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Bodies of Work: Lisa Jervis talks to philosopher Susan Bordo

"Analysis is hard, it's complicated, and it disturbs the comfortable simplicity of familiar worldviews." So writes Susan Bordo, professor of English and women's studies at the University of Kentucky. And she should know: Her incisive writings on a wide variety of topics cut through thickets of... Read more »

Ten Things to Hate About <em>Jane</em>

When we heard that Jane Pratt, the former editor of Sassy—the sharp, celebrated teen mag that above all was absolutely unwilling to pull its readers into the spiral of insecurity and product consumption so endemic to all others in the genre—was launching a new grown-up glossy, we, along with other... Read more »

My Cups Runneth Over

I didn't start out in the world a hard-ass, I swear. I was the nice girl, Little Mary Sunshine—turning the other cheek and searching for the good in all people. But you know what finally pushed me over the edge? I'll sum it up for you in one word: breasts. More specifically, my‑breasts. I am a... Read more »

Mad As A Wet Hen #2: A Roundup of Media Affronts

“So now you can eat like one of the boys, but still look like one of the girls,” says the male voice-over touting Baked Lays potato chips while supermodels stuff their faces on screen… Oh, boys, did you know—Twix bars are the new way to get rid of those pesky, materialistic, shallow, shopping... Read more »

Hail Harper's: An Ode

My arm fell asleep, I got so engrossed. This issue of Harper’s Bazaar is about as big as a bible—and just as full of prophecy. I fall in love with the models, their blackened eyes and plaster pigment, all pinched and compressed into vinyl and leather, looking hot hot hot and totally unfazed... Read more »

Of Kegels, Kotex, and Kate Moss: A Look at February's Women's Glossies

Allure Irony of the month: While the Editor’s Letter says, “Shut up and eat,” and bemoans the fact that women are always “self-surveilling” their caloric intake, the mag gives information about: “Aromatrim” products (you smell them and they make you eat less); a new diet pill; “liposhaving” (... Read more »

Mad As A Wet Hen #1: A Roundup of Media Affronts

How about that new Taco Bell ad featuring 11-year-old boys on the beach ogling a shapely lifeguard… Guess what? According to Cosmopolitan you’ll never get a date without duct tape and a “No Trespassing” sign… When Camille Paglia addresses the defunct pedophilic Calvin... Read more »

Editors' Letter: Premiere: Introduction

This magazine is about speaking up. I’ve always been a media junkie. Magazines, movies, television—I love them all and tend to consume them voraciously. But indiscriminate media consumption, maybe more than any other binge, can make you sick. When I was twelve years old I was looking for... Read more »

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