Skinny Model debate hits USA TODAY

Yoo hooo...

Anyone happen to see the FRONT PAGE of USA Today today?  There's an article called "Do Thin Models Warp Girls' Body Image?" by Nanci Hellmich that details the whole skinny model debate and quotes experts from both sides of the argument... Including me!

Wait, there are two sides to this argument, you ask?  I know, amazing to think that... But YES.  There are the critics like yours truly who argue that these images in pop culture DO have an effect on young women.  There are tons of academic studies at this point that bear that out...and all you really have to do is talk to any young woman on the street to get an idea of how she feels about her body. It doesn't take much digging to get tease out feelings of dissatisfaction, comparison etc....

Then there are the fashion insiders, who toe a party line that always has themes like these running through it:

• We need skinny models so the clothes hang better
• It's just fashion, it doesn't really affect anyone
• Girls know the difference between reality and fantasy

And wouldn't ya know it ALL OF THOSE ideas were expressed by the fashionistas interviewed for the article.

Hope you'll click through and read the piece.. then post your comments here!

Comments

[Jack]

that model(above),looks too thin.

[Feminism & Lipgloss]

Fact: I am a teenage girl.
Fact: I sometimes have low self-esteem.
Fact: It's hard to find clothes that fit you if you're not a model.
Fact: I have gorgeous friends who complain about how fat they are.
Fact: Girls in my school (who are perfectly fine) go to dieting classes.
Fact: You say the media has nothing to do with this?

[Audrey]

Would LOVE to hear more, in your own words, about HOW you think the media and hype have contributed to your own on/off low self esteem, or what the girls in your classes say.

I mean, do you hear people actually comparing themselves to media images? Or do you think it's more of a subconscious thing?

I think it's really valuable that other readers of this blog hear from young women in their own voices about these effects and how they're dealing with them. So if you've got 5 minutes Feminism and Lipgloss.... rant on!

[sunnyday]

Hi there, Audrey!

I discovered your blog just now after reading a bit about your interview on being a teen model. This sure is a breath of fresh air given all that material that's out there about women, beauty and fashion! I've read only a couple of posts on your blog, and then happened to see the photo of the skinny model. Geez. I sure hope attitudes about body image change soon; I posted something on my blog recently about the banning of skinny models at Madrid Fashion Week.

Keep up the good work and I hope there are more of you out there!

Wishing you the best --

Sunny