Do You Think Teen Shows Set a Bad Example For Young Girls?

September 12, 2008

It's no secret that we're huge fans of teen shows like Gossip Girl, The Hills, and 90120, but now that our guilty pleasures are back we can't help but question some of the examples set by the characters. America Ferrera even told Seventeen magazine that she thinks these three shows in particular are encouraging girls to be mean to each other. What do you think — do teen shows set a bad example for young girls?

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121 Comments

2 years 32 weeks

yes,it is so much stupid

3 years 29 weeks

I watched 90210 last night for the first time as there was nothing else on.......I am shocked how discusting this show is, it is ahorrible example for teens today from how thin, rude ignorant & how unrealistic it is all the little tich kids that have no idea about the real world, sleazy & slutty, but unfortunately show like this sell, if we would stop watching they would go away, but honestly do real people act that way towards each other..is life really worth living that way, it was disgusting to watch. thats my opinion

3 years 40 weeks

i became bulimic through wanting to be skinny like the girls on these programmes. its very upsetting to be unable to achieve what they look like when i so desperately want it. bigger girls need to be chosen for programmes so the young female population doesnt feel shit about themselves

3 years 40 weeks

i love these programmes and realise that the richness isn't attainable and bitchiness isn't right. i can separate fact from fiction (im 16 by the way). i think the issue is the size of the girls. the fact is that skinniness IS attainable but to get it there is a lot to sacrifice including food, health, happiness, social life etc we all get too used to seeing these underweight celebs and so do our parents so they dont recognise the difficulty of these ideals and pressurize their children to do the same (at least thats true of the irresponsible ones). having said that i think for the most part gossip girl does a good job of having slim but also not too underweight girls acting and theyre all beautiful. blake lively and leighton meester are gorgeous but also have healthy figures

oxgalgym 4 years 3 days

well younger kids shouldnt be watching it unless their parents say it is okay

Andreinac13 4 years 34 weeks

yes it does, because some girls believe everything they see on tv. Some of them doesn't have the trust to talk to her parents about what they see on tv...

CinnaBlaze 4 years 35 weeks

I said Maybe but wanted to comment because the reason maybe gives isn't the only reason.....yes, parents should parent, first and foremost! Those shows are very risque, make it seem like you must be rich to be someone, show way too many fights, enemies and for stupid reasons as well, promote a bad body image (girls don't have to be that thin!) and promote teen sex. I also think that they have a right to be on the air as age appropriate people like to watch, including me - here is where the parents come in! Don't let your kids watch shows you don't want them to! I too grew up on the Family Ties, Cosby, Mr. Belvedere (sp), Growing Pains, Family Matters.....these shows were much less risque and when they dealt with adult content or serious matters they did it in a very positive way to TEACH about the subject, not exploit it. I admit I love watching some of these shows as my guilty pleasures but I would never let my kids watch them until I felt they were old enough!

LilGlamDiva 4 years 35 weeks

Yea- there are not exactly good role models- but it stems from the parents, even on the show.That should clearly be echoed in real life.

LilGlamDiva 4 years 35 weeks

Yea- there are not exactly good role models- but it stems from the parents, even on the show. That should clearly be echoed in real life.

Tabloid 4 years 35 weeks

I enjoy watching GG but it's such a bad example for teens/kids. These kind of show are one of the reason why the new generation are bad and I mean it. They need more educated show instead of these.

amloveaffair 4 years 35 weeks

I think only the 'Reality' shows do.

Jude C 4 years 35 weeks

I saw a four-year-old doing a four-year-old's version of a sexy dance to Kelis's "Milkshake" once. That really bothered me.

katykat 4 years 35 weeks

I have an eight year old cousin, and when her 19-year old sister watches shows like gossip girl, the 8-year-old is glued to the screen. That's bad enough, but watching her try to emulate those girls on TV makes me sad. True, she's only eight, but as far as I can tell, she doesn't have a thought in her head other than attracting boys and looking good.

