Spears' teen pregnancy puts parents to the test

Lisa Nicita
The Arizona Republic
Dec. 26, 2007

Gossip columns buzzed. Entertainment shows sizzled. Parents and preteens froze with fear.

Jamie Lynn Spears, younger sister of troubled pop star Britney Spears and star of her own Nickelodeon show, announced last week she was pregnant at 16.

That meant parents and fans of Spears' show, Zoey 101, might have some explaining to do.
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But before you have "the talk," know that topics of sex and pregnancy don't have to be scary or uncomfortable, unless you get carried away with threats and graphic details.

Kathleen Waldron, a faculty member in the College of Human Services at Arizona State University, advised keeping it simple. She said many of the kids who watch Spears' show may not even realize that you must have sex to get pregnant.

"Kids have all kinds of weird little ideas in their heads that we can't even appreciate," Waldron said.

Younger kids may just ask about the grind of motherhood. They'll want to know how Spears will care for the baby and how she'll miss sleep when the baby cries at night, Waldron said.

But preteens may have a different take. Waldron said they could be wrapped up in how a pregnancy can derail everyday teenage life.

No mall. No movies. No life.

"Those are the issues kids are going to be much more tuned in to," Waldron said.

To make it even easier, parents could just leave the subject alone until a child brings it up or asks questions, Waldron said. Why go there when you don't have to, yet?

"Don't give out any more information than they can process," Waldron said.

Turn the subject on them. Waldron said parents should ask their children what they think about Spears' pregnancy. Their responses may be surprising, and comforting to a parent.

"It could be a positive thing," Waldron said. "It turns into whatever the parents want it to turn into. It could be a thunderous moral lesson, which I would advise against."

Spears' pregnancy can open the door to touchy topics, including adoption and abortion.

DeAnn Bates, 33, of Peoria, thinks the teen TV star should be commended for her honesty and choosing to have the child despite public scrutiny and potential consequences to her career.

"Yes, she made a mistake. But look at how she's handling her mistake," said Bates, mother of a 3-year-old son. "I was excited for her for making the decision she made. A lot of young girls don't know what to do. Would the world have felt better if she went to a clinic, gotten her problem taken care of and it (news of the pregnancy) came out later?"

Because we now know nearly everything about celebrities, from DUI arrests to fast-food runs, concealing a pregnancy, or abortion, would be difficult.

Charles Coletta, a professor in the pop-culture department at Bowling Green State University, said Spears appears to be in uncharted territory. He can't recall when or if another teen television star has announced a pregnancy while the program was still on the air.

Nickelodeon has said a fourth season of the show already has been filmed and episodes are scheduled to begin airing in February.

"In the old days, people would get into trouble, but there would be a studio to keep things quiet," Coletta said. "We have so much more access to it. This is going to be her introduction to the larger viewing public."

ASU's Waldron said this could be a good time to separate reality from make-believe.

"This is an actor, not a character," Waldron said.