In this day and age, the quality of one’s physical appearance is usually near the top of his or her priority list. Though materialistic concerns may not seem immediately harmful, their growing prevalence among the American youth does pose the question: when does the importance placed on physical image lead to increasing sexual promiscuity and drug abuse among young adults and even children? According to Dr. Keith Ablow at Fox News, this is happening right now.
“In this American culture, celebrities and magazines are [virtually] our drug pushers,” said Ablow in his article on www.foxnews.com. “They may not even know it or, worse, yet, they may not even care.”
This collaboration between celebrities and magazines that negatively affects the American youth is exemplified in actress Ashley Benson’s promotion of her new film, Spring Breakers, in Seventeen magazine, which is aimed at girls ages 12 to 19. The impressionable minds of this young audience are most likely influenced by this promotion. The stars of this movie, including Benson, Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens, are role models to many young girls because of their work on television shows on channels such as Disney and ABC Family. However, Spring Breakers is rated R for graphic sexual content, offensive language, nudity, drug use and violence.
While Spring Breakers is a recent example of the increasing sexuality of American culture, the transition to promiscuous living has been occurring for years. When actress and singer Miley Cyrus was just 15 years old, Playboy owner Hugh Hefner offered to publish a nude photo shoot of her once she turned 18. Although an 18-year-old is legally an adult, such an offer to a teenager can result in serious consequences. Regrettably, American society has become disturbingly accepting of such exploitation of someone who is practically a child.
Additionally, one issue of French Vogue featured a spread of model Thylane Blondeau lying on a comforter and posing in a clearly seductive manner. While this is quite common for Vogue, Blondeau was merely 10 years old. This alarming depiction of a child outraged many people, yet this kind of provocativeness continues to take hold of American culture.
“The media’s stress on sexuality in younger people is really detrimental to not only young women but young men as well,” said freshman Ella Morner-Ritt. “It teaches us that it is the norm, even if we aren’t necessarily ready to be involved in that sort of promiscuity.”
When observed through a logical eye, this unsettling change in culture is just what Ablow describes: a drug. Because it allows one to act in a more dangerous manner than usual, this risqué behavior is therefore a temporary escape from reality. With the young and impressionable as its victims, this scandalous revolution has taken hold of the world’s youth and will remain prevalent for years to come. •
