We need protection from TV trend

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This ought to be good news.

The teenage birthrate in the U.S. declined from a 20-year high between 1991 and 1996, according to the Guttmacher Report on Public Policy. That’s a 12 percent drop overall for female teens aged 15-19.

Researchers also noted that the decline in the birthrate is particularly noteworthy for black teenagers because that rate fell 21 percent to a record low in 1996.

This good news has researchers scratching their heads. Some are calling the drop surprising even though we have been yammering about the burdens of teenage pregnancy for decades.

Some experts are even suggesting that the recession was a major factor in driving down the birthrate. If their theory is correct, that would be amazing since teens who get involved in unprotected sex aren’t usually thinking about the economic realities of life.

What I believe this drop in the teenage birth rate means is that a lot more teenagers are delaying sexual intercourse until they are out of high school, and have a clearer view of the future.

In my experience, teenagers who have something to look forward to — like college and a job — are less likely to engage in unprotected sex.

And media have done a good job cautioning teens about the dangers of unprotected sex, and raising awareness about AIDS and STDs.

Unfortunately, this good news may not last very long if TV continues its current trend of glorifying teenagers who get pregnant.

For instance, last week, through no fault of my own, I happened to catch an episode of MTV’s “16 And Pregnant.” First of all, I was astounded that a teenager’s forbidden sex life could become fodder for a reality show.

There used to be a stigma attached to such behavior. While no one wants to go back to the days when a pregnant, unwed teen is shipped off to live with strangers until she gives birth, we shouldn’t be dramatizing teenage pregnancy, either.

Bristol Palin has become a celebrity mainly because she is a teenage mom with a famous mother. Although Palin has been getting kudos for telling other teens that raising a baby is “hard work,” she made it look easy when she competed on “Dancing with the Stars.” After all, there wasn’t a baby attached to her hip.

Maci Bookout, a 19-year-old teen mom from Tennessee, gained celebrity status as the star of “Teen Mom,” another MTV reality series.

Her claim to fame is giving birth to a son she named Bentley.

More viewers — nearly 1.5 million — watched the second season premiere of “Teen Mom” than the season finale of “Mad Men,” USA Today reported on its website.

Although organizations like the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy are lauding these shows as the “best public service announcements,” I am not so sure.

Although millions of teens are witnessing the drama in the lives of the reality teen moms, the most vulnerable teens don’t have to turn on the television for reality.

They can look at their family, friends, neighbors, classmates and the girls on the block and see how tough being a teen mom really is.

These teen pregnancy shows use the bad choices girls make for entertainment purposes, and people of good conscience should find that disturbing.

Meanwhile, girls like 17-year-old Keke Palmer, who made the right choices, are not lifted up to the degree that girls who make dubious choices are.

Don’t even get me started on “Bad Girls Club” on the Oxygen Network. For the life of me I can’t understand why it’s OK to turn dysfunctional girls with glaring behavioral and emotional problems into celebrities.

Palmer, who was born in Robbins, Ill., has starred in several highly acclaimed films, including “Akeelah and the Bee.” She is also an accomplished singer.

There is a lot a real girl could learn from girls like Palmer about how to avoid the pitfalls that have ensnared so many other teen girls.

Instead, millions of teens are idolizing teens whose poor choices have turned them into TV stars.

So, before we pat the media on the back for the reduction in teen birth rate, remember what the media giveth, the media usually taketh away.