The FBomb has been online since March, and through the summer, most of the posts were written by its 16-year-old founder, Julie Zeilinger. But as she told Nikki Darling, her goal was always to provide a space for young feminists to express themselves, not to be the sole voice on the site. She explained:

The fbomb doesn't actually have any "regular" writers (as of yet) — I take submissions from anybody who wants to post. That's how I want the fbomb to be different. It's not my blog. I may have started it, but I really want it to be open to all teenage feminists, give them a chance to say whatever they want.

In the past few weeks, the site has come closer to meeting that goal. Zeilinger still posts frequently, but there are more items written by other contributors. While the site drew some negative comments from adults making tired arguments about the definition of feminism early on, the commenters now seem to be a younger, yet still diverse, group that adds thoughtful discourse to the site.

Last week Zeilinger posted a question about dating sent to her by a reader named Tinnie, who said,

My mother never taught me how to test a guy for closeted sexism or male supremacy. I want to know if any of you younger feminists have a theory on how to address this and if it worked.

Among the many commenters who weighed in with their advice and shared their stories was a high school student from the U.K., a girl from the Middle East, college students, lesbians, older married women, and a male high school student who calls himself a feminist.

Other contributors have brought up issues that teens who are in high school or starting college deal with every day, but that adult bloggers may not address in a way that's relevant to teens. Nellie B wrote that she feels uncomfortable when her high school teachers call her "sweetie" or "hon." She says:

These uncomfortable "terms of endearment," as I suppose these patronizing monikers qualify as, are not meant to be degrading and uncomfortable. I'm sure the intent is that us gals should be flattered that we are called pet names. However, as I'd like to remind them, I am not a wife, girlfriend or daughter. Every student deserves to be addressed respectfully. Inappropriate affection should not be mistaken for respect. Notice, also, that male students are not called "honey" or "babe." No, if they are called nicknames at all, it is something like "buddy," or "pal"– something that signifies their status as an equal to the teacher.

A dance on Leah RD's third day of college led her to proclaim that "the 'grinding' phenomenon demands a discussion." She writes:

Let's be honest: grinding is basically simulated sex on the dance floor. I try to be sex-positive and am generally comfortable with open expressions of sexuality. But isn't dry sex in a public setting, and with someone who you've known for less than a week, just kind of awkward? For me, yes. Maybe for some it's not, but this questions leads to the broader idea of consent and its applications. Consent doesn't only belong in the bedroom; consent should follow ambiguity wherever it may lead, which, in this setting, is the dance floor.

Sheridan T shared a personal story about becoming a feminist after she realized she and her friends spent too much time trying to perfectly apply their makeup and attract boys. She said:

My mother was the epitome of the middle-aged feminist. She gently pushed to help me make the right decisions. But I didn't listen to her because she wasn't like me – she was old and wrinkly and had bad hair and too much cellulite. Or so I believed… And then it dawned on me. My mother is a beautiful woman. A few months ago, I read The Beauty Myth. And I cried. Because what I was living wasn't rewarding in the least. And then I realized that the friends I considered beautiful were also the most fucked up. They have perfect body and facial preportions, but they aren't happy.

Other posts highlight awesome projects other young women are working on. Diane A writes that she and fellow FBomb contributor Nellie B are in a Women's Advocacy Group at their high school in Maryland and shared photos (including the one at the top of this post) of some of the signs they hung up for their school's Homecoming week. She says:

Our decorations didn't exactly fit into the designated "Las Vegas" theme, but they definitely caused a stir... Little groups would gather between classes to read all the posters, and I heard a lot of people say things like, "Wow I had no idea." This hallway represents one aspect of our group's mission to make sure "feminism" is not a dirty word in our high school. Plus, in the first few days no posters were torn down and there was only one act of vandalism, which is definitely a record!

In an interview with Bust Zeilinger said she was inspired to start The FBomb because she enjoyed adult feminist blogs but felt they were missing the teenager's perspective. She explained:

I think in a lot of ways this is because most teenage feminists aren't as comfortable or confident in their feminism as older feminists are, and don't tend to put themselves out there as much, but that's exactly why we need the fbomb - so young feminists can be confident, express themselves, and so we can build a community.

As the blog attracts more contributors and commenters, it's becoming not just a place for young feminists to voice there opinions, but for teenagers to help each other figure out where they stand and how feminism relates to their lives. We hope to see even more teens - female and male - dropping FBombs in the future.

