Nora The Teenage Witch
On Monday, the "Evening News" brought us a story about teenagers.
Video: The story also offers us shots of crazy teenagers in the movies. There's "The Breakfast Club!" And "Sixteen Candles!" And, um, "Almost Famous!" Well, I'm convinced. Teenagers are totally crazy.
Anyway, the package concerns a new study that found that a hormone called THP increases anxiety during puberty. The study apparently doesn't tell us anything definitive about behavior, but it may explain teenage mood swings, "may explain why teenagers act like teenagers," and "may be reassuring to parents."
The story only features girls; the viewer never finds out if the findings also apply to boys. It also includes the line "[s]cientists say teenage angst is not permanent," which is something most of us could probably have figured out on our own.
As for the tone of the piece, let's just say a hint of condescention sneaks in. Towards the end, Alfonsi says the study "gives every teenager what they really want, an excuse to pout."
The whole thing was enough to set one commenter off:
"Another awful CBS News piece stereotyping all teens as crazed and unstable in ways that would be called hate speech if applied to racial groups or women. I've worked with thousands of teens in family and school settings, and there is NO SUCH THING as a 'typical teenager.'"
If you want to see a teenage mood swing first hand, incidentally, here's my advice: Don't bother with the THP. Just show the teen this piece. I guarantee it'll have an effect.