ABC Family Launches 'Cautionary' Television Series That Addresses Teen Pregnancy

Main Category: Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children's Health
Article Date: 03 Jul 2008 - 8:00 PST

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ABC Family on Tuesday premiered a "cautionary" television series that plans to address issues including teenage pregnancy, and abstinence, the New York Times reports. The series was made in collaboration with the National Campaign To Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy (Stanley, New York Times, 7/1). The show, called "The Secret Life of the American Teenager," follows the challenges of a 15-year-old girl named Amy -- played by Shailene Woodley -- who discovers she is pregnant after the first time she has sex, USA Today reports (Keveney, USA Today, 6/30). According to USA Today, the show explores "tough" topics, including unplanned pregnancy, marital problems, and childhood sexual abuse. The series also features a couple who have pledged to remain abstinent until they are married.

Paul Lee, president of the network, said the show can deal with teen pregnancy and the other topics and still fit the network's family-friendly approach. "We're going to tell it in an optimistic, relatable way, and we're going to be responsible about it," Lee said, adding, "Our storylines are going to resolve in a way that makes it quite clear what's the right thing to do." Brenda Hampton, creator of the series, said the show will handle sex "in a very clean way," although some topics might be too much for preteens. According to USA Today, Hampton said that the show is a "love story, but also a very long and interesting cautionary tale."

In a review of the show, the Times says that ABC Family "underestimates its viewers' sophistication" and calls the show "surprisingly unimaginative." Molly Ringwald -- the actress who starred in the coming-of-age comedies "The Breakfast Club" and "Sixteen Candles" -- plays Amy's mother. According to the Times' review, the presence of Ringwald is "almost taunting, a reminder that these teenage morality plays have been made many times before, much better." The review concludes that ABC Family "means well but could not have done worse" (New York Times, 7/1).

Ringwald said many of the topics covered, including teen pregnancy, are not that different from those of her earlier films. Some parents "are still really unwilling to talk about sex frankly with their kids," she said, adding, "It's so much better to talk about it with your kids, and I hope this show opens that dialogue" (USA Today, 6/30).

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