The following article was published in an article of Teen Vogue.
Teen Mom Maci Bookout: In Her Own Words
May 24, 2010
At the start of 2008, I was just a typical sixteen-year-old. I played softball and volleyball for my high school, went to football games with friends on the weekends, and had a boyfriend, Ryan, whom I had been dating for five months.
When Ryan and I met the summer after my sophomore year, I was a virgin. A lot of my friends had made the decision to have sex, but their relationships didn't last. I didn't want to get hurt, but I fell in love with Ryan and decided that I could trust him. Four months into the relationship, we slept together. I hate to say it, but we didn't use protection.
One morning, about a month after we started having sex, I woke up and felt different. I can't even explain it--I just knew that I was pregnant. After school I took a pregnancy test with Ryan. When it came up positive, we were in shock but agreed we were going to have to deal with it and be the best parents possible. We never considered abortion or adoption; those choices weren't right for us.
When I was about eight weeks along, I told my parents. They had always been supportive and trusted me to make the right decisions, so the news upset them. They were worried that I didn't understand how hard it was going to be. I explained that I was going to finish high school and go to college. My plan was to start saving money so I would be able to support myself. I also let my friends know that things were going to change--if I was going to be a good mom, my life couldn't be like theirs anymore.
Once everyone knew, my world became a whirlwind. In June I found out I was having a baby boy. I was so excited. Ryan and I even got engaged. In August, when I was six months pregnant, my mom saw an ad on Craigslist about an MTV show that would become 16 and Pregnant. I replied to the posting--I looked at it as an opportunity to show other girls what it was like to be in this situation. A few weeks later, MTV contacted me to make an audition tape, and in September they came to my hometown, Chattanooga, to start filming. Camera crews came every two weeks for three or four days at a time. They filmed my graduation from accelerated high school in early October and the birth of my son, Bentley, later that month. My episode of 16 and Pregnant aired in June 2009. I think MTV did a really good job of showing my experience. Last summer MTV asked me to be a part of their new spin-off series, Teen Mom.
When Teen Mom aired last December, I was upset with myself because I saw how I let Ryan walk all over me. After seeing everything go down on TV, I knew I had to end things with him. It was hard, but it was the best decision. It's been six months since we broke up, and we're no longer friends. He still babysits Bentley every Wednesday night when I have class and sees him every other weekend. I would love for us to be together for our son, but I know that's not going to happen. Bentley should see me in a healthy relationship, even if it isn't with his father.
Now Bentley and I live with my parents, who help me with childcare. I'm studying journalism at Chattanooga State Community College. I hope to finish in May 2011 and pursue a career as a writer. I'm actually working on a book about my life. I'm also filming the second season of Teen Mom. I've gotten used to the cameras, and Bentley loves the attention. He's more of a star than I'll ever be.
I've been going to local high schools to speak to students too. I want them to know that if they've made up their minds to abstain from sex, they shouldn't feel pressured to change their decision. Telling my story publicly can be very emotional, since I'm so close in age to the girls.
Bentley is nineteen months old now. I know it would have been a lot easier if I'd had him when I was older, but I can't change the past. I just want him to be happy--and I'll do whatever it takes to make that happen. --AS TOLD TO ALLISON DAVIS
Read More http://www.teenvogue.com/connect/blogs/soundoff/2010/05/teen-mom-maci-bookout.html#ixzz1D0ylqHuF
Although most of us already knew the majority of information in this article, it brings me to be curious about things I hadn’t already considered. The first thing that caught my eye in this article is that it was featured in “Teen Vogue: You’re source for teen celebrities, fashion, style, hair, and makeup trends.
Although I never really bought into the fact that Teen Mom and 16 and Pregnant was glorifying teen pregnancy, I think it is a little ridiculous that Maci is featured in a magazine meant to show young women what is “in style.” I feel as though the article would be better suited for a parenting, or teen health magazine. Having said that, here is my first question: Why do you think that MTV decided Maci should be featured in this magazine? Why do you think this magazine chose to feature Maci? What kind of message do you think young women would get out of reading this article in this particular magazine? Do you see this as a problem?
The next thing I noticed was that much like each 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom show, the focus was primarily on Maci. Ryan was mentioned, but his perspective was not given at all. My next set of questions deal not only with this article, but also on the show as well. Why did MTV feel the show would be best marketed to young women specifically as opposed to young men as well? Do you think young men learn just as much from the show and its media as young women do? If the article was written from Ryan’s perspective, how do you think it would be different?
In the article and throughout her TV appearances, Maci makes it clear that she believes it is important to have a complete family for Bentley. She stays with Ryan longer that most would have and states that she wanted Bentley to have a father. Which is worse: not having a parent in your life, or having that parent be a negative influence? Would it be equally positive for Bentley to see Maci as strong, independent woman, or does he need to see her in a positive relationship? How has society and media shaped Maci’s perception that having a complete family is so important?
What questions do YOU have about this article?
(Cheyane Frizell)
I'm sure MTV wanted Maci to be in Teen Vogue because it is an excellent publicity tool. I haven't seen any of the episodes other than the ones we have been assigned to watch, but out of those episodes Maci seems like the one who has everything together. Let's be honest, she is pretty and would look great on the cover of Teen Vogue. She is pursuing a higher education and seems to be succeeding at that, not to mention the fact that she has a supportive family. She can be seen as a strong woman for not putting up with Ryan's disrespect anymore which can be relatable to readers of Teen Vogue whether they are parents or not. I'm sure the audience of Teen Vogue thrives on seeing how "celebrities" handle their relationship problems and how they might be able to learn from that. Personally, I think looking at Maci's situation is looking at the prettier side of teen pregnancy because she IS doing well from what we know about her circumstance. I don't know that this is what we need to be showing teens, though I suppose for teens who are already pregnant it would be beneficial for them to see that it can be done and done well. For teens who are not pregnant and reading this article, however, they may get the wrong impression and see the fortune and fame rather than that little baby you have to take care of for the rest of your life.
