Glee- The First Time

A cultural phenomenon for young people today is Glee. 11.07 million people watched the finale in 2010 and after the Superbowl 26.8 million people tuned into Glee. And why not? It's wholesome family entertainment. No swearing, no drug use, little alcohol, little sex. A tv show which doesn't even get a 12 rating makes a nice change in contemporary youth media.

However, there is one thing which bothers me about the show. In series 3 the majority of the characters are 17, some are still 16. The characters go through the same angst as many modern teens of the same age who view themselves equally as the underdogs. However, these characters were all seen to lose their virginity this season.

It was done in a tasteful manner with a positive message of waiting for someone you love and not being drunk or motivated by a desire to just "lose it".

Yet there's something not quite right about the suggestion that every member of the group is sexually active. In the real world only 50% of 17 year olds have lost their virginity. In fact a study published in 2002 found that 43% of girls and 42% of boys in America had had sex before the age 19- a minority.

It is worrying that a tv show such as glee, supposedly aiming to teach young people to be true to themselves and have their own identity, is so unrepresentative of real sexual patterns in youth. When the media portrays sex as something all 16/17 year olds should be doing it puts pressure on young people who aren't implying if they don't lose it soon they won't be normal.

With some strong religious characters in the show it is disappointing that even Jewish Rachel Berry who claimed she wanted to wait until marriage has had sex this season. Research  (such as by Rebecca Collins) has suggested that tv is a "super peer" which is likely to influence young people over the decision of whether or not to become sexually active. Shouldn't our media therefore be offering a realistic portrayal of society rather than playing to the illusion that all young people are having sex?

"In Hollywood, the only truly serious sexual disease is virginity" Brent Bozell

Isn't this something we should fight to change? The media should be teaching young people that there is nothing wrong with being a virgin, and that it is not something you should be desperate to lose. You can only lose it once. Glee may have shown the two couples losing it in a loving supportive relationship however, it was all sparked by the idea that being virgins meant they had some "strange aversion to fun".