Dolly model finalist, Elodie Russell, 14
This month at Melbourne Westfield Fountain Gate, Elodie Russell beat 500 other teens to be named Victorian state finalist in the new Dolly Model Search.
The Geelong student and 500 other girls competed in the model search resurrected after 10 years.
Elodie is 14. But girls as young as 13 can enter. The winner will receive a modelling contract, fashion shoot and cover shoot for Dolly, and be a “Dolly ambassador.”
The would-be models, many just in high school, are told they can be the next Miranda Kerr. The month’s Dolly has the Victoria’s Secret model in a red dress with words and arrow: ‘This could be you!’
Kerr is touted as an “inspiration” for young girls. (I’m not sure it’s just girls who find online images of Kerr semi-naked inspiring).
I asked editor Tiffany Dunk why the original search was shut down. She said: “I understand it was over concerns about negative body imaging”.
Dunk is right. Former Dolly boss Mia Freedman told me she was responsible to putting an end to the competition back in 2002:
“One of the first things I did when I became Editor In Chief of Dolly was to axe the Dolly Model Contest. At the time I felt strongly it was a negative thing for the readers and a negative thing for the Dolly brand.
I wanted the magazine to make a strong stand against the idea of valuing teenage girls purely for the way they look. Because no matter how you try to dress it up, the modelling industry is 100% based on external appearance, something few girls can ever change about themselves no matter how much they torture themselves. Girls who are able to model are a tiny tiny minority who were simply born with certain genetics.
No matter how you dress it up to be about ‘inspiration’, modelling is simply a beauty contest. And I’ve always felt – as a mother, a woman and an editor – that this was the wrong message to send to young girls when they are at their most vulnerable. Aren’t there better things for 13 and 14 year old girls to aspire to?
Anais Gallagher, 11
So why revive the model search when things are even worse now? In an age of rampant body hatred and eating disorders, the timing seems off. In a video of the scouting session in Sydney, girls are asked why Kerr is an inspiration. “She’s got a great body!” is one of a number of similar responses.
Which shows us, no matter how many times words like “role model” and “inspiration” are thrown around, it’s still all about bodies. Even now girls will be comparing themselves to Elodie and thinking they are just not good enough.
Body image and eating disorder specialists I spoke to are concerned about the ability of a 13- year-old to navigate the world of modelling. Why is Dolly including such young girls when globally there is a move away from younger models?
In 2005 there was a storm over having a 12-year-old as the face of Gold Coast Fashion Week. Three years later Australian Fashion Week organisers bowed to pressure and dropped a 14- year-year-old Polish girl as the face of the event.
Australia’s Body Image Code of Conduct recommends only using those over 16 to model adult clothes or work or model in fashion shows targeting an adult audience.
The idea that 13 or 14 is too young to model is often met with “But Miranda Kerr started at that age and she’s doing great!”
But how many girls fell by the wayside, how many were damaged due to the harmful consequences of internalizing the message that their value as a person is in how others view and judge their bodies?
The revamped comp has a special spin. “Become a Model Citizen”. Dolly wants “more than a pretty face”, it wants a “great role model for Dolly readers.” It wants girls to “Have fun, don’t let looks rule your life!” (at the same time Chadwick’s judge lists ‘looks” first in what he’s seeking).
Dolly has enlisted the help of The Butterfly Foundation. They’ve prepared “an awesome body image tip sheet” and will also conduct a workshop with finalists. Dolly also says it will have strict rules on how its winner can be used.
But while I support Butterfly’s goals, I’m not sure telling yourself to be beautiful on the inside and the rest is enough to deal with a message dominant in the modelling and fashion industries that you have to be hot to matter. As Mia Freedman says “The Butterfly Foundation may talk about being ‘beautiful on the inside’ and I’m sure their intentions are good but the modelling and fashion industries don’t give a hoot about your insides. You don’t have to be healthy or kind or smart to be a model. You just have to conform to some pre-ordained, impossible standards set by the modelling industry.”
