The NBC series The Baby Borrowers premiered last night.  We are anxious to hear the reaction of those of you who saw the show.  Some have been highly critical of the show for separating the babies from their parents.  Others have praised the show show and have told us that they think it will be educational. You've seen our take in previous blog postings.

Et tu you?  What's your take?

And now a break from Gloucester...

A provocative (!) ad has been making the internet/YouTube rounds over the past 48 hours.  In the purported ad for staid department store J.C. Penney, two teenagers get undressed and then time themselves as they quickly put their clothes back on.  The ad ends as the teen boy and girl walk past mom on the way to the basement to "watch TV" and the words "Today's the day to get away with it" appear on the screen.   We clever viewers realize that mom is being duped--that the young Lotharios are actually heading downstairs for a roll in the hay.  Aren't we smart?

Turns out the ad wasn't actually an ad for J.C. Penny at all, according to a story in today's Wall Street Journal.  The "Speed Dressing" ad, according to the WSJ report, was created without J.C. Penney's knowledge or consent. 

Doubts are now being raised about whether there actually was a pregnancy pact among some of the students at Gloucester High.  Pact or no pact, the number of pregnant girls at that particular high school more than tripled in one year.  Alarming?  You betcha.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past 24 hours, you now know that several students from a high school in Gloucester, MA  apparently made a pact to become pregnant and raise their babies together. This news broke the very same day that 17-year old actress Jamie Lynn Spears gave birth to a baby girl.  Needless to say, these two events have  focused national attention on the issue of teen and unplanned pregnancy.

So, what do we think?  See below:

1.  Gloucester High Teens: selected press clips, resources for parents and educators, and other pertinent links, and a recent Pregnant Pause post on this issue

2.  Jamie Lynn Spears: The National Campaign statement, selected press clips, and resources for parents and educators

UPDATE:

Sarah Brown on the CBS Early Show, June 23rd

Also, check out The National Campaign's fearless leader Sarah Brown on the June 20th edition of The Today Show:

Keep an eye on TheNationalCampaign.org for up-to-date info on these and other stories.

This just in from Massachusetts about a pack of little girls who decided to get pregnant together.  This is exhibit #50928345 in a basic reality today: our culture and its constituent parts--parents, media, faith leaders, elected officials and more--have failed in one of our most critical and basic jobs, which is communicating to the next generation about what babies need and deserve.  And what are those things?  The list includes having adult parents who are deeply and sincerely committed to each other; who are willing to be active, devoted parents for decades; and who have done the best they can to get educated so that they and their children need not struggle with poverty.  I cannot believe that if these girls had been surrounded by a culture and families who were clear and explicit about these simple facts that they would have been so reckless.   

Why didn't they just go get tattoos together or do some other innocuous adolescent thing?  This Massachusetts story provides a possible answer:  casual, non-marital child-bearing among teens as well as older individuals has become so common and inconsequential that it actually now IS the consumer equivalent of a tattoo: meaningless.

Yesterday, on Father's Day appropriately, Senator Barack Obama addressed a congregation in Chicago about the importance of young men supporting their families and taking the responsibility to raise the children they have.  Suggesting that too many fathers are absent from their children's lives, the Democratic Presidential candidate said this:

"We need fathers to realize that responsibility does not end at conception. We need them to realize that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child -- it's the courage to raise one."

Might I suggest that what would be even more courageous would be rewinding the clock a bit, say nine months or so earlier? Responsibility, it seems to me, begins long before sex, pregnancy, and birth.  What makes you a man is having the courage to wait to become a father until he is really ready to raise a child.  For some that means not having sex at all; for many it means making sure you and your partner use condoms and birth control every single time.

Don't get me wrong; I think the Senator's thoughts about responsible fatherhood are right on target.  Where I grew up, a situation like mine--living with both mom and dad--made me a part of the "weird" family.  We usually ate dinner together, and my dad would come fetch me from doing ultra-cool things with my pre-teen friends to do so.  And research without question shows that kids generally do better when both parents are around.

