What Recession? Economic Crisis Passes Teens By: Study

Jeremy Conway, 13, sells apples while dressed in period costume outside the New York Stock Exchange in New York, September 30, 2008. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

SYDNEY (Reuters) - The world may be slowly emerging out of recession, but the global financial crisis appears to have gone unnoticed to a whole swathe of people: teenagers.

In spite of rising unemployment and economic uncertainty, Australian business information analyst IBISWorld said most teenagers -- who make up just over 5 percent of Australia's recession-hit 21 million population -- see the economic crisis as something their parents, not them, have to worry about.

It found most teens live a "highly subsidized life" with their parents while earning their own money through part-time or full-time jobs, which they use to buy the latest gadgets, clothes and for entertainment.

"Unless their parents have been made redundant, lost a business or had to sell the family pad, it's little wonder the younger generation's impression of the global financial crisis is distinctly indifferent," said IBISWorld General Manager Robert Bryant, adding that nearly 80 percent of teens work part-time.

Although youths in other Westernised countries, such as the United States and Britain, are more affected by the economic crisis because their countries have been worse hit than Australia and job opportunities diminished, they still spend their money is much the same way, according to analyst Raghu Rajakumar.

Bryant said today's teens have little qualms about spending all their income, think little about saving and appear to grow up faster, coveting designer labels, the latest electronics and overseas holidays much sooner than previous generations.

The popularity of the Internet and social networking sites such as YouTube and Facebook make gadgets such as cameras, the latest mobile phones and laptops must-have items for many teenagers, regardless of gender, the research report said.

High-end fashion is also something teens are snapping up, helping the whole sector grow by nearly two percent this financial year despite the overall economic doldrums.

Entertainment options such as music downloads, the cinema, videogames and travel to exotic locations that their parents probably only thought of visiting when they were middle-aged and more financial stable are also popular with teens, the research added.

(Writing by Miral Fahmy, editing by Belinda Goldsmith)

FREAKY FRIDAY NEWS: Vanessa Nude: Are Teen Stars Itching to Get Naked?

By TheImproper.com

High School movie sweetheart Vanessa Hudgens showed her vampy side in a series of nude cell-phone photos but curiously provoked a rather tepid “there she goes again” response from the public.

It seems like young Hollywood is itching to get naked as a bevy of young starlets near the point where they must transition to adult careers -- or face a long string of shopping mall appearances as they fade into oblivion.

Hudgens is only the latest teen star to turn up naked or partially clothed in photos, some planned others apparently leaked, raising the question: Which young teen starlet will be the first to do full-frontal nudity in a movie or magazine spread?

Judging by the seemingly steady flow of racy photos it could be any number of teenaged stars, from Miley Cyrus, to Emma Watson, Kristen Stewart, Demi Lovato and even possibly ultra-squeaky clean Selena Gomez.

The issue is no trifling matter. Sooner or later childhood stars must make the transition to adult roles. To do that they must establish their credibility as mature actresses. And the bridge between the two is often vampiness and nudity.

Two good examples of the phenomenon are Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears. Both were Disney child stars who made the leap to successful adult careers by vamping up their acts.

Aguilera named her sophomore album Stripped and debuted X-Tina, a vampy sexually charged image. She followed up with a series of photoshoots that featured her nude or semi-nude. In her first cover for Rolling Stone, she wore only boots and a strategically placed guitar.

Likewise, Spears caused a sensation when she shed her good girl image and appeared nude on the cover of the seminal rock magazine. Spears is still vamping up her act, although Aguilera has transitioned to a more glamorous image and toned down the blatant sexuality.

Other celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton pioneered another path to stardom -- the sex tape -- conveniently leaked, of course, to raise their profiles, and jump-start their careers.

Not playing the sex card an be deadly to transitioning careers. Disney teen star Hillary Duff was every bit as big as Britney but stuck to her squeaky clean image a little too long.

Her adult career fizzled and she is just now trying to rebuild it through a series of sexy photo shoots.

And, who remembers squeaky clean '80s teen stars like Deborah Gibson, Tiffany and Brandy?

Harry Potter star Emma Watson, who turned 18 last year -- the leaping off point from child to adult careers -- said in a recent interview she would consider doing nude scenes in movies if the part called for it.

Watson, incidentally, was photographed exposing her see-through underwear at her 18th birthday party and has been increasingly photographed in revealing clothes.

