When I saw the news that Barbie would be on this year's Sports Illustrated swimsuit magazine cover, and that it wasn't a joke, my brain short circuited with the absurdity of it, to the point where I could barely put words to my feelings. Thankfully, Stephen Colbert's comedy articulates the many, many things that are wrong with having a children's toy (marketed to girls) on the cover of a mainstream sports magazine's annual portfolio of barely clothed women models in seductive poses (marketed to men and boys).
Of course, he does it by satirically praising the move from a sexist, hetero-normative point a view that sharpens the clarity on how harmful and insidious this use of Barbie may be (as well as the worldview that justifies and condones it). I like the idea of using this humorous introduction to the issue with high school or college media studies students because it predicts and disarms many of the sexist rationales for justifying Barbie's appearance on the SI swimsuit issue cover.
"Empowerment. Because there's nothing more empowering to a model than being replaced by a piece of plastic... In some ways she's the perfect model...She doesn't blink. She doesn't move. She's too busy being empowered to talk."
I think it's especially challenging to get people to share and develop their opinions in dialogue across genders, sexualities, and interest groups with issues like this. But making your learning space safe for debate and growth is well worth the risks, trials and errors. Maybe a satirical frame can help. Some ideas for using this clip after the jump.
