Hair today, gone tomorrow: the politics of reality TV makeovers
ANTM's Allison Harvard before and after her makeover
A woman’s hair is said to be her crowning glory, her beauty. For young women, hair is not only about beauty but individuality, style, and personality. But what happens when a woman is forced to drastically change her hair style with extreme color, hair extensions, or the ultimate “big chop”? Despite the real video girl anthem by India.Arie, many reality TV shows that offer to give a girl her dreams most often give makeovers as a way to “improve” and help define their contestants.
I love pop culture and must confess that every week my DVR is set up to record literally ten reality TV shows–they make good research material! And though each show is full of drama and has the same formula to advertise and sell products through the commercials or product placement, I’m always most interested in the makeover and transformation episode on shows like America’s Next Top Model and, most recently, BET’s Born to Dance. Rivaled only by the eliminations, the hair makeover transformations evoke real, powerful emotions from the contestants. Continue reading
“America’s Next Top Model” winner wants you to love your body
Whitney Thompson (right) and Chenese Lewis take it all off to promote Love Your Body Day.
But “ANTM”‘s first plus-size winner, Whitney Thompson, is trying to bring body acceptance to the masses as the face—and, duh, body—of the 5th Annual Hollywood National Organization for Women (NOW) Love Your Body Day.
Whitney had no problem stripping down for a good cause, joining Love Your Body Day founder and Hollywood NOW president Chenese Lewis in promo shots for the event. NOW launched the Love Your Body campaign in September 1998, and this year’s festivities take place October 22nd through 24th.
While Whitney will fulfill her hosting duties in Hollywood, NOW encourages women around the country to “say ‘no’ to twisted beauty standards and hazardous advertisements by holding rallies, pickets, house parties, classroom discussions and more.” Who could say no to a body-positive house party? Continue reading
Proenza Schouler and “Top Model” get waist-ed
Proenza Schouler's new ad campaign features a model who seems to have misplaced her waist.
Obviously, this trend isn’t a new one (ever heard of a corset?), but recent media hype has drawn a lot of attention to the trait.
If you own a TV and have ever found yourself “accidentally” surfing the CW network (Yeah, I DVR “Gossip Girl.” So?!), you’ve probably seen promo ads for the upcoming season of “America’s Next Top Model.”
While it’s never exactly been a stellar representation of realistic beauty (a handful of plus-size girls and a season’s worth of petite ones does not a diverse show make), “Top Model” may have finally gone too far.
In the video below, cycle 15 contestant Ann shows off her unbelievably itty-bitty waist (J. Alexander’s hands successfully touch when wrapped around it). It’s surprising Tyra Banks doesn’t have to wipe the drool off her chin, given the awe-struck expression on her face.
The commercial is only 21 seconds long, but it does a pretty efficient job of planting the seeds of some seriously distorted beauty ideals. Does 6’2″ Ann really have that miniature middle naturally? Maybe. But it’s still disconcerting to see that “regular-thin” is no longer the modeling world’s gold standard. The hosts’ mesmerized gazes pretty clearly convey that to get ahead, it helps to have almost unfeasible body parts. Great. Continue reading