For Some Students, 'Teen Mom' Isn't a Cautionary Tale

Oct. 14, 2010— -- More than three million people tune in to "Teen Mom" every week, making it MTV's highest-rated show. The "16 and Pregnant" spin-off targets women ages 12-34, gripping the attention of young viewers around the country. The show follows teen moms Amber, Maci, Farrah and Catelynn as they tackle the stresses of being a new parent.

Older adults typically agree: the show is a stifling example of what can become of your life if you get pregnant as a teenager.

Bill Albert, spokesman for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, said the series sends a really powerful pregnancy prevention message.

"MTV is in the entertainment business and [we] are in the teen pregnancy prevention business," said Albert. "Our two worlds have happily and effectively collided to minimize the number of teen pregnancies."

But some young viewers don't view the show as "birth control," but as another reality show to fill the 10 o'clock timeslot on Tuesday nights.

Groups of girls gather on Howard University's campus every week to watch the show. Tressa Blockett, Chastity Bragner, and Dominique Ingram, all juniors at HU, get situated moments before the show. With their laptops open, Twitter pages up, excitement swells as they watch the show's trailer before the episode begins.

"Maci is the best mom, Farrah is the worst mom on the show," Blockett said as the show began.

"Did you see my tweet last week about Amber? That girl has some anger issues," Bragner, a political science major, added. "I'm just ready to see Amber [mother of Leah] punch Gary in the face."

The girls giggled about what scenes they anticipated would be most comical. "This show is purely entertaining," said Blockett, a sports management major at HU. "'Teen Mom,' 'Jersey Shore' … they are all just reality TV shows."

Tuning in weekly to see the drama unfold isn't just a trend on Howard University's campus.

Teen mom and college student Alfreda Turner said she watches the show to see if the girls are going through issues similar to the ones she has faced. Turner gave birth to her 18-month-old son Cameron last April.