Isn’t She Special?
When I was a little girl, I wanted a Barbie. We all did. She was whitpretty, andshe had long, straight blonde hair. At that age, I didn’t think about who Barbie represented. All the dolls were white or pink. I just wanted one. They weren’t cheap either. And we didn’t want a generic Barbie; we wanted the real deal.
Stylish Barbie
Barbie was the epitome of class, beauty, and wealth. Barbie was stylish in her pink Cadillac and flawless make-up and could be anything she wanted to be with any bit of a girl’s imagination. She had elegant dresses, shoes, and pocketbooks. She even had an incredible boyfriend, Ken. Even today, I’m sure everyone knows what it means to have a Barbie or what it means when you say she looks like a Barbie.
Every summer, I visit a family for a couple of weeks. They opened their home through a church program so that little Black kids could experience a summer in the country. The intent was a positive, educational and fun experience. After all, White kids were not coming to stay in our home during the projects.
The Johnsons, my host family, had three daughters and a couple of sons around my age. They also had a separate playroom with many Barbies, and a Barbie doll house, with all the furniture fixing and clothing changes. We’d play with Barbie for hours. I loved that room. Most summers, I’d visit the Johnsons until I was an older teen girl no longer interested in cultural exchange programs.
But, years later, after my son was around two years old, I visited Mrs. Johnson. Mr. Johnson was gone. They divorced years earlier, and just one daughter, Kathy, was home. But the playroom where those Barbies lived was still there.
A Brief History
Mattel, the second-largest toy manufacturing company, founded in 1945, made a fortune on Barbie. She made her debut in 1959, becoming the company’s best-selling toy. Sales of Barbie-related merchandise have topped billions. And, with all the revampings of Barbie, all her accessories, and her crew, the dough keeps rollin’.
Driving the Toy Business
It wasn’t long before Barbie was up under thousands of Christmas trees across America. She became a worldwide sensation, ending up in the eager arms of girls as far away as Sudan. Later, Barbie had a bunch of movies. Until this day, Barbie is making bank. This chick was Hot! Hot! Hot! And she has made Mattel Rich! Rich! Rich.
Do I Measure Up?
Barbie represented what it meant to be beautiful. It shaped an image of how women’s bodies should look. It showed girls that they had options and were not destined to stay homemakers.
Barbie was a “free” woman who could do whatever and be who she wanted. She was single and unencumbered by outdated norms of what girls could aspire to. But she also came in one flavor. She was White, skinny, ahadith long blonde hair and big breasts. Ok, so over the years, I got breasts. But they were never as hard or pointy without nipples as hers. Barbie was everything I wasn’t.
But Barbie had a race problem.
Enter the Black Barbie. Black Barbie first hit the shelves in 1980 – but with white features dyed different shades of Brown. Later, her image was updated to reflect various colors, hair textures, aelementsres. That was fixed. Then Barbie had “Ethnic,” “Religious,” and “Cultural-Inclusion” problems. Oh No! Enter;
Religious Problems.
Barbie had Body-Image issues.
Barbie had self-esteem issues.
And now Barbie is back!
“Ear of the President” Barbie. Kellyanne Conway, Counselor to Trump.
And, It Doesn’t End There.
We’ve got gun-totting, Barbie. Flex and stretch Barbie, Criminal Barbie, and Drag Queen Barbie. Best of all, Russian Spy Barbie. Think she had something to do with the hacked 2016 Election?
Part Two
What’s going on in my world?
My usual routine is to get up early, put on my coffee, grab one of my protein bars, and head to the media room to watch the news. I check in with Youtube first. With their sarcastic monologues, Trevor Noah, Seth Meyers, and Stephen Colbert help the word of the day go down easier. I know we’re in trouble when those guys aren’t funny. When the Mueller Investigation won in full swing, I added MSNBC, CNN, etc. I tried to watch Fox just for a balanced perspective, but I couldn’t handle it that early in my day. If I had one, I’d have sat Russian Spy Barbie beside the IV.
How do we measure change?
I paid attention to the display of Baries anchoring the news. The majority of anchors are still white men. Almost all of the guests and experts are white men. I’m not just talking about mainstream media shows; I’m talking about most of them. This morning was no different. Most of the female anchors are white.
But, even more, disturbing is 90 percent of these women are sporting blond hair. And the FoxNews women look like cloned Megyn Kelly. Barbie Hair-Tastic COLOR and WASH HAIR SALON ONLY $299.99. With $14.96 Shipping. Now, every hairdresser has run out of other hair colors except blond, or Barbie has become the new face of “Media America.”
Blonde Hair
One morning I watched one blonde female anchor on MSNB cut away to another blond news reporter in the field. It happened so fast; at first, I thought it was the same woman; whoa! I played it back a few times. How did they pull that off, I wondered? She was in the studio introducing herself. And, yep, it looked like the same woman. Finally, Clone-Barbie was on TV.
What happened to Diversity?
I was on a roll and decided to search for other women anchoring or reporting in the field. And, you got it, they were White women in tight dresses with Blond hair. Please take a look for yourself, and then tell me I’m mistaken. Why are most women giving us our news White in form-fitting blue or red dresses and sportin’ Blond hair? ADo I imagine things? Am I making a big deal out of nothing? Or has the ghost of Barbie returned?
Breaking News Barbie!
And the list goes on and on.
- Melissa Bell
- Pamela Brown
- Alexandra Field
- Jamie Gangel
- Randi Kaye
- Erin McLaughlin
- Sara Murray
- Collette Richards
- Sunlen Serfaty
- Jessica Schneider
- Clarissa Ward
- Vanessa Yurkevich
- Rachel Cole – Anchor/Reporter
- Trisha Hendricks – Anchor/Reporter
- Krystle Henderson – Meteorologist/Reporter
- Nicole Zymek – Reporter
Don’t Believe Me?
Check it out for yourself.
The Barbie Brigade.
I’m not saying all female anchors are Barbie. But, damn! They sure look like one, and if you are a young woman who wants to be a news anchor or strive to be a media professional, go to any store and buy News Anchor Barbie or even your Mother’s old Barbie and take a lesson or two. Fix yourself up because that’s who’s gettin’ paid.
What if News outlets followed Mattel’s Lead and “integrated” their staff?
In honor of International Women’s Day, seventeen modern-day and “the she-hero.”
I wonder about the pressure put on these women to look like Barbies. It’s not easy to be a journalist firsthand. And, so that you don’t think I’m unaware of all the women who’ve broken into the Media, here are some recent statistics. Regarding women on broadcast networks, 66% are White, 20% are Black, 6% are Latino, 7% are Asian, and 12% fall into the “other” category.
But, hey folks you have to admit, “Original” Barbie still rules supreme.
Is the return of Barbie a problem? Perhaps. It’s not about the way Barbie looks. It’s how an idea meant to empower little girls to turn out to be a sanitized “Lili” doll. “Meet Lilli, the High-end German Call Girl Who Became America’s Iconic Barbie Doll”
It turns out our Barbie was a toy for the German boys. It’s hilarious, but you can read more about her here.
Have they banned the Barbie collection?
I spoke to my gym coach and told her about the return of Barbie, and she groaned. She’s a young White woman—small in shape but without blonde hair.
All joking aside and taking into consideration “The Mueller Report.” “Going to Jail Barbie.” I might have to buy this one.