Teens Becoming Pregnant to Get on 'Teen Mom'?

By Rob Shuter Posted Dec 7th 2010 07:20AM

Now that 'Teen Mom' cast members like Amber Portwood are in their twenties, MTV is looking for a new crop of teenage girls to keep its monster hits 'Teen Mom' and '16 and Pregnant' alive, and [surprise!] industry insiders tell me young ladies are so eager to be on reality TV that they are actually getting pregnant just to score an audition. OK, not much of a surprise. Simply take a spin around the various Internet forums filled with young girls inquiring about what's required to score a role.

"This is yet another example of the desperation of fame," Matt Titus, a relationship expert from TheLoveConsultants.com, tells me. "The sad state of reality television has created a lowbrow vehicle for untainted train wreck personalities to display their private lives. Getting pregnant to be famous is like eating as many cockroaches as possible in a one minute period."

(Didn't they do that on 'Survivor'?)

Casting any reality show right is essential to whether it is a hit or not. Networks spend top dollar auditioning throughout the country to make sure they get the right mix. However, what makes 'Teen Mom' and '16 and Pregnant' both so difficult to cast is that, thankfully, the "talent pool" of potential stars that are both pregnant and teenagers is relatively small.

Mommy expert Beth Feldman, creator of RoleMommy.com, says it would be "horrifying" if teens are actually getting pregnant for a TV show. "Becoming a parent is a responsibility that no one should take lightly, and for a teenager to think that a pregnancy could lead to instant fame and fortune is absurd. Parenting is a lifetime commitment and teens have there own lives ahead of them. Let them grow up before they take the responsibility of caring for another human being."

Rabbi Shmuely Boteach, a friend of the late Michael Jackson and author of 'Kosher Sex,' agrees. "This is out of control celebrity culture. Reality TV first began by exploiting people's problems, assuming they would do anything for fame. The idea of teenage girls getting pregnant to be on television shows that reality TV is going a step beyond exploiting problems. It is now creating the problems."

Anyone who has had a child knows that it is the most serious commitment a person can make. Rabbi Shmuley correctly points out that when young girls begin making this ultimate decision in order find fame, it "shows the moral rot in American society."

"These girls are ignoring the fact that this decision must followed by a lifetime of responsibility," he says.

Maybe my friend Jane Velez-Mitchell, host of the hit HLN show 'Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell,' says it best: "Children should not be having children, period."

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'Teen Mom' Snapshots

NEW YORK - MAY 05: (L-R) TV Personality from MTV's "Teen Mom" Maci Bookout, Bristol Palin and Brianda Diaz attend The Candie's Foundation Event To Prevent at Cipriani 42nd Street on May 5, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Maci Bookout;Bristol Palin;Brianda;Diaz

Getty Images

Getty Images North America

Teen Mom Snapshots

NEW YORK - MAY 05: (L-R) TV Personality from MTV's "Teen Mom" Maci Bookout and Bristol Palin attend The Candie's Foundation Event To Prevent at Cipriani 42nd Street on May 5, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Maci Bookout;Bristol Palin

Teen Mom Snapshots

NEW YORK - MAY 05: TV Personality from MTV's "Teen Mom" Maci Bookout attends The Candie's Foundation Event To Prevent at Cipriani 42nd Street on May 5, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Maci Bookout

Teen Mom Snapshots

NEW YORK - MAY 05: (L-R) Farrah Abraham, Maci Bookout and Bristol Palin speak to Dr. Drew Pinsky during " The Harsh Truth: Teen Moms Tell All" Town Hall Meeting sponsored by The Candie's Foundation at Lighthouse International Conference Center on May 5, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Farrah Abraham;Maci Bookout;Bristol Palin;Dr. Drew Pinsk

Teen Mom Snapshots

NEW YORK - MAY 05: (L-R) CEO of Candie's, Neil Cole, Bristol Palin and Dr. Drew Pinsky attend " The Harsh Truth: Teen Moms Tell All" Town Hall Meeting sponsored by The Candie's Foundation at Lighthouse International Conference Center on May 5, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Neil Cole;Bristol Palin;Dr. Drew Pinsky

Teen Mom Snapshots

Bristol Palin and Dr. Drew attend " The Harsh Truth: Teen Moms Tell All" Town Hall Meeting sposored by The Candie's Foundation at Lighthouse International Conference Center on May 5, 2010 in New York City. "The Harsh Truth: Teen Moms Tell All" Town Hall Meeting Sposored By The Candie's Foundation Lighthouse International Conference Center New York, NY United States May 5, 2010 Photo by Theo Wargo/WireImage.com To license this image (17257527), contact WireImage.com

Teen Mom Snapshots

Bristol Palin attends " The Harsh Truth: Teen Moms Tell All" Town Hall Meeting sposored by The Candie's Foundation at Lighthouse International Conference Center on May 5, 2010 in New York City. "The Harsh Truth: Teen Moms Tell All" Town Hall Meeting Sposored By The Candie's Foundation Lighthouse International Conference Center New York, NY United States May 5, 2010 Photo by Theo Wargo/WireImage.com To license this image (17257536), contact WireImage.com

Teen Mom Snapshots

Tags: teen mom

Comments

(111)

Tuesday 07 December

By FrankieZ

Vote down Vote up Report this

Hey if any of these young b*tc*es who are in desperate need of celebrity need help getting knocked up let em I can help but I won't take care of no kid no how...shorties would just cramp my style yo........but making shorties is sure nuff fun

By Denise

High Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Is this a surprise? When I first heard about this show I thought it was going to be a reason for young girls to get pregnant. The girls think about the money they can make, and the glamor of being on tv. What a no brainer.

