Readers abuzz about Mankato girl on '16 & Pregnant'

Kayla Jackson, an 18-year-old former West High School student, went and got herself moderately famous Tuesday night, but feedback is certainly mixed as to whether that’s a good or bad thing.

Jackson of Winthrop was on an episode of MTV’s “16 and Pregnant,” which was taped mostly in the Mankato area last summer through part of the winter. She gave birth to her son, Preston, Nov. 4 in Mankato.

Each episode of the show focuses on a different girl and her unique struggle with teen pregnancy. Jackson’s episode focused primarily on recurring symptoms of anorexia, even going a day eating almost nothing while pregnant, resulting in a brief hospital stay. But mostly viewers are reacting to how her mother was portrayed on the show.

During the 90-minute episode, Jackson’s mother (who was also a teen mom) allows Jackson at 17 to live with her then boyfriend, Mike, in Jackson’s home while she spends most of her time with her own boyfriend an hour away. Her mother then starts charging Mike $300 rent, which he doesn’t earn as a teenager, so Jackson has to help pay it. That leaves them $60 to buy food and baby supplies.

When Jackson repeatedly complains about her mom’s lack of help with her pregnancy and later her baby, she’s met with little sympathy. Even the night Jackson’s water broke, her mom wouldn’t get out of bed, but rather told her she was probably still wet from being in the shower. Jackson and Mike drove to the hospital, and almost a full day later, she delivered by C-section.

Perhaps worst of all, after the baby was born, her mother asks her anorexic daughter if she would go on a diet with her.

Jackson now lives in Winthrop with her dad, whom at the start of the episode she said she hardly knew.

Jackson’s official fan Facebook page has been filled with comments denouncing her mother’s behavior on the episode. But many comments are positive.

Mandi Matz wrote, “Loved your episode!! I live in Mankato, too. If you ever need a babysitter, I have a profile on sittercity.com!!! :) Lol!! ... .”

Feedback on The Free Press Facebook page also has been mixed. Doug Mulville wrote, “Why would you promote this trash? This show basically rewards irresponsible decision making by teens. What a terrible joke journalism and entertainment have become.”

From Shelly Neville Berger: “I felt bad for how her mom acted last night. Her mom needs to grow up! But (I’m) also glad that she is with her dad and happy! Living in a small town is the best (way to go). Kayla, welcome to Winthrop.”

Mankato folks have been buzzing about the show for more than a year, calling and emailing The Free Press about where they saw the MTV camera crew when they were here. The Coffee Hag, Mayo Health Systems, Dino’s Pizzeria and Target were a few locations featured in the show.

Jackson herself has been mum to interview requests. Her mother e-mailed last summer to say her daughter wasn’t at liberty to discuss the show. That may have changed now that the episode has aired.

Here’s what I can glean from the fan page: Jackson plans to finish high school and graduate in June. She has plans to live on her own this summer and attend college in the fall or next spring. She and Preston’s dad are no longer together, but he is involved in Preston’s life. So far, Jackson appears to be OK with the attention. Ashley Brown posted the question: Do you think you will regret doing “16 & Pregnant” after seeing the negativity all the other girls have gotten? “No” was Jackson’s response.

Here’s when you can catch repeats of the episode: 11:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. today/Wednesday; 2:30 p.m. Thursday; 12:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Friday; 9 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Saturday; 8:30 a.m. and 8 p.m. Sunday; and 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

No, I'm not going to be on MTV

The fourth week is about to wrap, which is good. Feels like I'm reaching a point when the energy will settle a bit, and the new program will be accepted as something more permanent by myself and my friends and family. (My next weigh-in is Wednesday, by the way. That's the one-month mark.)

Anyway, besides the major changes of diet and exercise, I was noticing how small things in my day-to-day have changed. One of my favorite shows to watch before was "The Best Thing I Ever Ate" on Food Network. Oh my god, it's a good show. Chefs go to their favorite restaurants and eat their favorite foods and talk about why it's so delicious. My favorite episodes were always the dessert ones.

I pretty much avoid the Food Network now. Although I do watch "Ace of Cakes" because I don't think I'd ever want to eat cake wrapped in Play-Do-ish fondant. Any cake of mine will be elbow deep with butter cream, thank you very much.

