Laurie’s story is one of many that illustrate the pages of Meg Meeker’s “Epidemic: How Teen Sex is Killing Our Kids.” A pediatrician who has treated teens for over two decades, Meeker sounds the alarm about how sexually transmitted diseases are killing the children of America.

It is obvious through stories like this that the promiscuity of America’s teens is a plague sweeping the nation. With teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases on the rise, parents are constantly looking for the causes of this terrible phenomenon. Researchers support the idea that television has a very strong ef

In this day and age where money talks for everything and everyone, it is very unlikely that we will see any paradigm shift in television to one of abstinence and consequences. However, if teen’s had a more open environment to talk about such issues, they would not have to turn to television for sexual etiquette lessons. If we would toss away our puritan shackles of regarding sex as a totally taboo subject, we would find our teens not as obsessed with sex and the programs that glorify it.

fect on adolescent sexual behaviors and attitudes. By applying the social learning theory and other similar theories to this problem, they have determined that television is acting like an older sibling; kids learn by imitation. The more they watch, the more they are influenced. However, it is not just the amount of television watched that determines the correlation. The way teen viewers identify with TV characters is a crucial factor as well. The shows and characters that relate to their specific backgrounds make the characters and situations especially appealing. MTV’s concentrated stereotyping and terrible messages also play a major part in teens’ sexual behavior.

While repeated reinforcement of promiscuous behavior is necessary to fully affect a teenager’s mind, most researchers involved in this topic believe that ‘quality is more important than quantity.’ The quality of entertainment is determined by viewer involvement and interest. Viewers who identify with the characters are likely to begin acting like them and responding similarly to related situations they may face, especially sexual. This kind of interpretation can affect the teen views of sexual behaviors, attitudes, and expectations. Factors other than the characters may also influence teens. The more realistic the setting, clothing, and dialogue are to the programs viewers, the more true to life the viewers will think the show is. The more realistic the shows are, the more the cultivation theory will effect the teens. (2)

Aside from gender associations, demographics also play an important factor in how viewers become involved with programs. Age, gender, educational background, race, parent’s income and occupation, as well as family size are examples of the personal characteristics that support the make up of attitudes for a teen. In addition, geographic locations throughout the United States differ in many ways, and each subculture instills a set of ideals that affect the psychological make-up of each viewer. A suburban white middle class girl will most likely not watch and relate to the plights of an inner city black youth i.e. Moesha. However, they will be likely to watch the development of a white suburban cast such as The OC. Activities, interests, and opinions will carry over into their involvement with characters and programs they may intentionally watch as well.

The strongest factor in affecting viewer involvement is the background and personal history of each viewer. Culture can help in establishing boundaries and rules for teens of certain behavior. The values and morals that have been taught to teens have given them an identity and have them how they fit into the world. The more communicatio

Some topics in this essay:
Christina Aguilera, OC Activities, George Gerbner’s, Killing Kids”, Called Life, Albert Bandura’s, Messages Fifteen, It’s America’s, Peterson Moore, Princess Britney’s, sexual behavior, “ , cultivation theory, sexually transmitted, transmitted diseases, sexually transmitted diseases, soap operas, daytime soap operas, social learning, behaviors attitudes, sexual behaviors, daytime soap, social learning theory, sexually explicit material, sexual behaviors attitudes,