By Digi

Just more reason why I think they should license the right to reproduce, not to a 'rough' extent but a logical one. if you cant afford a baby, you cant have one. If you have one anyways, said baby is removed, and you are thrown in prison , time to be determined but heck why are we coddling these dumb women? I say throw the book at them, punish and make an example out of them.

Wednesday 08 December

Digi you have to be kidding. That's what abortion and adoption it for. Parents have to help these girls make the decision. If they decide to keep the baby the girl should have to stay home after work or school and not be allowed to go out every night or weekend. They have to be held responsible for raising their child.

By travelsalot

First time i watched this show i cried. In 1974 I was these girls. It wasn't fun. It wasn't glamorous. It was hard. And lonely. Very, very lonely.

Lowest Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Guess you shoulda just kept them legs close cause your attempt for public sympathy is pathetic. You want a medal for being an idiot? Or some form of attention for not being able to actually LIVE a productive life without bringing a rodent into the world? You make me sick

By Lynn

Highest Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

I had a very good friend that had a child at 15. I helped her as much as I could, but you are right, it is not easy. Needless to say, I had my first child at 35 (yea, I know, late but all good). And Digi, you are the one who is pathetic. You must be a very depressing, judgemental person to be around.

By peggy fult438

tired of ho mom's and bastard babies

By Coleen

Shame no longer exists

By marc

Good grief, next we will have a " reality show" about sub-teenage killers, and how they were mistreated and misunderstood by society-think Columbine!! THe LIBERAL Hollywood just cannot wait to defile Amwerican standards of decency!!

By Eulaha

When I was a 12 years old, I still played with dolls. Nowadays, 12 year old girls are dressing like little hookers and having sex...how things have changed...

You REALLY think ANY fad developed by idolizing a Palin can lead to ANY good? Why dont they start glamourfying murder and such too or burglery since all you tools will watch it and fall RIGHT in line. Just shows how STUPID people are.

By slyfox

You liberals are so ignorant. Bristol is a advocate of abstonance and birth control. She speaks publicly, and writes about being a single parent and knows what feelings and emotions she was going through when she made the mistake of getting pregnant at such a young age. This show is trash and is exactly what Bristol doesnt want to happen.

By Frank

You are wrong The Palin is a joke

By stu

good they have goals @ that young age.

By Pheonix

This is ridiculous!! Teen girls wanna be famous so they get pregnant. This is absurd, these girls are not thinking realistically. Me as a 17 year old should know. They have their whole lives ahead of them before they have children. There's so much to see and do when we get out of high school and they're not going to enjoy any of it because they won't get to do any of it nevertheless find a good man who will take care of them for the rest of their life. These girls on the TV show have dirtbag boyfriends and such, their parents even know it and then they burden their families with taking care of a child. WRONG DECISION LADIES!! Thanks for messing up our generation and having people think young ladies like me are useless and nothing. Let me tell you... I'm joining the U.S. Air Force in two weeks and it brings me shame to be a girl at 17 because of you girls who don't know how to keep their legs closed! At least I'm mature and I know how God wants me to behave.

By Emily

I don't understand callind unwed teen mothers deragatory names. They are misguided teens who messed up and made a mistake. Though I'm not supporting premartial sex I do have to say I respect the teens who made a mistake and are ATTEMPTING to make it right by having their children and doing their best to raise their child. I think people need to look at the bigger picture here. Who is raising our children? Are we raising our children or is media? You can't expect your child's school or media in the form of television to talk to your child. Parents need to step up and actually parent their children. You think teen moms are bad, you know they were raised by someone? Don't rag on Palin, despite what you think of her mother she's a teenager. It takes a village to raise a child. MTV isn't at fault for teen pregnancy SOCIETY is. And your part of society.

By tammy

These girls get 60000 to do this show which is more than some couples make who are trying to raise a family. I feel nothing for these girls they are just greedy little people.

By Tyrone Ballsack

That Bristol is a porkchop. On the other hand, Maci looks like a little hottie.

By ashley

Everyone is blaming the producers of these shows for all the teens getting pregnant. I really don't think it was the producers' intentions to get teenagers pregnant so that they would have a show. These shows are to show teens how hard it is to be a teen parent. It's not the producers' fault that teens are so stupid to believe they can get famous for being pregnant. It's also not the producers' fault that you people are so stupid to blame the producers' of shows for teen pregnancy instead of the real people responsible for this problem: the teens themselves.

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