Thrusting any girl into an industry where they are taught that what matters most is that they fit some cookie-cutter mould of what women should look like, is troubling.
Jess Hart, Dolly’s 1998 model search winner, posed with Jen Hawkins on a 2010 Grazia cover last year headed: “Jen & Jess: how to get their $5M bodies!”
Hart told Grazia she gets “super strict about her diet” prior to a photoshoot. The Victoria’s Secret models – including Alessandra Ambrosio who was 12 weeks pregnant during the most recent catwalk show – admit to taking drastic measures before their Victoria’s Secret lingerie shoots and parades, including liquid diets and extreme exercise regimes.
It is difficult to see how a Dolly Model search winner will deviate from the standard beauty ideal.
It would be one thing to pluck a girl out of a crowd and offer her a contract. But Dolly (with the apparent support of Butterfly) is enabling competition between teen girls on the basis (primarily) of physical appearance. As Mia Freedman wonders: “Why would anyone want to send the message to girls that they should compete and be judged on the way they look? Surely they get that message more than enough already.”
Dunk says readers want a “relatable teen role model.” “We have endless research that girls respond best to seeing “someone like me” in the media,” she told me.
But couldn’t Dolly give readers a great role model outside a competitive appearance-focussed event in which girls are compared and judged and learn life is just one big beauty pageant?
What about a role model who is an awesome athlete, or musician, or campaigner against violence against women? A teen anti-bullying ‘hero’ writing advice columns – ‘someone like me’ doing amazing things in the world.
It seems to me girls who are truly role models for other girls would be the least likely to enter, because their goals in life are beyond physical appearance. So the true role models may never be discovered.
Rather than introduce them to an industry which glorifies the cult of celebrity and fashion – and contributes to body image despair – why not foster more meaningful values and aspirations in girls? Now that would be inspiring
Melinda Tankard Reist is a Canberra author, speaker, media commentator, blogger and advocate for women and girls. She is well known for her work on the objectification of women and sexualisation of girls and working to address violence against women. You can find her website here and follow her on Twitter here.
This is an expanded version of a piece published on the weekend in the Sunday Herald Sun (reprinted on Melinda’s blog)
Read Mia Freedman’s modelling manifesto for wannabe models and their parents here
What do you think? Modelling for 13 year olds – can it ever be healthy?
Comments
57 Comments so far
I think that the 14+ people are okay, just not a little ten year old!
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The root cause of the problem is that many teenage girls are infatuated with themselves. If you teach your kids from an early age that the universe is incomprehensibly bigger than them, their friends, mum and dad, even Lady Gaga, then you’ll have a much easier time bringing them back to earth when they start loving themselves too much.
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I think body image is just as important as health … i think the cover girl contest is a great idea. A healthy weight to aspire to instead of telling girls ‘they are just big boned’ or its just ‘puppy fat’ and you’ll grow out of it… nearly half of all Australians are obese, I’m even shocked at how fat the woman in the latest Kmart TV ad is… all this bullshit about caring about peoples feelings and not wanting to upset them is it really more important that saving their lives? I don’t remember many girls being ‘fat’ when i was growing up, the largest girl at my school in the 80′s was a size 12 or 14… bring back role models
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I grew up reading Dolly and Girlfriend in the 90′s and early 00′s. I remember the cover-girl competitions, the should I/shouldn’t I internal debate as to whether I would enter, not feeling adequate compared to the models and stories contained therein. Of course, my Mum pretty much shot the idea down, unimpressed with both the concept and target market of the competition. Her wisdom has carried on; teenage girls should not be dressed up as adults or pinned up based on appearance. What message are we sending? Beauty is a legitimate aspiration? Please, beauty is genetics and subjective. The media projection of beauty is not steeped in reality; it’s hard enough navigating the lipstick, Victoria Secret, Photoshopped saturated market as an adult. What chance do the thirteen year olds of Australia have if one of their magazines makes it trendy?
