Through the eyes of a child

Have you ever caught yourself thinking about something through a different person’s eyes. Watching my little sister play with her friends and her Barbies is what made me post this next blog. When I watch my little sister play with her dolls, I can see how her imagination takes over. For her its not about what the doll looks like, because in all they are all going to have bad hairstyles once she plays hairdresser or poor makeup when she uses markers for an unintended purpose, but its where she is going to go with that doll. Where her Barbie can take her. I really think that Barbie looks differently in her eyes, than in the eyes of all the critical adults in the world. For her, Barbie is a way for her to travel the world and accomplish anything, without ever leaving our basement. I thought it was interesting that I was not the only one who thought about this theory. As I browsed the different areas of Barbies website, I cam across the blog, “Barbie, one dad’s view” by Mattel’s Chuck Scothon who is the General Manager and Senior Vice president for the Girls Mattel Brands. He was also seeing that Barbie represents something totally different for his 5-year daughter than what an older adult may think. I thought it was interesting as well that he is encouraging anyone to visit webelieeveingirls.com and comment on the overall affects that Barbie might have on anyone. He wants to hear about all of the comments or concerns that mothers, daughters, or even fathers might have toward the brand Barbie. I also thought it was inspiring to see that he was able to capture a little bit of what his daughter and my sister see in the beloved doll. That Barbie is not trying to represent a false image of women in any way, but that she is there to empower all girls to embrace their imagination and reach for their goals.

A display that sparked some memories...

This week’s blog was inspired by a photo that I found this weekend. While looking for pictures to include in a scrapbook for my grandma I came across this picture of my Mom from the summer. I spent the summer in Washington, D.C. for an internship that I had with the congresswoman of my district. My family came down at the end of the summer and stayed with me and spent a few days traveling the city. Of course we went to all of the Smithsonian Museums, and since the American History museum was closed for renovations. Luckily the National Air and Space Museum featured ‘Treasures of American History.’ And as shown in the picture, there was a display featuring an old Barbie and a carrying case. My Mom immediately recognized the case and Barbie on display were the exact set that she had as a little girl. As soon as we went home, my Mom pulled out her old case and some of her Barbies. To see how she still had everything neatly packed away, made me really see how much she cherished her Barbies. Reminiscing, she showed my some of the different styles of clothing that were her favorites and even some that she had sewn herself. And although, kids today have boxes of accessories and different styled dolls, I thought it was so interesting to compare the old Barbie to my own Barbies that I had saved at home. All in all it just made me really think how much Mattel’s Barbie has influenced girls from my Mom’s childhood years to my own, and I was glad to see that it was recognized by the Smithsonian organization. I will be curious to see if the display changes once the renovations to the American History Museum are complete.

Doll Web Sites Drive Girls to Stay Home and Play

Once again, this week I found myself browsing the web looking for another interesting look into the Barbie phenomenon. Interestingly, I found an article that describes a new way of playing with dolls. I am sure we have all heard of the digital utopia of Second Life, however this is not what I am referring too. This child friendly version is known as Cartoon Doll Emporium. The site lets children dress up their virtual dolls and chat with their friends. And 9 year old Presleigh Montemayor believes the site might begin to beat playing with regular dolls. “With Barbie, if you want clothes, it costs money. You can do it on the Internet for free,” she explains. This new fad has attracted millions of children, especially girls, to take a higher step away from the traditional ways of playing with dolls. Cartoon Doll Emporium is “like Facebook or MySpace with training wheels, aimed at an audience that may be getting its first exposure to the Web.” Other sites like these include: Club Penguin, Webkinz, and Stardoll. However, Barbie has found that they must take this new attraction, and put forth with their own competitive forces. Mattel is introducing BarbieGirls.com, which with be another dress-up site with chat features. Although, the allure of these sites do seem to be attracting lots of newcomers, parents are still encouraging their children to stick with old-fashioned alternatives. “If you’re lucky enough to have a kid next door,” Sherry Turkle, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who studies the social aspects of technology, exclaims, “I’d have a play date instead of letting your kid sit at the computer.” So although I would note that the interactive websites will continue to be a fun alternative to traditional children’s games, I still believe that the demand for the actual tangible doll or toy will continue to thrive. I mean what kid do you know is asking Santa for a subscription to a website…instead of an actual toy…?

Quotes taken from: "Doll Web Sites Drive Girls to Stay Home and Play" from The New York Times, published June 6th, 2007

Go Red For Women

I found myself looking through the Barbie Collector website and came across a very interesting news release. Mattel has recently given The American Heart Association $100,000 in support for the Go Red for Women movement. The movement is focused on raising awareness on heart disease. Sadly, heart disease is the number one killer of women and men today. Currently the philanthropy for my sorority Alpha Phi is focused on riainsg money for the research to prevent and raise awareness of heart disease. Knowing that others, such as Mattel, is also supporting the cause is a wonderful thing to hear about because I know that with a group effort, we can make a difference. Mattel’s Go Red For Women Barbie Doll is dressed in a beautiful and glamorous red dress to remind women that they have the power to make the right choices towards having a healthy heart. The campaign is also asking women to ‘Go Red in Your Own Fashion’ so that all women can join in to fight against heart disease. I truly found this to be a wonderful cause that Mattel is supporting, and I know all women would feel the same way. So this week I am encouraging myself and all the women in my life to support the cause by visiting the website GoRedForWomen.org to learn more for women. Awareness is the first step toward preventing heart disease. “Through education, using the right tools, and with passionate action, you CAN reduce your chances of developing heart disease!” (Barbie Collector Website)