes, I am noticing a change in the way information is presented to children and adolescence. Our children are being exposed to information with a very adult content which is causes our children to grow up faster. My opinion on this matter was confirmed an article about a sixteen year old actress caught my attention. What is the world coming to when teenagers assume the role of parents? A teenage is had not had an adequate amount of time to be able to react rationally to these types of situations. I then pondered the kind of message that young followers of the celebrity Jamie Lynn Spears would receive. Jamie Lynn Spears is the lead role in the popular television show “Zoey 101” on Nickelodeon. She is also the younger sister to the popular singer Britney Spears, who has also been scrutinized by the media and paparazzi.
Jamie Lynne Spears confirmed her pregnancy to “OK” magazine on December 19, 2007. This announcement only fueled the media attention that Jamie Lynn would receive over the next several months. A young group of student from Massachusetts made the news across the country. The girls were believed to make a pact in which they would all get pregnant together. Not to my surprise, they accomplished this goal. It is thought these decisions were made in reaction to the public acceptance of Jamie Lynn Spear’s situation. The same situation occurs daily across the world as it becomes more and more popular. Parents have an obvious responsibility to teach their children how decisions will affect their lives. The media should not be placing blame on her; instead they should be focusing the attention on poor parenting. Popular culture has taught me that while I may read the articles in these magazines, I should not base my own assumptions and decisions based on the contents of the pages. This does not mean that a lesson is not learned. As I continually grow into my aspiring role of parenthood, I will monitor the information available to my future children. I think that many parents need to reassess what they let their children be exposed to. Parents are responsible for preparing their children for independent living. Popular culture will inevitably continue to influence adolescence children, but with proper guidance children will be better able to reach reasonable conclusion about this information.
References
Orzeck, K. (2007, December). Jamie Lynn Spears, Britney’s Sister, Is Pregant. Ok Magazine. Retrieved February 1, 2009, from http://www.mtv.com/news/articles /1576746 /20071218/spears_britney.jhtml.
Very thought out blog this week Angie, and makes me as a parent of a 13 year old girl think about what some preceive as OK. I have seen this before and with ZOEY getting preggers and the former wanna-be Vice-president's daughter getting pregrent it is brought into the mainstream with a lot of attention. I think this attention to STARS saying it is OK, is very bad for young impressionable teens.
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