When Mia disposed of the competition in 2002, I felt better about being a brain with personality, opposed to a willowy blonde (probably also with personality). In 2012, I fear for the collective self-esteem of female teenagedom.
Anything to make a quick buck, eh?
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Whats the problem with you guys..?
All you are doing is looking at the bad points of the modelling industry..! The Australia industry is actually a really safe industry! How do I know.. Cos, I did the girlfriend one a few years back!
Sure, I was only a runner up but I have learnt sooo much! It allowed me to step out of my comfort zone, taught me how to be professional in the work focus and it also open up my eyes to the Arts in Australia.
Sure, Miranda Kerr is bless but she also works hard! I remember reading an article on how she works out and how much research she has done on how to get the perfect diet! She isn’t slacking off! Plus she is a business women. Sure to the camera she acts like she is this sweet, innocent woman but that how smart she is work out how to play her market!
Of course girls who don’t win will be upset, I understand that! I was there too! But you shouldn’t be jealous but should praising someone who is blessed that way. Maybe your daughter isnt blessed with beauty but she could be blessed with something else like writing, or science!!
You really need to re think about what your saying cos its mostly jealously !!
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I am a 13 year old model and I know what I have goten myself into. Models are encouraged to look healthy and if you are pretty enough then it’s worth a go. It may be wrong but no matter what people say everyone judges one another by their looks. It’s the way the world is and you can’t change that.
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I remember doing work experience at Dolly in the late 90′s… one of our jobs was to go through the box of entrants and dispose of the unappealling applications. I remember feeling very uneasy judging my peers based on a snapshot…
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This is great! Keep speaking and writing, because sooner or later people will start to realise this is wrong! Keep up the good work
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What about the pressure of being academic,which some children are not .Are we going to ban that too.As long as it’s tasteful and they are not sexualising the teenagers,I can’t understand the anger towards this .
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I LOVE that Mia and her team are fighting hard and writting as many articles as possible about the pressure of body image.
Its SO inspiring that they never give up and they will keep fighting for what is right for peoples health and wellbeing.
I find it unhumaine that most editors put girls/womens health & lives at danger to sell a magazine.
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If this competition is also about girls seeing girls just like them in the magazine – then where are the African, Asian, Indian or European looking girls? (By the way – totally agree with the article, this competition should not happen and if it does, it should be about a girl’s achievements, not her looks).
Inevitably the state and eventual winner are always willowy blondes – and I’m not saying they shouldn’t be represented, yet where is the diversity?
Why are non-caucasions constantly invisible in these magazines? As we all recognise, early teens are vulnerable to the messages peddled in our media and to compound this with not only the unattainable images of tall and thin – we make so many girls invisible in this country that has so much amazing diversity.
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Is anyone else finding all this model bashing and body image promotion on Mamamia to be becoming more over the top and heavy handed as each day passes? Not to mention hypocritical given the multitude of celebrity gawking pieces. I, for one, remember the 80s Dolly Days pre-Mia and I LOOOVED the model search. I never thought negatively about my own body because of it. I’m sure I’m not the only one.
I used to really love this site and was an engaged reader and commenter but after taking a month break from the site, I’m finding it hard to return. it just seems to be the same stories over and over: judgmental and badly-written opinion pieces designed simply to elicit page hits (aka “generate discussion”), mummy wars, breastfeeding, vaccinations, body image, model bashing, juice cleansing peddling, sycophantic staff love, etc. It’s all becoming rather boring.
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Personally, I find it fantastic to come here and read all the stuff you say you’re sick of. I love the different voices and opinions and I think it’s refreshing to read about issues I care about.
Different strokes for different folks.
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I don’t see it as ‘model-bashing’ as you say. I see it as a reality check. Modelling should not be seen as a positive ‘career’ choice for young girls.
