Should More Affluent Careers Be Spotlighted on Television?

There are a plethora of young people in the world today that have an undying passion to do something great.  However, too often, the shows we watch on television portray careers that primarily focus on one reward – obtaining work is money, and money by any means necessary.  For example, becoming a “Reality TV Star” is an aspired career, but we rarely hear discussion about the negations that can come along with this sort of exposure.

VH1’s Love and Hip Hop “Reality TV Stars” have an adverse group of issues surrounding the Hip Hop culture.  On this upcoming season, a single mom Mimi Faust, decides to become active in the porn industry.  As one can imagine, money played a huge role in her making that career decision but I think many would agree that the negative impacts of her decision on certain crucial aspects of her life should hold greater significance when compared to money. The opportunities for her to obtain a career in a more conservative field will now be impacted by her decision because her reputation will never be the same.  Not to mention, even her daughter’s reputation will also be affected. Unfortunately, it is becoming more common for “Reality TV Stars” to engage in pornographic acts. Other examples include reality star Kim Kardashian and MTV’s Teen Mom star Farrah Abraham.  This is what our young people are viewing today.

Moreover, a better example is Mary Jane Paul –“a news reporter who takes care of her family, is successful in her career, has a lovely home, has relationship issues, has a deep connection to her brother, posts daily affirmations all over her house, and is searching for happiness…..”  Mary Jane has a much esteemed career and she’s very real.  BET Network produced a show that portrayed an African-American woman in the news media industry that faces all sorts of adversities.  They even created a social media campaign entitled, “I am Mary Jane” to make women think about the different aspects of their lives.

Overall, it was a crowd grabbing social media campaign that really exposed the ins and outs of one woman with an esteemed career.   Through the campaign, women explored questions such as “What makes me similar to Mary Jane?  What are my own successes and accomplishments I can be proud of?  What career experiences do I have that make me unique?”  This television show in particular gives a positive example of careers thus proven by the success of the “I am Mary Jane” Social Media Campaign.  Women everywhere were telling why they were Mary Jane on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.  Many don’t realize how much television has an influence on what an individual wants to do in life.  So, publicizing an array of career choices for young people to aspire to via this outlet is important.

VH1’s the “Family Hustle” with rapper, T.I., his wife Tiny and their blended family mimics the world’s most famous, fictional family: “The Huxtables”.  Or, at least that’s what they are trying to accomplish.  However, we recall Bill Cosby being an obstetrician which provided a different career perspective –hence the purpose of this blog.  The simple question I want to pose is “why aren’t other careers such as traveling nurses or neurosurgeon’s or chemist’s or digital director’s to the president spotlighted on television?  Does this spark your curiosity?  Don’t our youth deserve to be exposed to the real lives of these individuals to perhaps embark on their same paths and not the secular styles of some, not all, reality television shows?”  Seeing these examples can help them realize a more productive path to sustainable careers and healthy lifestyles.