Do tv shows show a negative view on abortion?

Question

I am mainly talking about non real life tv programs such as soaps etc. I frequently see examples of pregnant women put in the tough position of choosing whether or not to abort and 9 times out of ten they chose not to no matter how hard the end result will be.

Answer 1

I think a lot of soap characters do have abortions to be honest. However I think that soaps have to take some responsibilty when dealing with the decisions faced by someone facing an unexpected/unwanted pregnancy. I don't think showing an abortion in a positive light would be acceptable as abortions can often leave women with deep emotional scars. Quite a lot of my friends have had abortions and are still regretting it years later. Therefore I find it deeply offensive that you compare aborting a child to cleaning bacteria! When I had my first scan while pregnant with my son he looked like more than a bunch of cells to me and most people I know who had abortions were at this stage of pregnancy when they did so!  

Answer 2

how is abortion not negative? Its ending a life, despite the "good" intentions of the mother.

Answer 3

I don't know. I quit watching TV years ago (too many inappropriate things on and so I just got rid of it), but abortion is negative and should be presented that way. The murder of children is a NOT a good thing.

Answer 4

Hmm, I hadn't really considered this, it's true that most women will avoid abortion if they can I suppose.  I don't suppose abortion is a positive thing, it's a last resort, rather than a contraceptive.  That's not to say that I don't think women should have them if they need them, I think there are both sides to everything and for some women, having a baby is not an option.  It's very well for some to look down on them from their ivory tower, saying things such as "you shouldn't have had s*x", that's as much use to these women as a chocolate firegaurd.  They did, they're pregnant, they cannot or will not be able to carry a child, this is their option.

If it really was a bunch of collected cells, then surely it would not be seen as a medical procedure and it WOULD be used like a contraceptive.  I don't think we can ever make abortion into a procedure that is seen to be as free and easy as having your eyebrows waxed, not if we wish to live in a society with morals.  For those women who need them, they need support and confidentiality, for women who treat them like their right over and over again, we should offer sterilisation.

Answer 5

it's probobly for ratings, after all alot of people are opposed to abortion.

Answer 6

I think they do not show women choosing abortion because it is so widely frowned upon.  The show might be negatively impacted if they had a character choose to have an abortion.

Not all abortions are the result of women having wreckless sexual behavior.  I have an example of two friends who were on the pill AND using condoms and still got pregnant.  They kept their babies, but were not trying to have children at this stage in their lives.  I find it offensive that people try to bud in on a woman's personal business to say that they are  murderers for having an abortion.  I see many women who should not have had their children.  They are irresponsible and do not take care of their children properly.  I personally would not have an abortion, because I am in a good position to have a child.  If an accident happens I would keep it.  

Answer 7

Abortion = Murder.....How can the view be more negative than that? Where is the positive in that?

Answer 8

i agree with you, those shows are dumb and only show one side

Answer 9

I think that, for the most part, the drama of a pregnancy is too good to allow for a character to have an abortion.

Answer 10

alot of soaps are starting to show abortions but i think there is no positive side to abortions and it is still a rather untalked about thing unless its a hated debate, personall i an aggainst abortion but its all personal choice and noone is gonna base thier life on a soap.

Answer 11

Every Woman has there own reason for aborting a Child,.. as every situation is different.

I wouldn't have a Child that i knew i couldn't take care of,..or that i didn't want,.. just to make everyone around me "happy".

It's got nothing to do with anyone else(apart from the Father,..that is!)

I wouldn't have a Kid,..just because of some Bible Bashing do-gooders who want to preach to you every minute of the day,..just cause what you are doing  is wrong  in there eyes.

At the end of the day,..it's gonna be me bringing up the child,..not them !

I don't think Soaps show abortion in a negative light at all,..they are just showing what goes on in real life,..behind closed doors,.but most people don't want to see it on-screen .

Answer 12

How exactly do you show a positive view of abortion?  What do you feel is positive about abortion?  It happens and people choose to do it, but I've never seen anyone proud or happy about having it done!