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There is something very wrong about grown women aspiring to look like pubescent girls. It’s never going to happen. It’s not MEANT to happen. Just like 13, 14 15 year old girls are not meant to be sprawled on a bed with topless male models looking effortlessly sexy.
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I’m not sure which station/media mogul Dolly Magazine is tied to but is it safe to say that Miranda Kerr’s somewhat sudden rise to superstardom has inspired that mag to cash in and make a quick dollar out of exploiting young, impressionable teens whilst simultaneously trying to justify their actions by halfheartedly linking their event to a social cause aka Butterfly Foundation.
More so…what hope do young women with self esteem and body confidence issues have in this country when even the so called “support foundations” are supporting such disgusting, commercial and unethical institutions as a pageant based primarily on the physical appearance of its entrants?
To be honest, I think I’m more disgusted at the Butterfly Foundation then I am at Dolly……….How can anyone seek help for an eating disorder from a “charity” that supports aesthetic prowess over inner value?
Kate xx
P.S How could I forget!!!…..Mia, THANKYOU for axing this comp during your reign!!!!
http://www.louvschow.blogspot.com
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Oh the Dolly Model comp. I entered that when I was 13 and again when I was 14. I have some cute photos in my photo album that I can laugh about now. No harm done for me at least. Other girls are not so lucky – meaning the ones that actually win!
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I’d like to know where the parents of that 15 year old girl with her legs spread on the bike (in the gallery) are. How is this possibly ok for them? Has the allure of fame and fortune become greater than their sense of responsibility towards their own child? So sad….
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Yeah I was too so I just looked it up. The parents are suing the photographer because of this photo – although the comments by the model’s attorney at the end suggest that it may have more to do with the distribution of this photo without consent just as much as it is about the pornographic nature of the image.
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Yeah – but look at the 5 or so other images of that model in the gallery. They’re just as provocative as the bike photo, so where were her parents when those pictures were being taken?
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Her parents were both there, apparently.
http://www.zimbio.com/Hailey+Clauson/articles/NUwozwTZO7L/Model+Hailey+Clauson+16+Sues+Urban+Outfitters
“Teenage model Hailey Clauson has filed a $28 million lawsuit against retailer Urban Outfitters, alleging that a T-shirt bearing her image has damaged her reputation and her career.
The T-shirt in question is printed with a photograph taken of Clauson when she was just 15, perched atop a Honda motorcycle in a pair of teeny leather shorts, legs spread. Clauson, now 16, claims the “blatantly salacious” shirts violate child pornography laws.
The suit also alleges that the photographer behind the image, Jason Lee Parry, agreed never to release the shot after her management complained. Parry claims that both of Clauson’s parents were present at the March 2010 shoot, and that they gave permission to use the controversial piece.”
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I am the same age as Miranda Kerr and was once an avid reader of Dolly and Girlfriend magazines in my early teens. I remember the search for the Dolly model the year that Miranda won and a couple of the other contestents. One of my most poignant memories when Miranda was declared winner was that although I thought she was lovely and of course beautiful – it was an ideal that I couldn’t live up to or change to be like. I would spend a lot of time staring into the mirror at what I wish I could fix. It was at a time when my self esteem was at it’s most vulnerable as it was the beginning of high school and noticing boys.
Given the magazines impact on my self esteem at that age I honestly think I would deter my daughters from reading it and my nieces or cousins. It’s not all the magazines fault that we have self esteem issues but these exposures don’t help.
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You’re description is so spot-on. I know this feeling so well. There is very little use in telling girls “don’t worry about your bodies or how you look” because they are surrounded by such imagery and dialogue constantly. What would be healthier is to have a stronger push for other values and achievements. Part of growing up is knowing and coming to terms with the fact that we can’t be great at everything BUT we all have value and talents, and being okay with what we have. Our girls need to be directed to find the other things they can value themselves for, only then will we start to find a shift away from body image issues. I can’t imagine that the Butterfly Foundation is involved in this because it truly supports what is behind the search. I think the people involved there know full-well what is going on but have decided that their participation can at least mean some guidance and support which is better than if they avoided involvement altogether. Would love to see Dolly run a “beautiful heart” comp or something of the like that has nothing to do with appearance… Perhaps Mammamia could look into running such an idea?
