Model Kate Moss, Icon of Beauty

An Opportunity To Change 98% of The World View

As the mother of two young daughters and the aunt of three, I was troubled to read this morning that only two percent of 3,200 women from 10 countries around the world responded "Yes, I believe I am beautiful" when asked by the creators of a study called The Real Truth About Beauty.

Today, thanks to Dove, the maker of the Beauty Bar and other face, skin and haircare products, a groundbreaking new study was unveiled that discusses the implications of a global society which narrowly defines beauty by the images seen in entertainment, advertising and fashion runways.

Their findings:

* Only 2% of these women describe themselves as “beautiful”
* About 3/4 of them rate their beauty as "average"
* Almost 1/2 of them think their weight is "too high"

The news is not surprising. However, the response is inspiring.

Dove's desire is to create a new definition of beauty; one that is no longer defined, in part, by unrealistic media images, like the one above. Their hope is to serve as a catalyst for societal change that will widen the definition of beauty.

The Beauty of A Perfectly Imperfect Icon

At the beginning of September, Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins was unintentionally caught with her skirt down on a run-way in Australia. While our audience (based at our site's traffic patterns) was clearly caught up in catching a glimpse of Ms. Hawkins backside, I was inspired to post the story for another reason.

In the world of airbrushed, unrealistic magazine covers, here was an image of a beauty icon's "real" bare bottom readily available for viewing. No PhotoShop touch ups. Just naked as a jaybird - save her red thong and blushing cheeks, all four of them. A woman seen as the "perfect beauty" in the eyes of the universe.

Yet gracefully, she strutted her stuff off the stage and held her composure in the midst of the embarassment.

More significantly, while her face was made up, her backside, of course was not. This, to me, was a celebration of beauty, true, very real beauty, at its best!

As a result, Ms. Hawkins' vulnerability and imperfection, ever so slight that it may be, made her even more beautiful.

Today, Dove, the global beauty brand and marketer and its partners have an opportunity.

Dove Study

Through a partnership with Dr. Nancy Etcoff, Harvard University professor and author of Survival of the Prettiest, and Dr. Susie Orbach, London School of Economics, visiting professor and author of Fat is a Feminist Issue, Dove developed The Real Truth About Beauty: A Global Report.

Dove, Etcoff and Orbach sought to investigate the issues women have concerning their perception of their own beauty, or lack thereof.

With their findings, their task now ought to be to alter women's views on beauty, so that more than 2% of the young girls today will have a healthier perception of themselves when they become women.

Dove's Report

Dove's report explores the relationship women have with beauty.

Specifically, Dove's mission was to determine how women define beauty; their level of satisfaction with their own beauty; and its impact on their sense of well-being.

"The Real Truth About Beauty: A Global Report makes it clear that it is time to lift the quota system on images of beauty," says Etcoff.

"This study uncovers that beauty is never going away and has enormous power. Beauty should not be reduced to a political or cultural problem but understood as a basic human pleasure," Etcoff added.

The Real Truth About Beauty: A Global Report uncovers startling information about how women physically perceive and define their look.

Supporting the current and narrow definition of beauty, the respondents are hesitant to claim ownership of the word "beauty," with more than 40 percent strongly agreeing that they do not feel comfortable describing themselves as beautiful.

Furthermore, only five percent feel comfortable describing themselves as pretty and a mere nine percent feel comfortable describing themselves as attractive.

Additionally, just 13 percent of women say they are very satisfied with their beauty; 12 percent say they are very satisfied with their physical attractiveness; 17 percent are very satisfied with their facial attractiveness; and only 13 percent are very satisfied with their body weight and shape.

In fact, in a society captivated by diet and makeover programs, a third of women around the world are very or somewhat dissatisfied with their body weight.

The women of Japan have the highest levels of dissatisfaction at 59 percent -- followed by Brazil (37%), United Kingdom (36%) and the United States (36%), Argentina (27%) and the Netherlands (25%).

Pop Culture's Beauty Mark

Having assessed how women think about as well as evaluate their own beauty and appearance, the study asks women about social issues emerging from mass media and pop culture. From Brazil to the Netherlands to Argentina -- across cultures, ages, ethnicities and race -- women make it clear they believe there is a one-dimensional and narrow, physical definition of beauty.