She had a major wardrobe malfunction at the latest Harry Potter movie premier and flashed her thigh and underwear. At least she was wearing them, she cheekily told David Letterman.

Miley Cyrus, of course, is already ahead of the game. Her provocative photos in Vanity Fair magazine touched off a frenzied reaction and a series of racy photos subsequently leaked onto the Internet.

Incidentally more and more mainstream magazines are featuring nude or partially nude photo spreads as circulation falls along with ad sales, in an attempt to grab reader interest.

Since then, Miley has also had a number of revealing wardrobe malfunctions in scanty or loose-fitting clothing. Yet, Miley’s career has flourished. She’s only 16, but is probably the first among her peers who can be considered a bankable star in a mature film.

As for Hudgens, she plans to keep to her schedule despite the release of the photos.

The pics were supposedly taken before her first nude photo scandal nearly two years ago, according to E! Online.

"She learned her lesson," a source told the web site. "She hasn't done anything like that since the first ones came out. These new ones are actually old."

Either way, Hudgens isn't planning on issuing a statement or another apology.

She’s scheduled to appear tonight for the red carpet premiere of her new movie, Bandslam? "She's not going to answer any questions about them there either," the source said. "She said what she had to say about taking nude photos."

Smart move. The photos, after all, speak for themselves. or, as Miley said when she was photographed with her breasts bulging out of her top while jogging, "It's no big whoop".

Teens Love Parents, Just Don't Want To Talk With Them

Source: Tampa Bay Online

Teens may not want to talk with or be seen with their parents in public, but they do appear to like them.

A new unscientific online survey of 2,800 American teens found that 77 percent felt they had a good relationship with their parents, despite admissions that they were likely to hide personal information from them.

A reported 44 percent of surveyed teens were likely to hide their online activities, while 21 percent would avoid admitting spending time with a boyfriend or girlfriend. More than half had talked with parents about sex, but 56 percent said their parents didn't know their child was in a relationship.

Predictably, most teens said they turned to friends for advice regarding romantic or friendly relationships. More than 70 percent said they would not take advice in those areas from a parent. Teens were more likely to confide in Mom (68 percent) than Dad (18 percent).

Results from the parent communication survey includes hundreds of comments from teens about the survey and its results.

Pangea Media, an online quiz company, conducted the survey on parental communication on its site called Quibblo. It's not designed to be scientific research but instead offers a snapshot into the teen universe. The site features user-generated quizzes from the serious ("Would you rather be blind or deaf?") to superficial ("Are you going to buy the new Jonas Brothers CD?"). Some recent quizzes included hundreds of thousands of votes.

Mary Shedden

Study Sees Fatalism Behind Some Risky Teen Behavior

Original Post: LA Times

A sizable number of teens may take chances 'because they feel hopeless and figure that not much is at stake,' a researcher says.

Chicago -- Nearly 15% of teenagers think they are going to die young, leading many to drug use, suicide attempts and other unsafe behavior, new research suggests.

The study, based on a survey of more than 20,000 young people, challenges conventional wisdom that says teens engage in risky behavior because they think they are invulnerable to harm.

Instead, a sizable number of teens may take chances "because they feel hopeless and figure that not much is at stake," said study author Dr. Iris Borowsky, a researcher at the University of Minnesota.

That behavior threatens to turn their fatalism into a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Teens who thought they would die early were seven times more likely than optimistic teens to be subsequently diagnosed with AIDS. They also were more likely to attempt suicide and get in fights resulting in serious injuries.

Borowsky said the magnitude of teens with a negative outlook was eye-opening.

Adolescence is "a time of great opportunity and for such a large minority of youth to feel like they don't have a long life ahead of them was surprising," she said.

The study appears in the July issue of Pediatrics, released today.

Tween Designers Hold Runway Show w/ Celeb Cred

Posted by: Martinne Geller

REUTERS

Television shows like “Project Runway” and “The Fashion Show” feature a host of ambitious designers angling for their big break. Last weekend, a Manhattan middle school took the amateur fashion show to a whole different level.

Featuring outfits designed during seventh- and eight-grade art classes, Manhattan Academy of Technology (P.S. 126) put on a real runway show, which was hosted by Stacy London, from the TLC network’s instructional fashion program “What Not to Wear”.

Dresses were the most popular design, but ranged in style from casual sundresses to metallic-sheened party dresses to an asymmetric gown. Two even featured recycled materials.

For these talented 12 to 14 year olds, one thing seems clear. If they keep it up, they could make a killing come prom time.