ReplyDeleteTeen pregnancy, in general, seems to often be focused on the young women no matter the medium it is being discussed. I can't wrap my mind around what this show would look like if from the perspective of the young fathers. I have a feeling it wouldn't be as entertaining or dramatic and therefore not something MTV would be interested in. From the episodes I have seen, the fathers aren't portrayed very positively so I don't know that young men would feel comfortable watching the show. It is my hope that men who watch this show learn how NOT to act and how to respect their girlfriends, wives, or baby mamas.
I haven't experienced either situation of not having a parent in my life or having a parent that is an extremely negative influence, however, I would think that a negative influence would be more destructive. I think it is important for Bentley to see Maci as a strong, independent woman, but she can be this woman AND be in a positive relationship. It would be a far superior situation for Maci and Bentley for her to be single, happy, and healthy than for her to be in a negative relationship. I believe it IS better for children to have two positive parental figures, whether society fed me this idea or not I do not know. I don't think a complete family has to come in the form of marrying a child's biological father though. With divorce rates these days there is no guarantee that a marriage license means your child will have a mother and father. There are just so many factors and different contexts that it is impossible to make one generic statement about how a family should look.
Alyssa K.
I agree that it would have been more fitting to put an article like Maci’s in a magazine directed towards teen health. Although I believe, besides the publicity for the show, that MTV decided to put Maci’s story in teen vogue to send out a message. Even though it is a fashion magazine, it is geared towards teens. Putting an article like Maci’s in their magazine might give teens who read her story a role model. I believe Maci was a good choice to be featured in this magazine because she exemplified all the “typical” aspects of teenage pregnancy like having a boyfriend, falling in love at a young age, failing to use protection, waiting to tell your parents out of fear, getting engaged, and then finding out things don’t always turn up the way you planned.
ReplyDeleteI believe MTV targeted young women in 16 and pregnant because a lot of teenage girls can relate to the “scare” of possibly being pregnant. Most teenage girls report at least once in the past 2 years that they had a scare that they were pregnant. Although this can also be very scary from the potential father’s perspective, in my opinion the girl has it much worse. I believe a message can be sent to men from this show but since the shows main audience is teenage girls then I think that’s why they focus on mainly the women’s point of view. I believe MTV wants the women who watch this show to be able to relate to girls like Maci. The well known phrase, “there is always two sides to every story,” leads me to believe that if this article had been written from Ryan’s point of view, who clearly was not on board with some of the decisions Maci was making, that it would have been more difficult to sympathize for/with Maci.
I believe in most cases, it would be worse to have a negative influence in your life. A friend of mine had a father who left when she was born and although she wishes she would have grown up with a father, she has the utmost respect for her mother raising her and her brother by herself. There is a statistic I learned about in a psychology class that children who grow up, especially women, with just one parent tend to have trouble with romantic relationships later in life. Regardless of that statistic I still believe that a negative influence would put a lot more stress not only on the family but cause the child to have a lot of hardships when older.
Lauren B.
I think MTV though Maci would be featured in this magazine was because she in a lot of ways serves as a mentor towards teenage women who may be going through the same situation that Maci did when she was pregnant. Out of all the four mothers on Teen Mom I believe Maci is the most fit to have a child. Although she is quite young she is still responsible enough to raise a child. She decided that she was going to still graduate from high school and further her education by going to college. She also has a steady job to try and support herself and Bently Along with all of those things I mentioned Maci decided that she has to “grow” up now and that her baby must come before her friends. She understands and accepts that things are going to change once she has Bently.
ReplyDeleteI personally think it is worse to have the parent be a negative influence in your life. My dad has never been a real part of my life. Although sometimes I wish he had been. However the majority of times I think that my dad not being in my life serves as a blessing in disguise. My mother had me at 18. In many ways I feel like my mother resembles Maci. She is a strong, independent and stable mother. She knew that things would be rough with being a single mother, but she perservered and raised me the best that she could. With my dad not being in my life I developed a drive and aspirations. I strived to never be like him and to always work hard in life.
-Chris M.
I think MTV chose this magazine because the age group for the show is similar to the magazine target age group. The magazine chose to use Maci because they wanted to remaain young and relevant to the lives of their target audience. The message young readers would receive is that having a baby at a young age and being a single mother is acceptable in society. The problem is that it is difficult being a single mother in more ways than Maci or the show discusses.
ReplyDeleteMTV probably felt young men would not want to hear about other young men having children and having a difficult time parenting. Females tend to be more nurturing. I think Ryan would give a good perspective as to why he is not involved in his child's life, why he is not around often.
I think having a negative influence is better because you learn how not to be and you don't question your parent's whereabouts later on only to be hurt in the end. Bentley needs to see his mother as a strong independent woman rather than in a relationship and dependent on a man. This could make him more independent and willing to step up if he were to have a child at a young age, which most statistics say he will.
I don't think Maci places much emphasis on having a family as she did in the past. I feel that now that the world sees Ryan's behaviors, she is no longer able to look past his flaws and love and accept him anyway. Because society would rather she be single than with Ryan, Maci has learned that the term "single mother" is not that bad of a stigma as it once was.
I forgot to sign my post. Feb. 10 at 6:48 is Sloane H. :)
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