But why is it that when it comes to male involvement and responsible fatherhood programs, there is so little focus on encouraging men to be responsible by preventing an unplanned pregnancy--before a child or even a pregnancy is involved?  While there are numerous attorneys general and child support enforcement officials all over the country doing great work to make sure men take responsibility for their actions and support the lives they helped create, I suspect their jobs would be a whole lot easier if we devoted more attention to making sure they don't become daddies in the first place.

The CDC has just released new data on high school teens' sexual behavior and contraceptive use.  Headline?  Not too good. 

Teen sexual activity is up and contraceptive use is down between 2005 and 2007.  On every single measure (ever had sex, currently sexually active, condom use at last sex, pill use, four or more sexual partners) the arrows are pointing in the wrong direction.

Perhaps the more interesting and significant trend, however, is the tale of two decades.  All of these same measures (with the exception of birth control pill use which has declined steadily since 1991) improved dramatically between 1991 and 2001.  Between 2001 and 2007?  The most charitable description of the current decade is...well...running in place. 

A few more YRBS items for your consideration: 

·          National Campaign press release

·          National Campaign fact sheet

·          Full YRBS report

Tell us what you think.  Why do you think teen sexual behavior is changing?

On June 25th, NBC premieres its riveting new reality show, The Baby Borrowers.  Over six intense, heartwarming, and hilarious episodes we see teen couples who think they're ready to have children, care for real, live babies, then toddlers, then tweens, then teenagers and finally senior citizens.  It's life in fast forward as they try to negotiate the challenges of parenting along with maintaining their relationships.  Unlike other reality shows - no one gets voted off here, no one is competing for a prize - the drama is the journey itself and the rewards are lessons learned about adult life. Learn more about the show at http://www.nbc.com/The_Baby_Borrowers/.

The Campaign has been lucky to work with NBC around the launch of this show, and we've collaborated with them on discussion guides for parents and teens who watch together and want to talk about it.  Please take the time to check out The Baby Borrowers on June 25th at 8PM ET/PT.  And let us know what you think about it!

Spoiler alert: There wasn't a dry eye in the house when we watched the final episode.

A new battle front in the culture wars has opened.  The issue is ICK -- in this case, some arguably salacious material in a sex ed curriculum. 

Here are a few thoughts: advocates on all sides of the sex ed battles have found sections in various curricula that they dislike.  As a general matter, the right dislikes sexually explicit content (the current flap) and the left routinely flags material that is medically inaccurate, homophobic and/or tied to religion.  It seems that almost anyone who sets foot into sex education offends at least someone.  It's tough terrain.    

So, what's a parent to do?  By all means review what your child's school plans to offer in sex ed 101.  If you find aspects of the curriculum that you don't like, consider having your child opt out of the class or perhaps just one session.  

But if you do so, keep in mind the following:

1. Some sex ed programs have been proven to help reduce the risk of teen pregnancy.  It is far better to have your child taught using an effective program than one lacking any evidence of good results.

2.  The overall popular culture that our children live in is very sexually explicit---and remember, it is on the watch of everyone reading this note that our culture has become what it is. Your children know and wonder about and hear tales of things that many of us old ones still don't get.  What makes you blush would hardly be noticed by the vast majority of teens.  Sorry.  It's the truth. 

3.  You are bound to find something that you do not agree with in any curriculum.  The question therefore is---on balance---does the curriculum seem right overall?  Does one disagreeable passage negate what might be 100 pages of positive material?  Analogy: Do you vote for a political candidate because you agree with him/her on every issue or just on most issues?

 4 . If you do remove your child from a class or curriculum, all that does is increase the burden on YOU to become a top flight sex educator.  Are you willing to do that?  To learn about the reality of teens' lives and the choices/pressures facing them, and then offer accurate, complete and compassionate advice?

Discuss.