Parents Mckayla maroney Instagram

[happychaos]

I agree that MM can do whatever she wants as she is an adult. And no, the pics she posts aren't as bad as some I've seen. But it makes me sad a bit that so many girls equal being a grown up to being half naked. It would be so refreshing if "leaving something to the imagination" would become popular. And now that I've become my mother.......

Yes! Agree! Of course she can do whatever she wants, but it's a shame that an accomplished, intelligent athlete is seeking attention by posting seductive selfies. I would have hoped her self-esteem would be high enough that she wouldn't crave the type of attention she gets from posting these pics.

One of the reasons that I allow my DD to continue in this sport is because I am hoping she develops the self-confidence to NOT engage in the pre-teen/teen s**ualization that is so common now. It's a shame that so many girls feel their worth is tied to their s** appeal. I realize that the clothing and poses MM is sharing are pretty typical of girls her age, but that doesn't make it right. I am actually surprised by how many commenters here think these pics are just fine.

When I was in high-school my friends and I would have never taken pictures like these, let alone make them public. This type of behavior is one of the consequences of social media, and is breeding a generation of narcissistic, overly s**ualized young people.

The poses, the clothing, the faces, continually photographing oneself.....it's just not healthy behavior for anyone. I really wish there was more outcry against this type of stuff, especially when it involves one who serves as a role model to young girls.

 

[happychaos]

Also, for contrast, check out Aly Raisman's Instagram. It's lovely!

 

[profmom]

Oh, come on. The people who should be ashamed are the commentators. I see no reason to pathologize psychologically an extremely talented, hardworking athlete who's been very successful. Nothing in her posts suggests that she is insecure or lacking in self esteem. And she is not engaging in pre-teen sexualization; she is only barely a teenager.

I find it distressing that female athletes' behavior is so much more tightly policed than men's. McKayla Maroney owes nothing to my daughter or yours, and she did not interview for the job of role model. If you prefer not to have your daughter follow her instagram, that is of course your choice.

Today's teenagers strike me as no more or less narcissistic than any generation of teenagers since the dawn of time.

 

[cbifoja]

for the record, I don't think her behavior is pathological at all. it's actually so typical, it's almost cliche.

 

[bogwoppit]

I think the only difference in teens behaviour today is the advent of social media. She is a typical teen, nothing more. Doing what many teens do, both male and female. I see my kids friends all over social media doing the same things, I do not think that is cool either. But then I also think that seeing 45 year olds plastered all over in selfies is a bit sad too.

For me it is not about male or female, it is putting images/video out into a medium where they cannot be taken back easily.

I love what the internet has brought us, but I do think it evolves so rapidly that finding a way to make it work can be challenging from a parenting perspective.

 

[Somewhat clueless]

i don't know what any of that stuff is...but i do know that the world has gone to hell in a technological hand basket.

SO TRUE!!!

 

[LIGYMMOM]

for the record, I don't think her behavior is pathological at all. it's actually so typical, it's almost cliche.

And that is the sad part. We are all so used to it, it's become normal. IMO, from watching the Olympic coverage, she was the one who seemed to look for that kind of attention. She just has a different kind of platform now. Let's just pray she doesn't turn into a Miley.

 

[cbifoja]

Oh, come on. The people who should be ashamed are the commentators.

No arguments about this either. But like Bog (I think) said, you choose what comments you allow to be visible. I had to go looking for her channel and I didn't spend a lot of time reading the comments. Basically if I couldn't see them as I scrolled down, I didn't go looking for them.

I saw some profanity and "$lu+ shaming" going on that I would think she would want to delete. I don't pretend to have any insight to her personality or her opinion about the comments. I just know that if that were my page, I'd be too embarrassed to leave those comments up. Maybe the volume is just too high and she doesn't want to block the offending posters. I don't know. My opinion is based solely on the public image that she is projecting.

But hey...at least she isn't as bad as Miley!

 

[cbifoja]

Let's just pray she doesn't turn into a Miley.

You posted as I was typing and when I came back and read this, I busted out laughing!!!!