The findings show that the ideas of beauty and physical attractiveness are largely synonymous, and although both are highly valued by society, both are rendered almost impossible to attain.

Respondents said they felt pressure to try and be that "perfect" picture of beauty:

* 63% strongly agree that women today are expected to be more attractive than their mother's generation.

* 60% strongly agree that society expects women to enhance their physical attractiveness.

* 45% of women feel women who are more beautiful have greater opportunities in life.

* More than half (59%) strongly agree that physically attractive women are more valued by men.

The study explores the degree to which mass media has played a role in portraying and communicating a narrow definition of beauty:

* More than two-thirds (68%) of women strongly agree that "the media and advertising set an unrealistic standard of beauty that most women can't ever achieve."

* Well over half of all women (57%) strongly agree that "the attributes of female beauty have become very narrowly defined in today's world."

Women around the World Unite

The traditional definition of beauty, based only on physical appearance, is powerfully communicated through the mass media and has been assimilated through popular culture. It is this ideal that many women measure themselves against and aspire to attain. However, women around the world would like to see media change in the way it represents beauty.

For example, women feel they are surrounded and bombarded with images that are unrealistic:

* The majority (76%) wish female beauty was portrayed in the media as being made up of more than just physical attractiveness.

* Seventy-five percent went on to say that they wish the media did a better job of portraying women of diverse physical attractiveness, including age, shape and size.

The Real Truth About Beauty: A Global Report uncovers that women recognize beauty is more than just physical -- it includes character, passion and presence. And, in order to influence a cultural shift in popular culture and mass media, it is necessary to come together and stake a claim to redefine beauty.

"What women in this study tell us is that a sense of legitimacy and respect is wrapped up with beauty in today's world. Whether this sentiment dismays or delights us, it poses a serious challenge," says Orbach.

"And it is this in the first instance: For the idea of beauty to become truly democratic and inclusive, then beauty itself must be revitalized to reflect women in their beauty as they really are rather than as portrayed in the current fictions that dominate our visual culture," Orbach added.

So What is Beautiful?

How are the women of the world defining beauty and what do they really want to see as society continues to evolve?

The study finds two-thirds of women strongly agree that physical attractiveness is about how one looks, whereas beauty includes much more of who a person is.

Women rate happiness, confidence, dignity and humor as powerful components of beauty, along with the more traditional attributes of physical appearance, body weight and shape, and even a sense of style. The respondents also see beauty in many different forms:

* 79% strongly agree that beauty can be achieved through attitude, spirit and other attributes that have nothing to do with physical appearance.

* 89% strongly agree that a woman can be beautiful at any age.

* 85% state every woman has something about her that is beautiful.

Not only do women agree that happiness is the primary element in making a woman beautiful, but they strongly agree that they themselves feel most beautiful when they are happy and fulfilled in their lives (86%).

Furthermore, 82% of women agree that, "If I had a daughter, I would want her to feel beautiful, even if she is not physically attractive."

In conclusion, the study demonstrates that authentic beauty is a concept lodged in women's hearts and minds and seldom articulated in popular culture or affirmed in the mass media.

As such, it remains unrealized and unclaimed -- an idea of beauty that is a narrower, functional definition of "physical attractiveness."

However, this study clearly outlines women's views about the true components of beauty and affirms that, while they include physical attractiveness, they also include happiness, kindness, wisdom, dignity, love, authenticity and self-realization. Through this study, the possibilities for the beautiful to be known, found and represented have been infinitely extended and the ways in which female beauty can be defined have been profoundly deepened.

The Campaign for Real Beauty

Sparked by the results of the global study, Dove is launching a major initiative designed to provoke discussion and encourage debate about the nature of beauty.

The Campaign for Real Beauty asks women to give serious thought to a host of issues surrounding beauty, such as society's definition of it, the quest for "perfection," the difference between beauty and physical attractiveness, and the way the media shapes our perceptions of beauty.

The Campaign for Real Beauty uses various communication vehicles to invite women to join in the discussion about beauty and share their views of it with women around the world:

* Advertising: A global advertising campaign, launching October 2004,
will question whether "model" attributes, such as youth, slimness, and
symmetrical features, are required for beauty -- or are completely
irrelevant to it. Each ad presents an image of a woman whose
appearance differs from the stereotypical physical ideal, and asks the
reader/viewer to judge the woman's looks by checking off a box.