Speaking Of Heroes... An Interview with FBombs Julie Zeilinger [Nikki Darling]
How Do Young Feminists Make Relationship Possible? [The FBomb]
Dealing with "Terms Of Endearment" [The FBomb]
Grinding [The FBomb]
The Development Of A Feminist [The FBomb]
Homecoming Week Montgomery Blair High School Style [The FBomb]
The FBomb: A Blog Young Feminists Can Swear By [Bust]

Earlier: F-bombs: Feminist Teen Blog Starts Strong Despite Adult Sniping

Miriam Forman-Brunell's Babysitter: An American History, takes on the trope of the teen sitter. As opposed to the more obviously fraught dynamic of nanny and mom (as examined in Tasha Blaine's Just Like Family and by the estimable Dodai), a babysitter's role is more marginal. Usually a social equal, generally a teen girl, the bebysitter is a transient figure, less a servant than the object of fantasy, idolization, and, in the world of John Cheever, sexual intrigue.

Babysitting's also an important trope in the teen girl world: it's often the first job a girl has, and, as embodied by The Babysitter's Club, an important way for girls to achieve financial independence and life skills, and an introduction into "teen" existence. As an interview in the New Yorker with the author tells us, the practice started in the 1920s, and has been going strong since.

Whereas nannies are characterized by their accountability - the tyranny of references and the omnipresence of moms - babysitters have always occupied a weird place: they're generally unqualified, but given a lot of responsibility. And, in the popular imagination, hijinx ensue. From the brats of Beverly Cleary's Fifteen to the adventures In Babysitting or the misadventures of Honey I Blew Up the Baby a stint with the sitter is less a part of the world than an opportunity to step outside of the norm, whether this means, for kids, entering a teenage world (Dar Williams-style) or, for the sitter, raiding the fridge and sneaking in a boyfriend.

The reality, of course, is usually a lot more boring: make the mac and cheese, get the teeth brushed, watch TV for a few hours, get $40. So why is the babysitter an "ambivalent" figure in pop culture? Says Forman-Brunell,

Teen-age girls have been contesting traditional gender ideals in highly visible ways since the nineteen-twenties. The babysitter has conveniently served as a lightning rod for adults' uncertainties about what the limits of girls' autonomy and empowerment should be. These uncertainties have played out in the media: for instance, unease about the influence of feminism, the sexual revolution, and the counter culture on girls' behavior in the nineteen-sixties led to depictions of delirious babysitters who endangered children and slutty sitters who destabilized marriages in soft-core-porn novels. In the nineteen-seventies, maniacs in horror movies like "Halloween" and "When a Stranger Calls" sought vengeance on teen-age girls unwilling to curb their pursuit of personal independence. In the eighties, it was the babysitters themselves who turned murderous in made-for-TV movies, a fantasy created, perhaps, in response to girls' uninterrupted determination to achieve authority and self-sufficiency.

The author also notes that, in the early days, male babysitters were actually considered more desirable: dependable and level-headed, as opposed to flighty girls. Whereas nowadays, where a boy might be considered a desirable mentor to a wild male child, most parents are going to turn to a female neighbor as a safer choice. Does this indicate a shift in our attitudes towards young women, or merely a calcification of gender roles? Maybe both. And maybe also something less palatable. Nowadays, it seems like oftentimes the moms who employ a neighbor as a sitter is eager for a responsible older girl's influence on her daughters - as opposed to the quotidian care of a nanny, who presumably doesn't have the same wisdom to impart. I know as a teen nerd, I was in high demand in my neighborhood as a "good influence" - and the fact that I was always free on a Saturday night didn't hurt, either. I get that, especially in a world rife with questionable influences. But the contrast between the babysitter and the actual employees - even when some people tossed the terms around with optimistic interchangeability - sometimes felt weird. Says the author, The ultimate evidence of sitters' dissatisfaction over the past century has been the frequency with which girls faced with other options turned their backs on babysitting." But maybe the fact that there will always be some who do it is even more telling.

Ask an Academic: Babysitters as Bad Girls [New Yorker]
Related: Nannies: Friends, Family, Or Employees?

(Thanks to the reader who tipped us about Cooke's post on the Times of London's Alpha Mummy blog.) Cooke interviewed more than 4,000 girls for her new teen advice book The Rough Guide to Girl Stuff, which was released earlier this year in the U.K., and in the post she shares her tips for getting along with teenage girls that we wish our parents would have heard when we were growing up.