 

[profmom]

Seriously, it says more about our culture and double standards than it does about McKayla Maroney that we are having this whole heated conversation about her Instagram and, as Geoffrey Taucer noted, there is no discussion of Danell Leyva. And has Jake Dalton EVER posted a picture of himself with a shirt on? What is wrong with him? Doesn't he realize that he is a role model for young boys? Let's hope he doesn't turn into a . . . uh . . . let's see . . . what would be the analogy? Oh, right. Men don't generally get shamed for these things. So, let's hope he doesn't join the Red Hot Chili Peppers. That's all I've got.

Oh, one more thing. If you don't like McKayla Maroney's Instagram, I highly recommend the UMichigan men's twitter feeds. Those guys are hilarious.

 

[gymbeam]

profmom, FTW!

 

[seoulmama]

This will be an unpopular comment, I am sure-but things like Instagram and other social media-and the photos/comments/content that can be questionable aren't going away. I think the best defense is a good offense-I closely monitor my kids' accounts-13 is not a magic age where kids suddenly learn good Internet judgement. I monitor who they follow and who follows them and almost every day I check their feed and we talk about what's cool, what's misspelled and what's inappropriate and why I deleted it.

 

[bogwoppit]

This will be an unpopular comment, I am sure-but things like Instagram and other social media-and the photos/comments/content that can be questionable aren't going away. I think the best defense is a good offense-I closely monitor my kids' accounts-13 is not a magic age where kids suddenly learn good Internet judgement. I monitor who they follow and who follows them and almost every day I check their feed and we talk about what's cool, what's misspelled and what's inappropriate and why I deleted it.

100% agree.

 

[happychaos]

Today's teenagers strike me as no more or less narcissistic than any generation of teenagers since the dawn of time.

How many pictures of yourself did YOU take when you were a teenager?

The problem with todays teenagers is that they are the first generation to have a platform to truly nurture the narcissism. Things that would have been laughably narcissistic when I was a teen are now considered typical teen behavior.

Think about the reason MM posts these photos. Attention. She is seeking attention for the way she looks, instead of the things she does. If you don't understand what I am saying, spend 5 minutes on MM's instagram and then 5 minutes on Aly Raismans instagram. The difference is stark. I am trying to raise my DD's in such a manner that they feel no need pose for a sultry picture, post it online, and see how many people "like" it.

Teenagers seeking attention for the way they look is nothing new, nor is the desire to be seen as attractive and s*xy. However, the ability of teenagers to "flaunt it" has previously been limited to their immediate social circle. Now, it's practically a contest to see who can post the most risqué photo, and get the most attention.

The fact that boys/men engage in this sort of behavior too does NOT excuse it. Nor does the reasoning that "this behavior is so typical". It would be nice to see accomplished young athletes buck the trend and set a positive example for kids. Sure, maybe they didn't ask to be role models. So what? Someone with good morals and character will take the responsibly seriously regardless.

I am truly amazed at the number of adults that have no problem with teenagers acting like p**n-stars-in-training.

 

[profmom]

Perhaps you didn't mean this, Happychaos, but I find your implication that McKayla Maroney has poor morals and character, and that she is behaving like a porn star in training, to be wildly off base and out of proportion. If you don't like the pictures, fine. To each her own. But please take a step back and ask yourself why you are having this strong a reaction. My point in comparing men and women is that men's behavior almost never garners this kind of reaction. It's the reaction, not the behavior, that interests me.

 

[bogwoppit]

Perhaps you didn't mean this, Happychaos, but I find your implication that McKayla Maroney has poor morals and character, and that she is behaving like a porn star in training, to be wildly off base and out of proportion. If you don't like the pictures, fine. To each her own. But please take a step back and ask yourself why you are having this strong a reaction. My point in comparing men and women is that men's behavior almost never garners this kind of reaction. It's the reaction, not the behavior, that interests me.

I do not see any comparing of men and women here, I see people saying they do not like this selfie culture, that is all.

 

[happychaos]

Perhaps you didn't mean this, Happychaos, but I find your implication that McKayla Maroney has poor morals and character, and that she is behaving like a porn star in training, to be wildly off base and out of proportion. If you don't like the pictures, fine. To each her own. But please take a step back and ask yourself why you are having this strong a reaction. My point in comparing men and women is that men's behavior almost never garners this kind of reaction. It's the reaction, not the behavior, that interests me.