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I read Dolly from the ages of 11 to 15. I remember when Jess Hart won. She was beautiful, at the time she was this gap toothed brunette. I don’t ever remember feeling inadequate when I looked at her picture. If anything I thought it was fantastic that a gap toothed model had won the competition.
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i first bought Dolly in about 1982 i think, as a 13 yr old and bought it till i was about 18. I think one of the first Dolly model winners was Kate Fischer (James Packers ex) in the mid 80′s. I remember being feeling really inadequate when i saw her pretty face on the cover of Dolly after she won the competition. Its now probably nearly 30 years later and i STILL remember the affect it had on me. I was thin, but not pretty like these girls all over the magazine. These competitions ARE HARMFUL to teenage girls, theer is no doubt in my mind about that.
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I totally agree with this author. Why does it have to be a MODEL comp? Why not ‘Dolly girl of the year’ for girls who DO stuff. Like a mini teen-girl version of Australian of the year? Or a dolly spin off of Cosmo’s fun fearless female awards? WHY MODELLING?!
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It’s such bulls*** when modelling competitions go on about “inner beauty”. It’s not a social work competition, it’s MODELling competition.
Models by their very purpose are their to sell things/makes things look good/interesting. An ordinary looking, nice girl probably i’t going to do the job as well as an incredible looking girl. If she wins because she’s nicer then she’s not really deserving of it, because she’s not going to do the best job.
If people think that valuing girls based on their looks is dangerous then modeling comps should just be abolished – not touted as something different to disguise what they’re really about. That’s just dangerous.
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Just so you know all that any abusive comments about Miranda Kerr will be deleted. As you were
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You don’t really hear about the non-successful winners. There was a girl at my high school who won the Girlfriend model comp. She didn’t get anywhere except always being “that girl.” People would stare because they knew they recognised her, but couldn’t work out where from. She struggled with men, all the guys her age had preconceived notions about her from seeing the cover in the supermarket and knowing the story. I don’t know where she is now, but I always felt sorry for her. No glory, all gossip.
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If I remember correctly, Miranda Kerr was stalked by a middle-aged man after winning the Dolly competition – I vaguely remember it being reported at the time (I think they might have printed pictures of her unassuming childhood home and the name of her hometown) – probably not a great thing to be exposing teenagers to at a young age.
Obviously the competition is outdated and ridiculous (I can’t believe they’ve brought it back, since when was it a good idea to judge teenagers based on appearance alone? And how demoralising for all the girls who send in their photos and don’t get picked) – it really seems like a step backward to me.
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I think maybe the Butterfly Foundation needs a checklist. One of the boxes should be ‘do not support glorified beauty pageants’ and ‘do not elevate and promote those who are upheld because of their physical appearance.’ (wasn’t Jennifer Hawkins associated with Butterfly at some stage?)
I really want The Butterfly Foundation to do better than this, this is so important because from what I understand, they’re our most widely recognised eating disorders charity.
I remember when I was young I was always disappointed by wishy washy ‘feel good about your body, self esteem this and that’ because it was always combined with picture perfect models. I was quite emaciated by the time I was 15 and working out how long it would take me to save up for plastic surgery.
I understand the idea behind working with industry to make changes, but not if it means compromising your core message. I don’t think industry is at all interested in changing, but it does help them to have the Butterfly Foundation logo attached to them doesn’t it.
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I actually remember the Dolly model contest having a negative impact on my as a teenager – as I struggled to deal with my formerly stick-like body becoming curvy with puberty, and as my skin went from smooth to stricken with acne, I vividly remember seeing the skinny winners on the cover.
