
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, May 26, 1994                   TAG: 9405310134
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-16   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

TEEN PREGNANCY

IN ONE ear and out the other. That's usually what happens to lectures by teachers, preachers, parents and editorial writers as to why kids should forgo sexual activity and prevent unwanted pregnancies.

But what if they get the message from their own peers, other kids who speak their lingo, who ask the kind of questions - "How do I say no and keep my boyfriend?" - that trouble many young people today?

That message might be, like, you know, more effective.

That's what Planned Parenthood of the Blue Ridge is hoping of TV spots that began airing in the Roanoke and New River valleys this week. Featuring local youngsters from the TRUST Teen Line and a pregnancy-prevention program at Hurt Park housing development, the spots are part of an $80,000 multimedia campaign aimed at reducing teen pregnancy in this area.

The media campaign is being financed by Planned Parenthood with a grant from a private foundation and an anonymous donor.

Meanwhile, a parallel multimedia campaign has also been launched statewide by a loosely knit network of Better Beginnings Coalitions, including one in the Roanoke Valley. That effort is an abstinence-based message adapted from a widely acclaimed Maryland program. Its use in Virginia was made possible by a $200,000 grant from the Virginia Hospital Association, along with some support from the state.

So can we all relax, now that the TV admeisters are peddling prevention like Dave's hamburgers?

Sorry, but no. If one thing can be said with certainty about the teen-pregnancy problem, it's that there is no single solution, no quick fixes. A multifaceted issue, it will continue to require a multifaceted approach and a concentration of diverse community resources.

There is, however, reason to believe that the new media campaigns could have a positive impact. Similar campaigns proselytizing against smoking, drugs and drunken driving have helped dramatically change behavior patterns and attitudes among the young.

Sophisticated media campaigns, if they can be sustained for several years, could help convince young people that sexual promiscuity also is not cool - and neither is making babies before you're emotionally, responsibly and financially able to care for them.

Now put down this lecture, and go watch the tube.

by CNB