Her first tip is for parents to explain that the changes a girl's body goes through during puberty are normal, especially since this is when many women develop the idea that their bodies are gross. Advertising and older women make it seem like every hair must be plucked out and periods are either a "curse" or a sign of sexual maturity. Cooke advises:

Without being hippy-drippy or saying "this means you're a woman now" (which is a very confusing and creepy message for an 11 year old), just let her know that what she's going through is natural, the right time for her, and nothing to do with being grown up or ready to have sex. It's just what happens to everybody.

She also points out that while parents are freaked out about answering questions about pregnancy, STDs and drugs, those are not most girls' top concerns. Cooke says girls "are much more likely to ask 'Should I move, or what?' and 'How do I know he's the right one?'" Addressing a teen's questions about the emotional side of sex is likely to make her more receptive to listening to her parents concerns about her safety.

Plus, too many parents get fixated on their worries about their teen having sex and doing drugs and ignore the day-to-day concerns that are actually more stressful for most girls. Cooke writes:

At times, she may be much more fiercely gripped by fears and self consciousness about a bully, some bother in a group of friends, spots, falling in love, heartbreak, whether make-up is a good idea and what to wear. Don't dismiss these as "trivial" – they can have important consequences for her confidence and learning how to take life's knocks. Denying that they are real knocks won't help.

Cooke's basic strategy of talking to a child about everything and anything, and listening to what they are worried about, is good parenting advice whatever age or sex the child may be. It's refreshing to hear some healthy and realistic advice about talking to teens, especially when so many public service announcements make it seem like they're ticking time bombs just waiting to steal your prescription drugs and impregnate themselves at the first opportunity.

5 Steps To Understanding Teenage Girls [The Times of London]

Now that she's reached the ripe old age of 16, it's time for Miley to start making the transition into adult stardom and this issue of Glamour marks the fist time she's appearing on the cover of a women's magazine.

Glamour Editor-In-Chief Cindi Leive tries to make the case for why a minor is on the cover the mag. She writes in the editor's letter:

At 16, Miley Cyrus carries a billion-dollar franchise on her back. Her responsibilities are more adult than those of most adults I know.

That's why, even as a teen, she makes sense as a Glamour cover girl. And she's in good company: Brooke Shields and supermodel Niki Taylor both graced our cover at 15. Looking at those old issues, you wonder, Is she a child? An adult? Believe it or not, Britney Spears had some wise words on the subject when she was a Glamour teen cover star in 2001. "I'm in-between," she said. "I'd consider myself a girl-woman."

Leive goes on to explain that "America holds girl-women to pretty exacting standards," which is probably why in both photo shoots Miley doesn't show much skin. At the Teen Vogue cover shoot she sports natural makeup, a flower wreath, and a sundress while riding a white horse. For the Glamour photo shoot her eye makeup is heavier and darker. She wears a black evening gown as she smashes her guitar and a sparkly mini-dress while clutching a mic. Even though she looks like a woman in her 20s, there's no hint of adolescent sexuality that people freaked out about in the Vanity Fair photo shoot.

But, the way the mags handle the fact that Miley is dating the 20-year-old Justin Gaston is very different. In the Teen Vogue cover story, Gaston's is called her boyfriend, but his age is never mentioned. The magazine then weirdly brings up that she may not be that into him anyway:

Whether Miley herself is in love at this moment is still up in the air. "I believe in love at first sight," she says. "It just hasn't happened to me." The first time she saw Justin, "I walked right by him. Love doesn't come from attraction, but from somewhere deeper. [Justin] is my best friend." They're inseparable and lately have been writing and producing music together in her home studio.

In the Glamour cover story Miley isn't so coy, saying:

"The best thing that's happened to me in a long, long time has been meeting Justin [Gaston], because he's the most respectful and selfless person I've ever known."
GLAMOUR: Do you worry that your boyfriend is so much older?
MC: I don't feel like I'm doing anything wrong, and I'm ready for people to accept it. My fans already accept it — they just want me to be happy. And I haven't been that happy in a few years ... working so hard, moving to L.A. from Nashville, going through a bad breakup [with Nick Jonas]. I'm finally happy again, and I think that is a reflected in my music and my work. So honestly, I don't feel like there's anything to hide. And I love him so much I don't really care.

But in Glamour, Miley is quick to point out that she isn't a bad girl, like former squeaky-clean Disney stars Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears. She explains that she won't turn out like them because:

"I feel like the rules are the rules, you know? If you're not 21, you don't get into a bar. You don't go to clubs. In this business you see so many people who are told yes all the time, and if someone says no, they get all upset. They look to their publicist, manager or agent for approval, rather than their parents."

