Teen Fans Blame...Rihanna

Who deserves the blame for Chris Brown’s alleged attack on Rihanna? Not Brown, say many teens. A recent survey showed 46% blame Rihanna, while 52% placed blame on both parties, the New York Times reports—and the level of support has parents worried. "She probly ran into a door and was too embarrassed so blamed it on Chris," wrote one teen. "She probably made him mad for him to react like that," said another.

Why the seemingly irrational response? Brown’s “posters are on the bedroom wall, the last face they see before they sleep,” said a teen mag editor, explaining that it’s hard for many to accept that the young star who once appeared alongside Sesame Street’s Elmo would abuse someone. Others, like the author of a book on hip-hop, blame it on the culture: “This is the air that hip-hop breathes.”