The UK phenomena “Skins” made its stateside premier Monday night on MTV.

The show is a teen soap of sorts, embellishing on the lives of high school students who are grappling with the realities of young adulthood. It promises to be a faithful lens, trained on the lives of eight adolescents trying to survive their teenage years.

But as with any documentation of high school life, it brings with it controversy, namely the concern that this show will glorify the depraved actions of teenagers.

It is an easy assessment to come to when looking at the previews. The extended trailers highlight the illegal activities engaged in by the scantily clad cast, a distressing sight for concerned parents.

The Parents Television Council didn’t even need to see the premier before making up its mind about the show. Its president, Tim Winter, declared that the series “makes light of lying to parents … (shows) all manner of harmful, irresponsible, illegal and adult-themed behavior, (and makes) sexual objects of almost every single one of its characters.”

That is pretty much what being a teenager is about — as anybody who has made it past those adolescent years and into adulthood can tell you. However, there is a fine line between glorifying depraved deeds and getting teenagers to think differently about their behavior.

Normally, no one would expect MTV to pick up this educational burden.

The responsibility to guide adolescents in the right direction when watching this show would fall to the parents or the public school system. Unfortunately, that also means that a lot of young and impressionable viewers would fall through the cracks.

But a lot has changed for MTV in the past couple of years. While reality programming like “Jersey Shore” and “When I was 17” does nothing to help the nation’s youth learn and grow, there are other offerings on the station that challenge these conventions.

MTV found unparalleled success with the series “16 and Pregnant” and “Teen Mom.”
Both shows follow a small group of teenagers who are struggling to cope with bringing a new life into the world — highlighting all the pain and hardships that come with growing up too fast.

Big Brothers and Big Sisters of America, academicians and the White House have used both series as teaching tool for kids. The shows, which expose what could happen if you have unprotected sex instead of just preaching the lessons, have been an effective tool in the fight against teenage pregnancy.

If executed correctly, “Skins” could provide the same kind of teaching opportunities to its audience.