-- "Wrinkled? Wonderful?" features Irene Sinclair, 95, of London,
England with a wrinkled face and asks: "Will society ever accept
old can be beautiful?"

-- "Gray? Gorgeous?" features Merlin Glozer, 45, of London, England
with a natural mane of gray hair and asks: "Why aren't women glad
to be gray?"

-- "Oversized? Outstanding?" features Tabatha Roman, 34, of New
York, NY a plus-size woman and asks: "Does true beauty only
squeeze into a size 6?"

-- "Half empty? Half full?" features Esther Poyer, 35, of London,
England with small breasts and asks: "Does sexiness depend on how
full your cups are?"

-- "Flawed? Flawless?" features Leah Sheehan, 22, of London, England
with freckles and asks: "Does beauty mean looking like everyone
else?"

Each ad will direct readers/viewers to a special web site, Campaign for Real Beauty where you can cast your votes on the questions raised in the ad campaign and engage in an ongoing dialogue about beauty by posting to discussion boards, hearing what women around the world are saying, and downloading research studies about beauty.

* Billboards: Mobile billboards will be placed in major cities challenging women's notions of beauty by encouraging them to cast their votes. A featured interactive billboard, located in New York's Times Square, highlighting the "Wrinkled? Wonderful?" ad will keep a running tally of the vote submitted for that issue.

* Panel discussions:

-- The Campaign for Real Beauty launched in New York City today with a kick-off panel discussion about beauty, co-hosted by American Women in Radio and Television, and featuring Dr. Nancy Etcoff of Harvard University; Mindy Herman, former CEO, E! Entertainment Television; Andi Bernstein, Vice President, Special Projects, Oxygen Media and additional media and beauty industry leaders, moderated by Jamie Colby, Correspondent and Anchor, Fox News Channel.

-- Dove is furthering the panel discussions on a grassroots level by partnering with the Woodhull Institute for Ethical Leadership, a not-for-profit educational organization that provides ethical leadership training and professional development for women, for two special weekend workshops to be held in Atlanta (October 8-10) and Chicago (November 12-14).

* The Dove Self-Esteem Fund: Dove has established the Dove Self-Esteem Fund to raise awareness of the link between beauty and body-related self-esteem. The new initiative continues an ongoing effort by Dove to fund programs that raise self-esteem in girls and young women. The Dove Self-Esteem Fund is working through the Unilever Foundation to sponsor uniquely ME!, a partnership program with Girl Scouts of the USA that helps build self-confidence in girls ages 8-14 with resources and program activities. The Dove Self-Esteem Fund also supports Body Talk, an educational program for schools in the United Kingdom and Canada.

About "The Real Truth About Beauty: A Global Report"

The Real Truth About Beauty: A Global Report was conducted by the research firm StrategyOne in collaboration with Dr. Nancy Etcoff and the Massachusetts General Hospital/ Harvard University, and with the expert consultation of Dr. Susie Orbach of the London School of Economics.

The study is based on quantitative data collected from a global survey of 3,200 women from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Portugal, United Kingdom, and the United States.

Every Woman Is Beautiful

Have you told your wife, daughter, mother, sister that she's beautiful? If not, do it! Do it now!

Send her this story and use it as an opportunity to tell her she is beautiful. Pass it on.

Our next generation needs to hear it too, along with that old phrase my mother has always used, "It's on the inside that counts!"

Here's to resonating with that statement so well that it makes us feel beautiful on the outside.

Here's to combining our God-given genes, our state of mind and our attitude into a beautiful presence, inside-and-out.

Miss Universe, Jennifer Hawkins

While Jennifer Hawkins' primary platform is HIV/AIDS prevention, perhaps Mr. Trump, NBC and the Miss Universe organization would be willing to lend her name in Dove's Campaign For Real Beauty.

Thank you Unilever, the makers of Dove, Nancy Etcoff and Dr. Susie Orbach, for this report and for driving to give beauty a makeover.

And thank you Dove for your mission to make women feel beautiful every day by widening today's sterotypical view of beauty and inspiring women to take great care of themselves.

Amen!

Here's to healthy, adventuresome, soulful and believing you're beautiful living!

Inspire & Be Inspired.

~ Jennifer King