No, I don't need to take a step back, lol. Parents SHOULD have a reaction to this type of thing, and the reaction should NOT be supportive. I don't like the pictures, and I don't feel that ignoring it is the appropriate reaction. This thread was started to discuss what people thought of MM's instagram, and I am sharing my opinion. I obviously have a strong opinion about this type of behavior on social media.

It's the apparent need to engage in this type of behavior in the first place that interests me. I get it- you are not interested in the behavior itself. I am. I am concerned about the way young people are using social media, and the effect it is having on them and our society in general. I don't believe it's healthy for anyone, and it's not as simple as just prohibiting my kids from instagram.

 

[twinmomma]

First - MM makes NO bones about the fact that she's an aspiring actress, and as such, I find her posts to be completely geared towards that end rather than promoting herself as an athlete, and THAT is why I wouldn't have my child following her on instagram - because I don't need an aspiring actress on my hands at home.

The points about Danell and other male gymnasts are spot on, and it's telling to me that people still want to hang MM up over her instagram but have lost the fact that there's a GIGANTIC double standard at play. Girls who assert their sexuality or show their bodies are going to be shamed but hey you know, "boys will be boys".

The reality is, she IS an adult. She's behaving no differently than the 18 year old down the street from you and I don't think because she happened to win a few medals that she should be expected to stop being an 18 year old. Comparing her to Aly is pointless - they're different people. They share one thing, gymnastics. But being a gymnast doesn't mean you have to all behave in one, homogenous way.

We're all looking for role models for our kids. I get it. But dig deeply enough and everyone has their faults. Maybe the fault is partly on us for lifting these KIDS up on pedestals and expecting them to be perfect all the time then villifying them when they fail to meet the unattainable expectations of millions of parents.

 

[happychaos]

First - MM makes NO bones about the fact that she's an aspiring actress, and as such, I find her posts to be completely geared towards that end rather than promoting herself as an athlete, and THAT is why I wouldn't have my child following her on instagram - because I don't need an aspiring actress on my hands at home.

The points about Danell and other male gymnasts are spot on, and it's telling to me that people still want to hang MM up over her instagram but have lost the fact that there's a GIGANTIC double standard at play. Girls who assert their sexuality or show their bodies are going to be shamed but hey you know, "boys will be boys".

The reality is, she IS an adult. She's behaving no differently than the 18 year old down the street from you and I don't think because she happened to win a few medals that she should be expected to stop being an 18 year old. Comparing her to Aly is pointless - they're different people. They share one thing, gymnastics. But being a gymnast doesn't mean you have to all behave in one, homogenous way.

We're all looking for role models for our kids. I get it. But dig deeply enough and everyone has their faults. Maybe the fault is partly on us for lifting these KIDS up on pedestals and expecting them to be perfect all the time then villifying them when they fail to meet the unattainable expectations of millions of parents.

Perhaps this wasn't clear in my posts, but I do not think this s*xualized selfie culture is healthy for ANYONE. This includes MM, the 18-year-old down the street, and boys/men. If the original post had asked about the appropriateness of what Danell or my next door neighbor posts on instagram the reaction would be the same!

Of course everyone has their faults. I really, really admire young people who have a desire to step-up and hold themselves to a higher standard. There ARE young people and professional athletes who take very seriously their position as role model. I don't think parents have unattainable expectations for role models. Truly, I think the expectations are probably lower than they should be. The criteria for "role-model" status, especially among pro-athletes and the Hollywood type are often frightening low.

 

[twinmomma]

I guess I have much less of an issue with adults and even older teens asserting that they are s*xual beings than I do with kids playing excessively violent video games or watching violent movies or heck, hunting and killing animals in the woods for sport. For me, the previous generations that pretended that s*x was something to be ashamed of sort of got us here in the sense that STD's and teen pregnancies rose like crazy because everyone was afraid to admit that teenagers have s*x drives and therefore refused to talk about it. I'd much rather have certain things out in the open so my kids can ask about it and talk about it than to put my head down and pretend it doesn't exist so that my kids are afraid to talk to me about it.

I think that we as parents need to stop seeing social media as inherently bad because all we'll be doing is driving our kids further into it. Here's an interesting take on "selfie culture".

http://www.slate.com/articles/doubl...d_facebook_are_tiny_bursts_of_girl_pride.html