Beth Ditto Continues Reign Of Awesomeness
Erin sends over this link to a (possibly NSFW although it’s a small pic) photo of a magazine cover featuring a proudly nude, proudly fat Beth Ditto.
NME’s cover intrigues me because, frankly, it’s so rare to see a magazine cover feature a woman who isn’t thin. I’m curious about what readers think: Do you like this cover? Do you think it’s an empowering stand for size acceptance, or is this just objectification masquerading as empowerment?
I totally vote for empowerment, by the way.
And if you haven’t listened to any of The Gossip’s music yet, Mike Frankel from freeindie.com wrote in to let us know that five MP3s are posted on his site, and that they are free and legal to download. Let me know what your favorite one is so I know which one to add to the BFD mix CD.
Posted by mo pie
Filed under: Beth Ditto, Fat Positive, Magazines, Music
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It’s health that matters not size. A woman should be empowered and feel good about herself no matter what size she is. I don’t really have any hang ups about nude bodies so I find the cover empowering. (Of course I have no way of knowing how the model actually feels about her body – but I hope she feels good about who she is and how she looks). Lady Rose (81 lbs lost so far, a mere 70ish to go)
Given that it’s Beth Ditto (who is not shy about saying what she loves about her body) I vote for empowerment too.
I think she looks absolutely beautiful. I’m glad to see that they have her posing unabashedly…
I LOVE the Gossip! I love Beth Ditto! I can’t believe I haven’t seen this issue yet. I am heading to the bookstore to buy it! Yay! I don’t care how people take this cover, as long as it gets some attention. It is f-ing refreshing to see someone larger than a size 7 on a magazine! Fat-tastic!
She looks wonderful. And isn’t it nice to be objectified every onece in a while?
In fact, that’s my main “beef” with the DOve ads. I remember one poster with a big girl that questioned the viewer, “Do you think I’m sexy?” Umm…why do you ask? I’ve NEVER seen an ad with a thin model that in any way allowed the viewer to critique her attractiveness. It’s always a given.
In other ad, the dove models strike “strong” “empowered” poses, as opposed to the sexy/graceful poses of thin mainstream models. They constantly seem to be on the defense. I would have had a lot more respect for Dove if they had just started using fat/old models in the usual ads, instead of trying to create fanfare for thier “brave” decision to use “real” women. Give me a break.
Sorry so off topic.
Standing in the way of control-my fav song
She has such a lovely body.
Beth Ditto has made me think a lot about the difference between “fat in good taste” and “fat in bad taste”, because her public persona is mostly “fat in bad taste” (e.g. those photos in that orangey-gold-shiny-thing where she’s trying to put her foot in her mouth, srsly).
Perhaps it is that what is empowering to one is sort of horrifying to another, and perhaps it is that that’s OK, because perhaps it is that just because I’m a fat girl doesn’t mean I have to be all rah-rah about the public face of famous fat girls.
I love her. I think she’s awesome and why should she not be able to do whatever punk rock thing she wants? Because she’s fat? The thing I love about her most is that she does whatever the eff she wants to do, regardless of whether you find that in “bad taste” or something thin girls can get away with but fat girls cannot.
I find her much more of an inspiration to fat girls that America Ferrara or whatever other “fat” girl of the moment smiles humbly and good-naturedly during interviews when every frickin question is about her weight. Beth is making her own way and I applaud her for it.
she does whatever the eff she wants to do, regardless of whether you find that in “bad taste” or something thin girls can get away with but fat girls cannot
Meghan, that’s sort of what I mean. She DOES do whatever she wants to do – and even though I would find her style trashy on fat girls or thin girls or pretty much any girls, and even though I find her sort of out there and occasionally horrifying, that’s OK.
Because I don’t have to find her inspirational just because she’s a famous fat girl (or even because she’s a famous fat girl charting her own course) – it’s not my job to validate her. If other fat girls find her empowering, that’s great. Vive la difference, and all that.
I have yet to find my famous-fat-girl icon. America Ferrera isn’t it, because she’s not a fat girl. Beth Ditto isn’t it, because she doesn’t make any sense to me. But I know that they’re both other fat girls’ famous-fat-girl icons.
She’s beautiful!
I LOVE the cover, though I often find myself with mixed feelings about her (which is mostly because I find myself not agreeing with her *grin*). LOVE LOVE LOVE it.
Also, Lady Rose, health is not a moral imperative. It might be a about health for you but health might have entirely different connotations for another person.
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She may well have the capacity to look gorgeous – though whether that’s despite being fat or because she’s so curvy is a matter of opinion – but that photo is terrible with terrible lighting.
The main reason most cover models look good is that they are very carefully lit and posed and photoshopped out of reality.
Not showing real women on magazines isn’t just a fat issue – most of them literally aren’t real at all.
I picked Listen up as my favorite – the quality of her voice comes through on this one. She is one very awesome lady. Lady Rose
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