Instead, the show I've recently become semi-obsessed with is "I Used to be Fat" on MTV. (Am I even allowed to watch MTV anymore? Being over 30 and all?) It's a reality show that follows a graduating senior (high school) through a summer-long weightloss program. They work with a trainer every single day, and in about 90 to 110 days, they drop about 75 to 100 pounds. It's such a cute show! Being fat in high school is a fate no kid should endure, and the show sort of gives them a leg-up in college.

If you have the chance, check it out. It's sort of like "Made," which I also like, but every episode is about being "Made" into someone thinner.

I've actually been sort of asked if I was doing some sort of weight-loss MTV show. I wonder where they thought I was hiding the camera crew? ... No, Jackie and I are doing our own version of "Made," but for a blog/newspaper-reading audience only. And my guess is that it will take us much longer than 90 days.

MTV was (is?) in Mankato ... but where are they now?

So, my Facebook pal Diane Winegar is the co-owner of Sweet Peas on Riverfront. It's a store for baby goods. She said an MTV crew came in today (Friday) with a girl for their show "16 and Pregnant." It's a reality show about teens who are pregnant and how their lives are changing as a result. Each episode features a new teen. I'm wondering if this means the girl lives in Mankato and has a TV crew following her pretty much 24/7 right now. I'd love to get to the bottom of this for a story. If anyone has the skinny, shoot me an e-mail at adyslin@mankatofreepress.com. Thanks!

Kanye West is a dirtbag

Preface: Video Music Awards? For what videos? I'd like someone to do a study as to what times during the day and week a person has to tune into MTV to actually see a video. It was bad enough when I was in junior high that they played the same videos over and over again, but at least when I came home from school I knew I had a solid few hours of nothing but music on TV. I wonder how kids today concentrate on doing homework when they don't have MTV blaring in the background. That's how I did it.

But, anyhow, the VMA's continue, and after last night's Kanye West incident, I would be remiss in not mentioning it.

I'm not a Taylor Swift fan. Like so much of popular music these days, I don't get it. (Jonas Brothers, anyone?) But she won her first VMA last night, and Kanye came up on stage, took the microphone and essentially said Beyonce deserved to win. Beyonce was horrified, and Taylor Swift was crushed. She didn't even finish her speech. In a classy move, however, Beyonce brought her back on stage later and let her finish. Oh, and he got boo'd during his little speech and every time his name was mentioned afterward. : )

As an aside, how arrogant does someone have to be to do what Kanye did? He's had some stellar moments in the past, and this is not the first time he has said someone else didn't deserve an award. In fact, last time he said HE deserved it rather than the person who won. At what point does someone's jerkiness start to outweigh the talent. For me, we're at that point. I hope this incident hits Kanye wear it hurts most: the ego and the wallet.

Anyway, here's the video. You be the judge.

Help me get Green Day

As I'm sure many of you have heard in the past (and probably know better than I do), a little known band by the name of Green Day used to perform right here in Mankato.

Why? Well, Billie Joe Armstrong, the frontman, is married to Adrienne Armstrong, who lived in Mankato while attending Minnesota State University.

In fact, I have a pal who also is in a band, who tells a funny story. He was playing guitar in his apartment (or a friend's apartment or something) when there was a knock on the door. It was a nice young kid who asked to borrow a guitar for a while. My friend says something to the effect of: "Oh yeah, sure. So, you're in a little band, huh? Oh, that's great," and handed him a guitar. A while later my pal was flipping through the channels. And that nice young kid -- you guessed it, Billie Joe -- was right there on TV. MTV, that is. It was Green Day's "Longview" video off its multi-platinum album "Dookie."

I was reminded of this when Green Day came out with yet another album, "21st Century Breakdown," that critics and fans are loving. I thought, "Wouldn't it be awesome if we could leverage the past to get Green Day in Mankato?"

Seriously, why not? Eric Jones, the marketing manager at the Alltel Center, could put in a call to Green Day's promoter. He could say, "Hey, you know what would be an awesome show and surely sell out our civic center here in Mankato? A Green Day nostalgia show, a throwback to his time here in Mankato when the band was just getting started." Or, maybe somebody here in Mankato who still keeps in contact with Adrienne could ask her to convince her husband to come back.

I think we can do this. If we generate enough Web juice, this just might work. Let's all Twitter and Facebook and blog this idea! Let's get this campaign going!
Aaaaaand ... break!