'Teen Mom' Amber may face felony charges
By Anna Chan, TV Editor
Not only is "Teen Mom" star Amber Portwood being investigated by the police in Anderson, Ind., for domestic violence, she could face felony charges for beating on ex-fiance Gary Shirley in front of their toddler, Leah, according to HollywoodLife.com. The incident was caught by MTV's cameras and aired on Sept. 28. (The episode airs again on Oct. 29.)
The Coalition Against Domestic Violence told the website that domestic violence in front of a child under the age of 14 in that state can result in felony charges. Law enforcement in Indiana confirmed to HollywoodLife.com that the charges are a possibility in Portwood's case.
But that's not all. The Indiana Department of Child Services is also investigating the situation. The DCS told HollywoodLife.com that anyone who suspects or witnesses child abuse must report the situation to the Indiana Child Abuse Hotline, which means the department may soon be calling in potential witnesses.
Could Portwood's neighbor Tiffany Harless be a potential witness? In the current issue of Life & Style Weekly, the magazine reported that police were called to Portwood's home in April after she and Harless got into a physical confrontation over a parking spot. Harless told the magazine that during the entire fight, Leah was alone in the home. "Her child was upstairs the whole time by herself. No one else was coming or going out of that house, and no one was looking out for the baby."
'Teen Mom' Amber Portwood's Real MTV Salary: $280,000
· Filed under:
· TV News
Amber Portwood, star of MTV's 'Teen Mom' makes $280,000 a year. We'll give you a minute to digest that fact.
Ready? OK, good. According to HollywoodLife, the young mother was forced to reveal her salary during an appearance before a judge following her release on a $5,000 bond. Portwood was jailed for 24-hours after being charged with two felony domestic battery counts, a felony count of neglect of a dependent and one misdemeanor of domestic violence and battery.
During the course of shooting 'Teen Mom,' MTV cameras captured Portwood hitting Gary Shirley, her ex-fiancee and father of her child. Currently, Portwood is barred from seeing Shirley, but according to E! Online, Shirley is fighting to have the protective order overturned.
According to the report, Portwood stated her occupation was being a "television personality." When asked to reveal her salary, her lawyer objected, but was overruled. The Herald Bulletin, a newspaper in Indiana, reported Portwood makes $140,000 with a six-month MTV contract. She makes $280,000 annually.
So, where did this $280,000 come from? Earlier this year it was reported the teen stars of the hit MTV show make around $60,000-65,000 for an 11-episode season. Our own Jean Bentley wondered where all that money was going since the young women always appeared to be broke. A fund for the child?
Ready? OK, good. According to HollywoodLife, the young mother was forced to reveal her salary during an appearance before a judge following her release on a $5,000 bond. Portwood was jailed for 24-hours after being charged with two felony domestic battery counts, a felony count of neglect of a dependent and one misdemeanor of domestic violence and battery.
During the course of shooting 'Teen Mom,' MTV cameras captured Portwood hitting Gary Shirley, her ex-fiancee and father of her child. Currently, Portwood is barred from seeing Shirley, but according to E! Online, Shirley is fighting to have the protective order overturned.
According to the report, Portwood stated her occupation was being a "television personality." When asked to reveal her salary, her lawyer objected, but was overruled. The Herald Bulletin, a newspaper in Indiana, reported Portwood makes $140,000 with a six-month MTV contract. She makes $280,000 annually.
So, where did this $280,000 come from? Earlier this year it was reported the teen stars of the hit MTV show make around $60,000-65,000 for an 11-episode season. Our own Jean Bentley wondered where all that money was going since the young women always appeared to be broke. A fund for the child?
1. Regarding the first article, Amber and Gary have been greatly influenced by the media. Amber is being charged with three separate felonies while Gary has been out having sex with many different women. Do you think that shows like Teen Mom and 16 and Pregnant, when mixed with the media, can give a skewed view of what it means to be a teen parent?
2. Regarding the second article, Amber had to report that she made $140,000 for a six-month MTV contract ($280,000 annually) and referred to her occupation as a television personality. MTV intended that the purpose of these shows was to show teens what it would be like if they were to get pregnant, but does the fact that they get paid handsomely cloud their abilities to be a good parent?
3. After reading these two articles, do you agree or disagree that shows like Teen Mom and 16 and Pregnant should be taken off the air?
