Move over, model. There’s a new face of beauty in town and it’s called — Barbie.
The iconic toy doll is set to pose for the cover feature of the Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary Swimsuit edition, joining the company of such legendary faces as Heidi Klum and Christie Brinkley, Reuters reported.
She’ll don the same black-and-white striped swimsuit that she wore in 1959 during her doll debut.
“Barbie is a legend in her own right, with more than 150 careers and a brand valued at $3 billion,” said Mattel spokeswoman Michelle Chidoni, in Reuters. “She is in great company with the other legends, such as [actress-models] Heidi Klum and Christie Brinkley, to name a few.”
Likely — no retouching needed, either.
The cover is set for unveiling on Thursday night’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” And the magazine itself will go on sale beginning next Tuesday, Reuters reported.
The campaign — with a hashtag of #Unapologetic — is rallying around the mantra, “the doll that started it all.” But not all see the Barbie cover feature as a positive thing for girls.
“Our girls are only so young for such a very short time and taking one of her toys and putting it alongside sexualized and dehumanized images of women to fall under the male gaze is wrong on so many levels,” wrote Eve Vawter, the editor of the blog Mommyish, as reported by Reuters. “Barbie is no longer just a doll. She is a sex doll.”
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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