Psy 265 Capstone Check Point

The media’s portrayal of sexuality has a large impact on an adolescent’s sexual life. Take my daughter for example. She has classified herself as lesbian. She watches the TV shows Degrassi, Glee and The Secret Life of an American Teenager every chance she gets. A couple of these shows portray gay lifestyles as something that the person is born with and does not choose to be. One of the shows portrays oral sex as a happy alternative to “real sex” because there is no way to get pregnant from it. My daughter has admitted to me that she enjoys performing oral sex on boys sometimes. She is of the opinion that it is ok since she can’t get pregnant that way. I believe that these TV shows have influenced her take on oral sex. I have discussed the fact that oral sex is a gateway to “real sex” and that she needs to be safe. But since I am the absentee parent I do not have control over the TV programming that she watches. This is one of the areas where her father and I disagree. He says it is just entertainment and that the shows do not affect her at all.

The media can have a positive effect as well. For example, the “reality show” 16 and Pregnant scares some into being cautious. With reports on the news about statutory rape, it makes adolescents aware of the consequences of having sex (consensual or not) where an illegal age gap exists. After the show The Secret Life of an American Teenager, one of the characters will mention that if a teen has questions about sex, they should discuss it with their parents. That can be helpful if the teen (or parent) is comfortable enough to have such a discussion.

The media’s portrayal of sex has not had much effect on my life. I did not have a TV in my house until I was 18. By then I had already given birth to my first child. When I was growing up, sex was not mentioned in the news because my parents only allowed Christian radio to be played. As a home schooled student, I had a book for sexual education and parents that...