Mac help! Why won't CDs insert and stay put?

can you open it using screwdrivers or allen keys ?
something may be stuck inside
is the CD correctly placed in the drive

According to the apple.com help site, for a CD drive that won’t accept a disk:
1. Be sure to check your disc to make sure it is flat. You can check this by putting the disc upside-down on a flat surface. If the disc is bowed up on any side or in the center, do not use the disc as it may get stuck in the drive.
2. Make sure you are inserting the disc far enough for the drive mechanism to activate. Discs must be inserted at least three-quarters of the way into the drive, and often nearly all the way in, before the drive will pull them in.
3. Make sure the disc is completely inserted in the drive. The disc-insert cycle runs the motor for about 6 seconds. If, for whatever reason, a disc is not completely inserted, the drive will reverse and push the disc back out of the drive.
4. Since the entry slot can be tight at first, give the drive 1 or 2 seconds to accept the disc and pull it in on its own. If the drive struggles with injecting discs or injects them part-way then stops, inserting a disc multiple times should correct the issue.
5. Reset the Power Manager (PMU) or System Management Controller (SMC).
6. Do not use discs that have anything attached to them or dangling from them (such as “sweeper” or cleaning discs).
7. If the drive repeatedly does not insert media fully, or accept media at all, please contact Apple, contact an Apple-Authorized Service Provider, or make an appointment with an Apple Retail Store for additional troubleshooting, evaluation, or service.

Have you tried more than one disc? It could be a damaged disk or corrupted in a way that the computer can’t recognize it. Have you tried booting from the CD/DVD that came with your Mac? Restart, shove the Apple CD/DVD in, hold doen the C key until the Apple logo appears.

Does it enter all the way in, read the disk, then spit it out again? If this is happening then the software is rejecting the disk (probably because it can’t read the format).

If the disk isn’t being read then it’s getting stuck in the drive. Take it to an apple store and get it serviced or replace the drive.

what kind of media is it? I have purchased some CDs that won’t play on my iMac due to some fancy copy protection. I used an external disk drive to copy it rather than the apple super drive. if it is an audio disk google it, they may have some broken drm and maybe the record company has a work around for you. if it is everything, check your keyboard, maybe eject is stuck.

Thank you so much for these answers!

So here’s what happened! The CD finally stayed in! But, I had to keep my finger over the CD to stop it from ejecting to get it to catch, and I was able to burn discs perfectly after that.
I’m going to take it in to Apple and get it checked out though, it really should catch without me forcing it to.
There must be something up with the hardware. Plus, my poor Mac is due for a check-up :)
much lurve!

There is a problem with the drive mechanism. More than likely you’ll need to replace the drive.

It’s haunted. GET OUT!!!