Safe Sex Advertising

Safe sex or advertised sex? In the United States, nearly 75 percent of teenagers have had intercourse by the time they turn 20; only 15 percent report remaining virgins until the age of 21. Additionally, there are reports by The Guttmacher Institute that indicate that the teens in the US are more likely to have sex before the age of 15, and to have more than one partner in a year, than teenagers in Sweden, France, Canada, and the United Kingdom (teenage). One may ask why these numbers are so high in the US compared to other countries. The reason is that in today's society the advertisement industry has increased the number of ads that relate to sex. These advertisements are seen everywhere, in high schools, television commercials, and in the lyrics of songs. However, according to the advertisement industry, the purposes behind these ads are to promote "safe sex". They do so, by encouraging the use of condoms, birth control, and other contraceptives. Nevertheless, we question
whether or not these ads are promoting "safe sex" or encouraging underage sex. In order for an individual to reach a conclusion, we must analyze both parts, the ads itself and the messages behind them. We can begin with taking a closer look into our educational system. In many institutions, sex education is required. It starts at an early age, in 5th and 6th grade with the basics and it continues in high school where sex awareness and self-control is key. In health/ parenting classes, teachers hand out condoms to students as they explain and inform the variety of ways one can have protected sex. However, by doing this, they are also delivering the message that sexual intercourse is fine as long as it is in protected matter. In my opinion, the handing out of condoms in high school promotes sex but in a safe way and with an informative set of mind. By rising awareness, students gain knowledge that help prevents all kinds of diseases as well as teenage pregnancies. Nevertheless, we cannot ignore the mentality a teenager has when referring to sex. Most of high school students are facing a change or are transitioning into adulthood. Some students are pressured to do things in order to fit in or become part of the popular group. The challenge is to balance the social life with academics. During this experience, sex becomes a big part of their daily lives. Many are experiencing their first boyfriend/girlfriend, their first love and in the middle of all emotions, they can become vulnerable and thus taken advantage of. Without thinking of the consequences, they have sex. On the other hand, some have sex because of curiosity or simply because of pleasure. However, these actions may cause an individual to end up regretting it later on in life. Another form of sex promotion is through television.
The majority of television shows and commercials imply some kind of sex in them. There are movies, commercials, and shows that include sex, and are available for all kind of ages to watch. Some are very accessible and do not even require any kind of parental supervision. One of the most popular sex promotion deals with the usage of condoms. For example, one commercial expresses a new condom named "ecstasy". By using words such as: "lubricated inside and out, so thin that it feels like nothing is there", the condom is expressed as the new and greatest invention out there. These choices of words make an individual curious, allowing a sensation of "wanting to try it". This cause and effect commercial is towards young teenagers because they are attracted to those types of words. As previously mentioned, some teenagers have sex because of pleasure and that is exactly what the commercials do, they make sex seem more pleasurable and
desiring. In addition, movies have sex scenes in most of them. This is a strategy used to sell. They always make it look good, so people would want to watch it. Due to the popularity of sex, if sex is involved in any movie, it is evident that it will sell. Porno is another way to advertise sex. Some people like to watch it because they enjoy watching other people having sex. Porno can be a sense of escape from reality. Many have sexual fantasies they cannot have, but porno allows them to live the moment for a short period even if it is through film. In the case of teenagers, porno is used as a learning tool. Everything they know about sex is learned from porn and some even imitate what they see. This imitation can cause self-esteem issues when he/she fails to perform or meet certain expectations during sex, those that were taught in a porno film. I strongly believe porno is just another form of promoting sex in an unreliable way. Some of the films show unprotected sex and this should not be tolerated. Furthermore, music is a big part of an individual. Music reflects a person's way of living and it is a form of self-identity. Many of the songs played in the radio also promote sex. One example is the song titled "Bump N' Grind" by R. Kelly. His lyrics is as follows: "I don't see nothing wrong (Wrong) with a little bump and grind…I know just what you want and I know just what you need girl, so baby bring your body to me (bring your body here)". Here, R. Kelly clearly states how sex is a natural calling of the body. This can be true, but it does not specify any kind of safe sex. It is simply a desire of meeting ones pleasurable needs. The lyrics of the songs have a lot of influence on people, just by listening to the song it could lead to so many things. When alone in a room, a couple can be encouraged to have sex as they listen to this type of music. However, because of the moment and the music, unprotected sex could occur. At last, friends have the strongest influence when it comes to sex. A teenager tends to rely on their friends for answers and advise. At the same time, friends have expectations and qualities they seek for within a relationship. Sometimes due to peer pressure, one of our friends is sexually active and most of the times persuade the other friend into having sex. Whether is safe sex or unprotected sex. It has a higher rate of the friend to have sex, because of the anxiety to do the same thing the other friend is doing. Peer pressure is a strong way to make people do things they are not ready to do. However, it depends on the person, not everybody allow himself or herself to be pressured into something they do not really want to do. It's up to them if they want to follow what their friends do or don’t do. Im my opinion, I think you should be yourself. Do not act as your friends do just to follow the crowd. Make your own choices according to your personal self; do not let anyone else make it for you. In conclusion, I think that promoting safe sex could drive people into having sex, but at the same time, it is good there are commercials and shows about sex. People could have some information about how to protect themselves, and that condoms are free to the public, so they do not have an excuse to not protect themselves. I think that it depends on the person whether they have sex or not. Promoting or advertising is only to inform you about having safe sex, not making you to have sex. Even though many teenagers mislead the message behind the ads and tend to have sex at a young age.

Work cited page:
"Teenage sex stats", © copyright 1996-2009, Guttmacher Institute, December 12, 2009