In my warped mind they had everything I wanted – they were thin, and they were going to be models, which meant they would have money and fame and (ha ha) no problems.
Of course, the competition wasn’t the only thing fuelling my self-hatred but it certainly didn’t help!
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Just so you know, Miranda didn’t really model until she turned 18. She finished school first.
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She also studied nutrition and health psycology at the Academy of Natural Living.
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One of my school friends won this competition about 25 years ago. It wasn’t good for her. She was so focused on appearance, weight, diet etc and had an eating disorder. Beyond Dolly, she never found success with modelling. It was just all a bit sad and I felt sorry for her.
I agree that this type of competition isn’t healthy for young girls.
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Miranda Kerr is where she is simply because of how she looks. It has nothing to do with her being a “model citizen” or being “nice on the inside”. She is a millionaire because of genetics.
Society needs to stop rewarding these kind of girls for doing absolutely nothing but look good.
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Back in the paleolithic ’80s – the dawn of the ‘supermodel’ era – I was a tall and ‘pretty’ teenager (or so I was told). I was going to be signed to one of the modelling agencies, but was told that I need to lose a couple of inches off my hips. My parents, in their wisdom, suggested that wasn’t the right thing to say to a 15 yo girl and my modelling career ended before it began! While I was upset at the time, I now realise what a blessing that was.
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At thirteen, I was hardly model material. Granted, I had (and still do, in fact) flawless skin, which incited envy from my pimply-faced friends; but I was not in the league of Miranda or Jennifer. Not even close. Looks (and logic) aside, I had no interest in entering the Dolly Model Search. Not because I didn’t think I’d win it, not because I lacked the self-confidence, poise or requisite waist measurement, but because even at 13, I knew that beauty was more than what size your dress was, or how good you looked in a bikini.
I am forever indebted to my parents, extended family and all the positive influences of my childhood for instilling in me a fierce independent streak, confidence, composure and inquisitive mind. For teaching me that dedication and hard work will always pay off, and if you want something badly enough, go out and do it for yourself. For teaching me that a beautiful mind is a better weapon in all of life’s battles than a beautiful exterior.
Mia was spot on back then, and it still rings true today – girls, and particularly vulnerable tweens and teens, don’t need any more pressure on them to think they have to look, act or dress a certain way. Society does enough on that score, and there’s only so much that can be undone by positive parenting. If I had a thirteen-year-old daughter, I would hope that she would take inspiration from Miranda’s business acumen and parenting skills, rather than how she looks.
We can never wipe out the pressures for our young people, but we should sure as hell try to minimise their impact. Because for every girl who enters the Dolly Model Search, there’s another one out there just like thirteen-year-old me – who, when she’s nearly thirty, will look back and realise that all her many successes, triumphs and tragedies have shaped her into the remarkable woman she is; and she’ll have done all of it because she made the most of her beautiful mind, rather than her beautiful body.
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Do parents have to sign some consent for their daughters to enter the Dolly comp? Why would anyone do that?
I can’t think of anything less I’d like my daughter to do or want to be.
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Why is The Butterfly Foundation not speaking out AGAINST model contests? How can they be involved in this at all?
Baffling and upsetting.
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The competition would have gone ahead regardless of Butterfly’s involvement. At least this way, Butterfly has some say in including things like a self esteem check list or whatever it was.
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Regardless, by adding their name to the competition, they are condoning its existence, tacitly or otherwise. I agree it’s a really poor parternship for the organisation to embark upon.
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Why is Miranda inspirational? Because she was born looking a certain way and has made money from that? Because she is paid a lot of money by a lingerie company for her hot body?
I just don’t get it.
Nothing against her personally – she seems lovely – but how is she a role model? Surely a role model is someone you want to be like. Unless you are Miranda Kerr’s sister (and even she doesn’t have the same mix of genes) then you can hope all you like but you’ll never be a lingerie model.