-Lauren B.
1. The media does skew the image of what it is like to be a teen parent. If both parents have a job and make separate paychecks from the show, they are better able to support themselves than other teen parents. A lot of the girls on the show live by themselves in houses. Most teen parents cannot afford to rent a house. The show skews certain realities because there are only certain conditions they would want to film in. A nice house in a nice neighborhood is one of those conditions. The show also mostly portrays what people want to see, which is healthy babies. This is not always the case with any baby.
ReplyDelete2. I don't think the amount of money she made clouded her abilities to be a good parent. I think the fact that being on tv was her occupation, clouded some of her judgement. She had no fall-back plan for when the show ended or she was no longer on it. This clearly doesn't always work the way people intend it to. (Kate Gosslin claimed she did "Dancing with the Stars" to pay her bills.)This only made her a poor planner, but not a bad parent.
3. I don't think these shows should be taken off of the air. The people definatly need to be paid less. If they need more money, they should get another job. This is possible, most of the girls on the current season of Teen Mom have jobs. I also think the show should tell the reality of teen parenting. I know teen parents and they do not live in the lifestyle that the girls on the show do.
Sloane H.
1. I think that the shows definitely show a skewed view of what it means to be a teen parent because the average teen parent does not have the pressures of being on tv, the money from making a large salary, or the stress of the world knowing their business.
ReplyDelete2. I don’t think their salaries affect their parenting abilities, however, it might be a good thing for MTV to show the affects of the money on the show. I don’t know for a fact that MTV intended the shows to be informative though, they probably made them because they knew teens would love to watch them and they wanted to make money. No amount of money can make you a good parent or a bad parent though.
3. I do not think that the shows should be taken off the air. The media shows all the consequences of the positive and negative actions. For example, having seen everything Amber has gone through teens know domestic violence is not okay.
-Cheyane Frizzell
1. It is hard to discern whether or not these parents would be acting the same way with or without the cameras around. The fact that they are getting paid an obscene amount of money for this is very unrealistic though. A large proportion of parents, whether teens or adults, have a hard time making ends meet in this economy. There are a lot of missing pieces in this portrayal of teen pregnancy, most of those pieces being the reality of it all. It's not easy and most teen parents aren't making $280,000 a year for being a "television personality."
ReplyDelete2. I don't think the amount of money she is making is hindering her parenting skills, but I am sure the fame is getting in the way. Her priorities don't seem to be with her child. I am definitely curious to know where all this money is going. Once again though, we don't know how she would be as a parent if the cameras were not part of the equation.
3. I don't think they need to be taken off the air, but I do think they need to expand their perspectives and try portraying reality. Due to the demographic they are making this for, however, I doubt that would ever happen. Personally, I feel that these shows don't really focus on parenting much at all; whenever we hear about their problems, it is almost always in reference to their relationships. From what I have seen so far we rarely see actual parenting dilemmas... do they just know how to do everything already? I think they just need to re-examine what they are showing people.
1. I believe the show does give a skewed view on what it means to be a teen mom. It doesn’t seem to be natural. The majority of teen mother’s don’t live in a apartment or home by themselves like you see on the show. I also think the show gives a skewed view by only filming in rural or extremely nice suburban areas. The show doesn’t ever discuss teen mothers in an urban area.
ReplyDelete2. I don’t believe the money effected Amber’s parenting skills. Maci seems to be doing just find with her parenting skills with Bently. I just believe it depends on how mature you are to have a baby and properly raise them. The media might be tarnishing Amber’s parent ability though.
3. I don’t think they should be taken off the air. I just believe the teen mothers should either not get paid so much to participate on the show or they shouldn’t get paid at all.
-Chris M.
1) Any so called "reality" show gives the viewers a skewed impression that's why I don't understand why it's even allowed to be reality tv. The images of all the mother's are skewed because we only know so much about the individual.
ReplyDelete2)I would have to say it does but I feel at such a young age with money like that there is going to be some types of consequences to their parenting skills because of the money aspect.
3) I wouldn't say they need to be taken off the air but the need some major modifications if they are going to be proclaiming the lives of teen moms. Also MTV needs to take in account of what they are doing to the families of these teens as well as the moms there self.
Dorsey ^^^
ReplyDelete