Is President Barbie A Feminist Ideal?

Two weeks ago, Mike wrote about the latest from Mattel’s Barbie collection: Computer Engineering Barbie. He lamented, rightfully so, the head-to-toe pink accessories, including a hot pink laptop. (Because, let’s be honest, girls can only write in C++ with a fuchsia computer).
Today, I read that the White House Project, who had teamed up with Mattel in 2000 [...]

Would Warnings on Photoshopped Ads Fight Anorexia?

A recommendation from the UK’s Royal College of Psychiatrists could lead to warning labels being attached to photoshopped pictures of models. The college cited research evidence that suggests the media’s role in the existence of eating disorders in girls. The group also called for a ban on underweight models in London’s fashion week.
The argument that [...]

Computer Engineer Barbie

Well, I guess everyone can stop worrying about the stereotype of women not being as proficient as men with computer technology and games.  There can’t be any more stereotyping since Mattel has now come out with its “Computer Engineer Barbie,” the 125th version.  It’s hard to believe, but, supposedly, the Barbie designers worked with the [...]

Feminist Rebuttal to Sexist Dodge Commercial

As many of you know by now, this year’s Super Bowl featured an onslaught of sexist commercials, apparently geared towards men who feel ‘emasculated’ by the women in their lives. (For more on the word ‘emasculated,’ check out Mike’s previous post). One of the offenders was this Dodge commercial…”Man’s Last Stand,” which features a list [...]

“Movies with Positive Role Models for Girls”

I saw an article in today’s Washington Post about the movie The Princess and the Frog.  It included a list of five movies that Lyn Mikel Brown, author of “Packaging Girlhood: Rescuing Our Daughters from Marketers’ Schemes,” considered to be “positive role models for girls.”  Here is the list, along with short descriptions.  I’ve seen [...]

NBA Players Apologize for Nude Photos on the Internet

The San Antonio Spurs’ George Hill became the second NBA player within a month to apologize for nude pictures of him that popped up on the internet.  Previously, the Portland Trailblazers’ Greg Oden apologized for nude photos of him that he had sent to his girlfriend but got onto the internet.  Here is what Hill [...]

Chuck Klosterman’s Hypthetical Question About Monogamy

I just finished reading the fourth book by pop-culture writer Chuck Klosterman, titled “Chuck Klosterman IV: A Decade of Curious People and Dangerous Ideas”  (published in 2006).  The book is mostly a collection of previously released articles that were published in SPIN and Esquire, but he adds a new introduction and footnotes to each article.  [...]

Feminist Culture in NYC

One of the things I’m loving the most about living in NYC is the abundance of creative and progressive-minded options for art and culture. For instance, I live in Brooklyn, about 3 blocks from the Brooklyn Museum, which contains the Sackler Center for Feminist Art. It’s wonderful to know that I’m a short walk from [...]

Women and Computer Games

Last week, I wrote about a survey that had asked nearly 1,000 middle school students to rate the way they used cellphones.  The result was that both the girls and boys used their cellphones to talk and text, but, the boys, in addition to talking and texting, also used the phones to “play games, share [...]

Rush Limbaugh ‘loves the women’s movement’

Rush Limbaugh,  no friend to progressive thought, feminism, or intellectual discussion, told Fox News earlier today that he is “a huge supporter of women.” Limbaugh was being questioned about his role in judging the Miss America pageant, and whether or not it was “appropriate,” given the fact that he does not have a reputation of [...]