Who Are Our Teen Role Models? Saints Or Sinners?

By: Don Caldwell

The only thing we like better than building someone up is tearing them down.

A recent TV Guide poll ranked four female TV stars as teen role models. Squeaky-clean Miranda Cosgrove from "iCarly" topped the list. Disney princess Selena Gomez came in second. Miley Cyrus and "Dancing With the Stars" contestant Bristol Palin are competing for last place. But for Yahoo! searchers, being a role model doesn't seem to be the top concern. In fact, the more searches on the celeb, the less likely they are to be considered a role model. Click through to take a look at the candidates from most searched to least.


It’s possible that this millionaire pop performer has seen more drama in her young life than most of us will ever experience. Just recently, the "Hannah Montana" star broke up with her older boyfriend, showed a risqué look during her European tour, and made plans to celebrate her 18th birthday. Yes, you read that right. She’s not even 18. Role model? Well, if you’re looking to be a globetrotting, platinum-record-selling singer, then yes. But stay-in-school, straight-A student? Not so much. But of the four celebs, Miley Cyrus is number one in Yahoo! searches. Look-ups for the star include "miley cyrus 18th birthday," "miley cyrus biography," and "hannah montana miley cyrus."


Being anointed by Disney can be a blessing — and a curse for Selena Gomez (as "Mickey Mouse Show" alum Britney Spears and "Parent Trap" star Lindsay Lohan can testify). But the 18-year-old princess of the Disney show "Wizards of Waverly Place" has managed to avoid the negative press. Not that she's been out of the media glare: She dated Nick Jonas, after all. She has her own band to focus on, which has a second album coming out. And next year she'll be costarring in the romantic comedy "Monte Carlo." So far, not bad. Searches on "selena gomez fansite," "selena gomez wallpaper," and even the bilingual "videos de Selena Gomez" are also big on the Web. 
 
So many of us would profess to prefer those who do good as compared to who are more scandolous, then why do we focus all of our attention on those who are more scandalous?

Is this also the same part of our nature that precludes postive news stories from making the news, or is it something else?

(ORIGINAL LINK) Teen Role Models on TV - Yahoo! TV