Answer 13

I think any depiction of abortion should be negative to try to steer women away from killing their children.

Answer 14

Well yeah.....80% of America has a bad view on abortions....So I guess to increase the population they are putting stuff on TV shows to do so .

Answer 15

i would think most women would choose not to have an abortion.

i think its factual.

am i wrong?

Answer 16

I don't really see how what you are seeing is negative.  If anything it is positive that they are not getting an abortion.  If they want to be reckless in their sexual behavior they could at least not abort (kill) the helpless fetus and let it have a fighting chance in the future.  AKA perhaps give it up for adoption so that a family that cannot concieve can benefit from the pregnant womans misfortune.  And in the future I hope 10 out of 10 women decide not to follow the stupidity of abortion and decide not to abort.

Answer 17

what tv shows are you watching, every one i see is aborting every child, and besides they should show a negative view on it, it is WRONG!!

except juno, it didnt kil the baby

Answer 18

it's true come to think of it they often have the baby.

but i don't think it's portrayed negatively it's just so there is more drama in the show...

Answer 19

abortion is murder.  it's good not to murder...

Answer 20

TV shows typically don't want to open that can of worms.  Characters on the show may CONSIDER abortion, but more often than not, they end up having an early miscarriage or just decide to keep the baby.

On the Canadian teen drama "Degrassi," there was a character who got pregnant and ended up having an abortion.  They made a two-part show about her pregnancy and going to the abortion clinic, but the cable network that airs the show in the US (The N), chose to not air those episodes at all.  They went back several years later and decided to air them once during a marathon of the show, but that was the only time.

Personally, I thought that since they showed the episodes of her having s*x, there wasn't anything wrong with showing an episode about the consequences of s*x.  They have dealt with plenty of other edgy, controversial topics, but The N didn't want to touch the abortion episodes with a ten foot pole..

EDIT:  "80% of America has a bad view on abortions."

That isn't true at all.  Larger polls that have been conducted in recent years show an almost even split among Americans, with slightly more people saying they are pro-choice.  The pro-lifers are in the minority.

EDIT: "even a starving animal tries to feed and protect its young, an animal could show you a thing or two."

Actually, most starving animals end up miscarrying, because their bodies recognize that the mother's lack of food means a depletion in resources, so the body's reaction is to conserve the mother's energy and not give her any offspring that she can't take care of in the absence of adequate resources.

You see it all the time among deer populations.

Answer 21

Its people like you who are taking us down the slippery slope to mass murder of the population. To murder an unborn child because it isn't convenient is to have it is the lowest of the low, even a starving animal tries to feed and protect its young, an animal could show you a thing or two. I was at a friends house once and in the room was my friend and his three beautiful sisters and their mother, the mother said if there was abortion in my days I would have aborted my three daughters as I didn't want any more children only a son, I then looked at these three beautiful young women and thought look what we would have lost these three wonderful human beings doesn't that tell you pro abortionist something.

Answer 22

I think that any show that opposes abortion is doing a fine job.  Besides many people do not want to watch babies being murdered because someone was too selfish to carry their baby to term.

Answer 23

they are showing both sides, one side where they actually consider having it done,and the other, they go through with the pregnancy.

Answer 24

I see all the antis have come out again. The last time I recall such a story was Michelle in Eastenders having a termination in the mid 80s. There was a good documentary on BBC2 last year which saw a couple of women talk about their experiences, and another going through the procedure. None of them regretted it.

One in three women have a termination at some time in their lives - this shouldn't be swept under the carpet as the anti choicers want us to do.

Answer 25

Are you from the UK?  Did you see Coronation Street?  David's girlfriend had an abortion.  It was quite realistic - and considering the characters played are supposed to be  around the age of 16/17, I think this was portrayed positively.

Abortion is a very sensitive subject.. and in real life it can be a very  difficult choice for a woman to make.

Thank god for the pill!