In 2005, Teen People featured a story about Brittany Harper, a plus-sized 20-year-old who has competed in and won several beauty pageants against average-sized girls in North Carolina. Harper, who, also won the USA Eastern Miss title, stated that she began entering the pageants because she was shy and self-conscious, but now she's happy with her body. "I think maybe seeing someone like me in a magazine makes you realize that you don't have to be skinny to be pretty," she said. "People see skinny girls in magazines and they think that's what normal is when it's not the case."1
Queen Latifah and Glamour
In May 2004, Glamour Magazine went against form by featuring Queen Latifah on the cover. The issue outsold the May 2003 cover which presented slender actresses Halle Berry and Rebecca Romijn. The following are comments are by Queen Latifah from the interview in the magazine.
I actually had a guy tell me yesterday, “You know what? You really, really inspire a lot of young women.” And for a guy to come up to you and say that, it just shows that it doesn’t just affect women. It affects the fathers and the brothers that are around these women, and care about them and want them to have self-esteem and confidence in the right things.
Just me being, you know my size and being on TV or being in a movie and succeeding is like, hey, if she can do it, I can do it. I can feel good about myself, because she feels good about herself. Sometimes you need that. I needed it growing up. I didn’t get it too often, because there weren’t a lot of people who looked like me, but luckily my mom and other friends, people along the way gave me that encouragement.
But you know, girls really need that because the images that they have to fight with are even worse than what I had to fight with growing up. Everybody is necking on TV and their stomachs are flat, and if you don’t come with that natural genetic tendency, then you’ve got to work for it, and you might not get educated on how to eat properly, or maybe your family can’t afford it or don’t even really know how to feed you in a healthy way. People don’t really consider that when they are putting all of these images out there.2
Kate Winslet and GQ
In 2003, a February cover of British GQ caused backlash for the digital alterations to the cover photo of Kate Winslet. The photo was enhanced to make the actress appear taller and slimmer. Among the people who brought the most attention to it was Winslet herself. Winslet, often noted for defending the appearance of women who do not comply with the ultra-thin model archetype, complained over the changes. "I don't want people to think I was a hypocrite and had suddenly gone and lost 14 kilos which is something I would never do, and more importantly don't want to look like that. They made my legs look quite a bit thinner. They also made me look about six feet tall, which I'm not, I'm 5’ 6”, and you know I have got muscly legs, me and my sisters and my mum are quite proud of our muscly, strong legs and hips and all the rest of it.”3
Actress Jaime Leigh Curtis, who is outspoken on the subject body image (in 2003 she did a photo story for More magazine on the process of how magazines make celebrities look perfect), commented on how GQ modified Winslet’s image. “The worst thing is this. We know that’s not her. We know that they altered it, but then what did they write in the ad line? That’s what’s pervasive and horrible.” (The GQ ad line she refers to reads – ‘Kate Winslet looks sexier than ever: Slim, elegant and self consciously flirty’). Jaime Leigh Curtis adds “So what the editors are saying is the reason Kate Winslet looks sexier than ever is because she’s slim. She is someone who has a beautiful body, a very real woman’s body. So the crazy thing is the message that you’re only sexier than ever if you’re slim. That’s insane.”4
Activity
Ask students to select and compare magazines that are aimed at the teen market. Ask students to deconstruct the messaging of their magazines by answering the questions:
Do the magazines you selected use photos of people who realistically represent the general public?
- Do they use photos of models or do they use photos of real people? If they use photos of real people what parts of the magazine can they be found:
° The cover?
° Advertisements?
° Beauty/Style Sections?
° Content? (photos that accompany the articles)
- Can any implications be made if the photos in the magazine articles are of average people while the photos in advertisements are models?
- What is the main message of the magazine?
- Does the magazine promote independence, or does it reinforce the idea that young people should be more concerned with looks, relationships and the approval of others?
- Do the physical ideals represented in this magazine reflect reality? Who is not represented here?
- Do the topics explored in this magazine reflect the real concerns of young people?
- Teachers might ask students to create a profile of a ‘typical ‘young person, based on the content of this magazine. Is this an accurate profile of someone in real life?
1The Associated Press, "Fashion magazines showing more body types" USA Today, August 9, 2005 http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2005-08-09-magazines-real-curves_x.htm
2 Dennis Hensley, "Long Live the Queen" Glamour Magazine, May 1, 2004 http://www.dennishensley.com/Latifah.htm
3Agencies, "Kate Winslet has said she is happy with her fuller figure after a magazine altered photos to make her look thinner." The Age, February 13, 2003 http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/02/13/1044927714987.html
4 CBS Worldwide Inc, "Re-modeling for Perfection" CBS News, April 30, 2003 http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/07/29/48hours/main565721.shtml