GossipAngela 4 years 35 weeks

At least Gossip Girl is kinda deep with the Serena redemption and Blair's insecurities. 90210 is just a piece of commercial, stupid crap; I wouldnt be watching it if it wasnt for Brenda and Kelly. The Hills is fake FAKE FAKE, who cares; but parents should be wrning kids from The Hills since it is advertised as real and young girls might actually follow Lauren Conrad's footsteps.

sourcherry 4 years 35 weeks

I completely agree with jkat, peers are much more influential than TV shows. Most girls are very conscious of their bodies because of the tall, skinny girls in their class who are considered popular. They feel bad about their clothes because others show up at school in fancier outfits, etc... Same goes for drinking and taking drugs... I never saw anyone go "I saw a guy on TV get wasted, I'm gonna try that today!". No, they're pressured to try it by people they actually know. I'm not saying that TV doesn't influence kids at all, but we can't isolate them from all bad examples. What I think parents should do is work on developing their kids' sense of criticism. What is key is not forbidding certain shows, is encouraging children to have a mind of their own.

sourcherry 4 years 35 weeks

scottdavis0676 4 years 35 weeks

I agree some of the content is too racy for the intended audience. The settings and the situations are pretty unrealistic, at least where I came from. These shows do not mirror reality for the average teenager IMO. I just view them as low-brow entertainment. Obviously their not thought-provoking, but that's part of the allure.

liontigersandkat 4 years 35 weeks

I am a teenager, and though I can't say much for the other two, Gossip Girl is one of my favourite shows. Though I love the characters on the show, they aren't exactly role models. But the show isn't put on TV as moral guidelines for how teenagers should act, it's strictly for entertainment. I would never do any of the things the characters on the shows do, but it still is an entertaining show, with talented actors and a great story line.

MagSugar 4 years 35 weeks

Yes it's the parents' responsibility to monitor TV viewing, but at the same time, it's difficult to watch anything fun on TV with your kids past 7pm that doesn't allude to sex...and that's the bummer. It's getting harder to find options that are just plain ol' entertaining. Yes I watched everything too as a kid, and turned out fine...BUT..."everything" didn't include shows like Gossip Girl. It does glamorize it...I'm around high school girls every day...and many of them do wanna be the Gossip Girls.

ElenaEv 4 years 35 weeks

Yeah right! Because being fat and bitter is sooo healthy! Seriously? Ferrera talk about good and bad examples? Being anorexic is definitely not good, but on the other hand being fat, eating junk and not working out is ok? In Ugly Betty I never watched her exercise! And since when Ugly Betty became the high art example of morality and righteousness?

ElenaEv 4 years 35 weeks

Yeah right!Because being fat and bitter is sooo healthy!Seriously? Ferrera talk about good and bad examples?Being anorexic is definitely not good, but on the other hand being fat, eating junk and not working out is ok?In Ugly Betty I never watched her exercise!And since when Ugly Betty became the high art example of morality and righteousness?

NadiaPotter 4 years 35 weeks

I grew up with those shows. I see and saw a lot, LOT of TV I am not skinny, I am not shallow. I learned to separate TV from reality. Those TV shows aren't here to show us values. We should show girls values, we should start telling them when do they start looking nice wearing make up, what are the clothes that fits the girls, and where the limits of h00ker and fashion collide. Girls in this time are dying to be and look older! and that has nothing to do with TV.

NadiaPotter 4 years 35 weeks

I grew up with those shows. I see and saw a lot, LOT of TVI am not skinny, I am not shallow. I learned to separate TV from reality.Those TV shows aren't here to show us values. We should show girls values, we should start telling them when do they start looking nice wearing make up, what are the clothes that fits the girls, and where the limits of h00ker and fashion collide.Girls in this time are dying to be and look older! and that has nothing to do with TV.

j2e1n9 4 years 35 weeks

I am technically biased since I've always hated these type of shallow, vapid drama shows but I have to say yes. Teens are so impressionable, and they tend to mimic what they see in the world. Monkey see, monkey do. It encourages them to only focus on themselves, at a time when they should be starting to sooner realize their greater impact and purpose in life.

Lexie_Kesh 4 years 35 weeks

I used to watch the original 90210 religiously as a teen, and loved Dawnson's Creek, Roswell etc. The only things I got from those shows was the fashion and great music. I could easily differentiate fact from fiction because though fun, those shows/characters were not my reality. My role models were real people, my mom, teachers, my friends who were into art, sports and politics. I think young people who have outside interest don't get caught up in the fake world of the Gossip Girls crowd. Its those, imo, that don't do anything extracurricular who can easily become negatively influenced by those shows.

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