A massive Barbie online poll has finished and the results of the new look Barbie is in, News Anchor Barbie and of course Computer Engineer Barbie. Is this a good thing to do or another plan to draw more people into buying the doll?
One of the main points to focus in on is the fact that I do not think I have ever come across a computer engineer that looks and talks like Barbie. Lets be honest here, Barbie is a very stereotypical blonde type, is she really going to be able to know Java and things like that. This is not to say that a blonde woman could not do the job, not at all. It is also very insulting to the women that already work in the business.
Surely every girl that gets this doll is going to think that the women that actually do work in the industry are going to look and talk like this. A parents comment is as followed “This is insulting, Barbie already creates unrealistic expectations of what a girl should be”. The last time I checked geeks were not into the superficiality of Barbie so how is it that this geeky doll received so many votes? In my own personal opinion I do think that this is a good idea at all, when was the last time you saw a woman in the IT business wearing very poor pink designer glasses.
On the other hand I can see why having a Barbie like this will make children think that being a “Geek” is actually not a bad thing at all. Could there perhaps be a bit less bullying becuase of this.
All in all I think that this doll has just outraged the women working in the industry more than anything, who wants to see Barbie in another pair of cheap glasses anyway? Barbie should stick to her Prada glasses and stop getting in on the industries that do not want her. Go ride your horse and drive in your lovely pink sports car, stay out of the IT industry!