We note the following from Barack Obama's speech last night:

"We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country."

And this:

"...we must also admit that programs alone can't replace parents, that government can't turn off the television and make a child do her homework,that fathers must take more responsibility to provide love and guidance to their children."

Note from the blogkeeper: Today's post by Jennifer Drake is in response to yesterday's post by Bill Albert. Do you have a reaction to what Bill said? To Jennifer's rebuttal? Let's hear what you have to say!

So is it the flippancy with which Jenna seems to answer the question about marriage, or our judgment about women and men in this industry that troubles us the most?

I ask because we typically don't hear the same opinions about the Jolie-Pitt family, which is now up to six kids... and zero wedding rings. Perhaps it's our perception that this is a healthy, wealthy (!) family with two successful, financially stable, and responsible parents. Criticism of Ms. Jameson's career choice aside, she has no doubt made a living for herself and carved out her own place in pop culture, much like "Brangelina." She's not married, but her child's father is one of the most successful MMA fighters in the business today. Chances are they're not struggling financially.

This is a thirty-something woman with a couple of marriages and even more life experiences under her belt, who according to some accounts may have badly wanted this pregnancy. Should her (former?) career/reputation automatically exclude her from the possibility of raising a kid, and all of the warm fuzzies that come along with having your own family? Or her marital status for that matter, when to our knowledge she has a supportive partner? As my dad likes to put it, "We all got issues," so I wouldn't count her to be any less ready to be a parent than Angelina "I-wear-a-vial-of-my-husband's-blood-around my-neck" Jolie. I'm just sayin'.

And perhaps we could have found a picture of Jenna that is less...well, just less. Tito Ortiz is much better looking anyway :)

For those still unsure about the power of celebrity culture, please note today's sign of the apocolypse.

Seems porn star Jenna Jameson is in a motherly way. (In fairness, I note parenthetically that news outlets are dutifully reporting that Jenna is a "former" porn actress...whatever.)  Here is what the proud mom-to-be had to say about her relationship with mixed martial arts maestro Tito Ortiz : 

  "I think I'm gonna stay unmarried and just go for the babies!  I'm following in Angelina's footsteps!"

Oh joy.

A couple months back I was at Nationals Park (or, as I like to call it, my living room) watching my beloved Washington Nationals lose yet another game. As the grounds crew prepared the field for that night's game, I noted a particularly hairy individual watering the grass. Turns out the hirsute guy was a plant—part of the Geico caveman advertising campaign. After a few minutes watering the lawn as a member of the grounds crew, the caveman was flashed onto the gi-normous television screen hanging in center field and a good laugh was had by all. Human product placement!

Reflect for a moment on all the innovative and engaging campaigns you have seen over the past two years—from insurance, to beer, to fill in your personal favorite here. Now think about all the innovative campaigns you have come across in the oddly-named field of reproductive health. Ready? Go...

Waiting... tick, tick, tick

Give up?

Me too.

The ugly truth is that most campaigns at preventing teen and unplanned pregnancy and encouraging people to take sex, pregnancy, and family formation a bit more seriously are, at best, stuck in neutral (if by neutral you mean approximately 1987). Of course, there may be practical and idealogical reasons for all this; bold social marketing efforts in reproductive health land are frequently dismissed by true believers as disrespectful, preachy, fear-based, shame-filled, or they are simply precluded by media outlets from being aired at all.

All of which brings us to a truly engaging mass media effort underway in India to—in the words of the creators—"make condoms more socially acceptable and improve the image of the condom user as a smart and responsible person." One listen to the condom ring tone and you will understand what I mean by an engaging, innovative and—dare I say it—fun social marketing effort.

See the TV ad, listen to the fabulous-can't-get-enough-of-it ringtone, and learn more about this innovative effort. Now start you own campaign! Remember, no giraffes, rainbows, or unicorns allowed.

It may still feel like summer, but for many schools around the country, class is back in session. For most teens, the start of the new school year brings mixed feelings of excitement and dread. But for many teen mothers, the new school years also represents a whole new set of challenges. We asked our friend Taylor to share his experiences and tell us what's on his mind as he heads back to school.

For me, the phrase "back to school" brings mixed feelings of excitement and sorrow. Excitement because a brand new school term begins and sorrow because the laid-back attitude of summer draws to a bittersweet end. For many teen mothers though, that phrase typically means an additional demand on their time and patience, particularly if returning to school and/or working will be added to an already full agenda of raising a child.

In my school, I have seen these challenges first hand. For example, in my class last year there was a girl named Alicia. Alicia was a straight "A" student, a cheerleader, and one of the most popular girls in school. I didn't know her personally until this year, but shortly after school began we became friends. Around November, Alicia was only coming to school about once or twice a week and even then she would show up extremely late. To my surprise, she was pregnant and only told a select few. As the year went on, she struggled to balance her academic workload and extra-curricular activities with caring for her new child. As a result, she failed most of her second semester classes and was advised to attend summer school. Alicia couldn't go to summer school because she had to work in order to support her and her child.

The relationship between academic failure and teen parenthood is extremely strong because of the competing demands of school and the attention that a child requires. The stress of all this responsibility must be the main reason why only 40% of mothers who have children before the age of 18 actually graduate high school. Additionally, less than 2% of mothers under the age of 18 have a college degree by the age of 30. The added pressure on teen moms usually makes them choose between school or staying home with their baby. More times than not, staying home with their baby wins.

The odds don't fare well for their children either. Children of teen mothers do far worse in school compared to those born to older parents. These children are more likely to repeat a grade, less likely to complete high school, and have lower performances on standardized tests.

The impact that teen pregnancy has on schools and communities is phenomenal. While many corporations and programs are putting notebooks and pencils into book bags for students that are returning to school, maybe they need to add condoms and information about safe sex and abstinence, too.

Stay Out Loud is our monthly series featuring articles written by teen, for teens. Got something you want to say? Email your submissions and story ideas to stayteen@thenc.org.