Enough already with the over-reaction to the Sarah Palin cover picture on
Newsweek
.I first learned of this so-called serious issue watching Fox News in the morning. One of their hosts, a gorgeous blonde, was holding up the magazine and the camera zoomed in on the cover, and I thought it was...fine. It shows Mrs. Palin close up, with about 60% of her face exposed. Frankly, I think it's a nice shot. The complaints from the news hosts were that it wasn't retouched to take away the deepness of the marionette lines between nose and mouth and the slight creping around her eyes.My first reaction was, "Give me a break...that's what she looks like at her age with her facial contours. It's real and she doesn't look bad at all - she happens to be a pretty woman."The hosts then flashed a prior
Newsweek
cover with Obama...at more of a distance without one obvious facial flaw and a light diffusing from the top of his head, which made him look like a moment in the movie
The Ten Commandments
-- the halo effect told a lot about the "messiah-like" impression that this publication was attempting to create to influence the readership.While I am not supportive of Mrs. Palin for the Vice-Presidency, as I have made clear in a previous
blog
, I am also not supportive of media manipulation to subliminally impact the populace to vote for the party of the media's choice. That said, it is the Obama cover that should be criticized, not Palin's...hers is at least a real rendition of a real human being.I recently took a new set of head shots and publicity photos for an upcoming book ("
In Praise of At-Home Moms
") and other promotional purposes. When I first saw them, I just about cried. Where did all those crow's feet, laugh lines, and creping of neck skin come from? I work out hard most days of the week so my muscles and flexibility are amazing. Working out and eating correctly are under my control. Getting weekly facials to keep my skin clear and hydrated is under my control. The changes one has through maturation (aka "aging") are not under my control. I'm embarrassed to tell you that seeing those photos ruined my afternoon as I have never in my life before felt so womanly, sexy, and feminine! The photos did not seem to match my inner image.The next day I looked at the photos again and - after sleeping on it and talking about it with my dearest friends - I just absolutely love them and told my business partner to make sure they were not air-brushed. I never liked my current photos because they touched them up to remove all lines...making me, in my opinion, look absolutely bionic. I love my new ones now because they are real and show me mature, attractive, happy, and, untouched, and make a statement about pride in oneself even with imperfections.So, to summarize, I like the Palin
Newsweek
photo. I disdain the liberal media's manipulations of Obama photos to further their political agenda. And I love my new photos...you'll see 'em soon!