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I remember reading Dolly as a teen and seeing the Dolly contest (must have been before Mia’s reign) and wondering why I didn’t look like those girls. It kick-started years and years of anger at my body and why I looked so curvy and ‘frumpy’ compared to the ‘Dolly girls’. Ugh. I worry about the day I bring a daughter into the world.
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I’m the opposite – I read Dolly religiously as a teenager in the ’90s and I especially loved the Dolly Covergirl issues but it never bothered me that the winners were girls who looked nothing like me. I’ve always been short and chunky and it’s never bothered me that I don’t see people like me in magazines, on tv or whatever. It was like a whole other world that was so foreign from my reality. I’ve always seen women like me in real life, leading interesting, rewarding lives and I guess I always figured my life would turn out like theirs and that was ok with me. Maybe I’m just lucky that Dolly was a source of entertainment for me and that I missed the messages that caused body shame and self esteem issues for others.
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I’m the same.
I always loved reading Dolly as a teen and the Dolly Model Search issue was one that I looked forward to every year.
It never made me feel inferior or self-concious at all.
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Same here. I loved the Dolly Covergirl issues as a young teenager (and pre-teen) but I never read them as anything other than a source of entertainment and escapism. It probably does help that the girls never looked like me – I’m so short – and I never aspired to be like them.
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I used to look at their ages and think “it’s ok, she’s 13/14/15″ maybe when I’m older I’ll look pretty enough”. But it didn’t happen!
Fortunately, better things in life did.
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I also read Dolly and Girlfriend in Year 8- and as an awkward teenager who didn’t really feel confident about myself until university, it had a negative effect on my self esteem. Magazines like that were probably the worst of all the many factors that influenced my poor body image and disordered eating. I suppose as I was in a vulnerable position, seeing page after page of beautiful, skinny, perfect girls, I felt like I needed to change everything about myself.
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Give me a break…
MTR is the voice of far right wing uber-religious anti-abortionists…
she’s also the voice of the neurotic wing of feminism.
Plus she wants to sue people she disagrees with.
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That’s irrelevant. Argue the point not the person.
Do you disagree with what she said about Dolly and teen modelling or just that she said it?
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She can have an opinion, though, right?
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No.
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I actually come from Gunnedah and know Miranda Kerr’s family and many of her friends. I can never understand how her family (especially her Dad and Grandfather) can be “so proud” when they watch her walking the Victoria’s Secret catwalk. My husband would be horrified if our little girl grew up and got paid to parade around in a near naked state wearing provocative lingerie.
I think the emphasis on looks for little girls, teenagers and grown women needs to STOP! According to fashion magazines etc the message seems to be that we only have until our 20′s to be considered “sexy” or attractive in any way and that is just so many shades of wrong
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I don’t mind the idea of a modeling competition per se. It gives some girls an opportunity they may not have had previously. For example Miranda Kerr was from Gunnedah – she was hardly going to be scouted walking to and from school.
However I would like to see wider opportunities offered to young girls. For example competitions to win sporting scholarships, study opportunities, mentorship and leg ups in performing arts, young business and other pursuits. (Disclaimer – maybe Dolly does this already though – I haven’t read it for 15 odd years!!)
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Check out your local branch of Soroptimist International or Zonta or similar and be part of the change!
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I will NEVER understand parents obsession with registering their children with model agencies or being sucked in by ‘scouts’ in shopping centres. Firstly, are parents really so blind that they cannot see that their child is not physically ‘model material’ and secondly … WHY?
I don’t know how a parent could allow their young daughter to be photographed in provocative poses or allow her to aspire to fame for fame’s sake.
These parents need their head read – though I suspect it is mostly mothers who are responsible for this. Which begs the question – how many fathers look at their daughters and dream of fame on the catwalk for them or want their teenage daughters dressed and posed like grown women? I’d be interested to know that. I have a feeling that this is a ‘mother’ problem.
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