In Teen Vogue, Miley is a bit more rebellious:

The way she tells it, it seems Miley is more comfortable with the opposite sex. In fact, in the dating department, she's often happy to make the first move. "It doesn't bother me," she says. "I want to know who made up the rules, because the rules are lame." For a sixteen year old, that kind of confidence is rare-and inspiring.

She also tells Teen Vogue about watching Alice in Wonderland with Justin, which she is says is, "such a perverted movie," explaining, "It's all about Ecstacy. I swear! Look it up online." Lest the kids start thinking Miley has sampled these drugs herself, the mag has a disclaimer:

Actually, some associate the movie with trippy psychedelics, not Ecstasy, but Miley's claim is just proof of her refreshing naïveté — her biggest vices seem to be caffeine and sushi. And for the record: Miley has never taken Ecstasy. I asked. "Me? No," she answers. But that doesn't mean she's not wild. "I'm a crazy chiquita," she freely admits. "I'm nuts."

The one thing that both articles emphasize is that though she's only a teen, show business has made her into an adult already. From Teen Vogue:

There's her memoir, Miles to Go, released in the spring. "People are like, 'You're sixteen, why would you write your life story?" Miley says. "But in the business I'm in, I have lived a life that some people who are in their sixties haven't lived. I've gone through a lot and seen a lot. But I still have a lot to learn."

And in Glamour, Miley gives some insight into what it's like for "America's Most Famous Girl" to grow up:

"I was talking with my mom one day, and I said that I would not change the way I grew up for anything. But, yes, I am really overwhelmed. I went to the Oscars for the first time when I was 13. Then I had my first real relationship; it was hard-core and lasted two years [with Nick Jonas of The Jonas Brothers]. That's a life-changing experience most people don't have until they're 19 or 20. So my life has been on high speed. [My career] is a huge responsibility."

Miley Cyrus: Dream Girl [Teen Vogue]
Photos From Miley's Cover Shoot [Teen Vogue]
Miley Cyrus Cover-Shoot Photo Gallery [Glamour]
Miley Cyrus: America's Most Famous Girl Grows Up [Glamour]

Earlier: Miley Cyrus Is Not The Innocent Victim That Disney Makes Her Out To Be
Miley Cyrus: 15 & Topless In Vanity Fair

After lifting 210 lbs and taking home the gold at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India, Smith has been voted "Athlete of the Year" in her sport by the British Olympic Association, an award usually reserved for Olympians. Smith used to be a gymnast, but started weightlifting at the age of 12 when she was asked to make up the numbers for the weightlifting team for the London Youth Games. Since turning 13, she has set 98 British records and plans to compete in the 2012 Olympics in London, her home city. [Daily Mail, Telegraph]

Using a great model creates a mirror, or an aspirational figure: The great teen magazine covers of the past used models as representatives of the everygirl, smiling happily and jumping for joy — pretty, but somehow normal — so that the reader could project herself into that lifestyle, those clothes, that attitude. A girl should be able to recognize herself in the model. Because a model isn't supposed to be a role model. She's supposed to be a canvas on which an idea is painted. She's supposed to be someone a girl can look at and think, "I could be that girl." Past CosmoGirl! covers include those with questionable qualifications, such as Ashlee Simpson (post nose job!), Lindsay Lohan, Nicole Richie and Kristin Cavallari.

Obviously publishing a teen magazine is running a business. The bottom line is all about sales. But the "business" also happens to have a hand in shaping young womens' lives. I remember old issues of Seventeen and YM (and Sassy) vividly. Not the covers, mostly. But the invaluable things on the interior pages: Tales of real girls, with lives so different from my own, and yet with common bonds: period stain trauma! Cool eyeshadow! Unattainable crushes! Stupid babysitting jobs! Readers today may pick up a magazine because of the big name celeb on the cover, but surely it's the actual content they keep coming back for: Cosmogirl! has great makeup tips, love advice, fashion ideas, crush quizzes, insider info on choosing a college. Why wait for Vogue or some other adult publication to turn the tide? As the song says, kids are the future. Magazines are one of the tools girls equip themselves with in order to survive in this crazy world. How can Heidi Montag be of any help? Believing your product only has value when packaged in a celebrity wrapper is a tragedy, and actually underestimates the girls whose dollars you gladly take.

Memo Pad [WWD]