The News Today

To be completely honest, I've never been a fan of watching the news. Whenever I think about the news, I mainly focus on the people who deliver it. I just can't get past the vision of a bunch of angry people trying to talk over one another. It's really frustrating for me because I'm not a very aggressive person, so I tend to shy away from those types of things. However, though I'm not really a fan of watching the news, I do genuinely care about what's happening in the world.

I ventured out and decided to watch 2 news commentators; Bill O'Reilly and Nancy Grace. Now, I've heard a lot about both of these commentators, and I know my father has watched a fair amount of Bill O'Reilly's show in the past. The O'Reilly Factor is basically Bill O'Reilly covering a handful of current events happening in the news today. He breaks each topic down into different segments, such as Talking Points Memo, Top Story, and Impact. The episode I chose to watch of Mr. O'Reilly featured him discussing Obamacare. He seemed to get really hot-headed over the topic, and though he wasn't talking with a guest, or receiving someone else's opinion, he was getting extremely defensive over his own opinion. From what I've seen of O'Reilly in the past, I believe he has a relatively short temper, and seems to blow up on a daily basis. To me, that's not very appealing when I'm trying to learn about what's happening in the world. The last thing I want is someone yelling at me while I'm watching t.v.

This is Bill O'Reilly on his show "The O'Reilly Factor"
As you can clearly see, he seems to be getting a bit angry with
whatever it is that's being discussed. This is the exact behavior
I got from watching him the other night.

The other commentator I chose to watch was Nancy Grace. Mrs. Grace was discussing the issue of the young woman who was carrying a newborn baby around in her purse. Now, as crazy of an issue as that is, it seemed that Nancy was keeping her cool while discussing it. I have seen/heard a little bit about Nancy Grace in the past, and her reputation is usually that she's either crazy and obnoxious, or she's a b____...you can fill in the blanks. However, I actually felt more at ease watching Nancy Grace than I did when watching Bill O'Reilly. She managed to keep her cool, and did get a bit defensive over the issue at hand, but she was doing her job by delivering the news, while also hearing what others had to say about it. Though it's doubtful I would ever go out of my way to watch either of these commentators for a second time, I am glad that I chose to watch them. I have a better understanding of how certain people deliver the news, and it also just reinforces why I enjoy other sources, such as the internet, for my daily news fill.

This is Nancy Grace. I feel that this picture really displays
the vibe I got from watching her show. She looks strong and serious,
yet she isn't getting extremely angry like our good pal Bill O'Reilly.

Reality Television Promoting The Wrong Idea

Back in 2009, I remember hearing about a new show coming to MTV called, "16 and Pregnant." Sounds pretty self-explanatory, right? Yet for some odd reason, curiosity got the best of me and I caved into watching the first episode. Now, part of me feels like it was exactly what I expected; a 16 year old girl is pregnant and the show is following her through the struggles of being a teen and future parent. However, another part of me felt like the show was too...glamorous. I'm not saying that this girl was living the life of a wealthy celebrity with tons of nice things, but she didn't really seem to be upset about being pregnant at 16, which to most people is a pretty big deal.

As I continued throughout the season, and yes I watched the whole entire season, I noticed a common theme between all but one of the 16 year old mothers: none of them actually seemed to be distressed about becoming a teen mother. They were all so calm and collected, as if carrying something inside of you for 9 months was a walk in the park. I was honestly disturbed by not only the concept of the show, but also the attitudes of the mothers-to-be. This disturbed feeling got me thinking; What if none of them are acting distressed, because none of them really were distressed? I mean, being a teen mother sounds pretty nerve racking and scary to me, however these girls were also being filmed by MTV throughout their journey. So maybe being on T.V. calms your nerves?

After giving it a good amount of thought and watching the reunion show of all the 16 year old mothers, I realized maybe that's exactly what it was. Being on television seems like a pretty glamorous thing to me, so I guess regardless of the reasoning for it, if you're on T.V. you're technically a star...or at least in the spotlight. Not only did 16 and Pregnant return for a second (and fifth season), but some of the "stars" from the first season of 16 and Pregnant were offered a spot on the ever so lovely spin-off show, "Teen Mom." Not thinking this is glamorous yet? Well, these girls were not only offered another spot on MTV's line up, but many of them were featured in popular magazines such as People, US, and OK!

For me, this all seemed too glamorous, almost as if the media was encouraging the idea of becoming a teen mother. I'm not saying that being a teen mother is a terrible thing that no one can handle, however I feel that MTV has promoted this idea that if you get pregnant at 16, it's totally okay because you'll be featured on not one, but two T.V. shows to sweeten the deal for you. It's unrealistic, unhealthy, and unfair for the youths of today who genuinely look up to the shows MTV produces.

This was the very first "16 and Pregnant" star, Maci.
Notice how this cover isn't even focusing on her child,
but rather the relationship she's in.

This is the same "16 and Pregnant" star, Maci,
however this time, she's giving her child's father
a second chance at a relationship. Again, this
barely focuses on the reason she's famous;
her child.