BeingGirl website accused of exploiting girls

[F1lthym1ndedvixen]

A website posing as information for young girls about periods etc seems to be a cynical attempt to push certain products, including hair removal

link to guardian article here

what do you think?

[campergirls]

@MotherPanda, my dd got an end of year 5 talk about puberty recently and they were directed towards this site - so its use is being encouraged among 9-10 year olds. I was not impressed!

[MotherPanda]

campergirls - i guess things have changed since i was at school :( puberty wasn't even mentioned at my primary...

[campergirls]

I believe talks about puberty at that stage are standard now, and not before time, some of the nearly-11 year old girls in my dd's class are clearly well on their way (spots, developing breasts, armpit hair etc).

[NormanTebbit]

"It?s a good thing that Latina teens, in greater numbers than other ethnic groups, tend to realize that great-looking bodies come in many sizes and shapes. What?s not such a good thing is that their diet and exercise habits are not as life-affirming as their liberal attitudes."

Obviously the 'Latina teens' haven't wholly succumbed to the tyranny of slenderness and the diet industry yet - but never mind,in the place of objective medical research, here's Proctor and Gamble to help out with the 'healthy eating message.' Hope there's a link to the eating disorders section!

[NormanTebbit]

I'll link, hang on

www.beinggirl.com/quiz/latina-teen-body-image/

[NormanTebbit]

You know, I would love a mumsnet-produced site for teens. It would be great.

[F1lthym1ndedvixen]

Thank gawd, I thought no one cared!!

I don't have a daughter, but this made me so mad, as a woman.

When you consider many girls start thier periods at like, 9 or 10, giving them the message that being a woman is all about shaving and not being icky for the boys

I don't think it is obvious enough that it is not an independant, unbiased information site. It is one giant advert for P&G (who also own Braun?) but it is not obvious from the site that this is the case.

I'm reading open jawed....

[SardineQueen]

I think it's just so blatantly cynical, that's what's upsetting about it.

[SardineQueen]

I wonder if the ASA would have anything to say about that

[AyeRobot]

After reading the quotes open-mouthed, thinking that they were from a spoof site, I did a bit of digging around it. From what I can see, the UK section of the site is a lot less controversial (that bit about Latino girls ). Am I right? Even so, would British girls just go to the US-focussed site and not choose the country-specific option?

[F1lthym1ndedvixen]

According to the Guardian article: ''It is actively promoted to young girls in thousands of schools as part of its parallel education scheme, the About You Personal Wellbeing programme, which provides free information and sample sanitary pads and tampons.

But alongside advice it also directs users to features on "hot underwear" advertising press-on pads which can be worn with "sexy strings" and endorses the use of long-term body hair removal products, including epilators made by its own brand Braun.''

The Mother's union is angry about it.
I never thought i'd see the day when i was in agreement with the Mother's Union though

[SardineQueen]

Oh whoops sorry everyone I have sent you on a bum steer with the US version of the website

If you do co uk you get here

[SardineQueen]

The UK version seems a lot less awful.

I'm sure I can find something to get outraged about if I look hard enough though

Fact is that if anyone (including schoolgirls) google "beinggirl" chances are they will end up on the US site.

[CRIKRI]

I just find the site ghastly on so many levels. It is trading on girls lack of knowledge and anxiety related to their developing bodies and social interaction with others. From what I have read, it most definitely is pushing a particular version of femininity which is very prescribed, and hard-selling it's products as the best way to resolve all these little "problems" like body hair and looking "icky" in front of boys. Frankly, they want to get in as early as possible with new "customers" to gain brand loyalty and promote more profits in the future.

Although there is nothing to stop a company aggressively marketing their products in this way (except perhaps the ASA), I find it appalling that publicly funded schools either use materials from the site or point girls and their parents towards the site as a source of information.

[CRIKRI]

UMS, it's a great tactic. Test them to see if they've got the message. If not, encourage them to feel bad about it. If they feel bad, they'll pay money for products to make them feel "good" again. Marketing works.