Yes, I will agree that this Barbie is extremely racy but on the other hand if someone is stupid enough to give to a child then they have issues. They’re probably the same people who give their children Bratz dolls, who in my opinion look like hookers and encourage kids to wear clothes that cover nothing. The responsibility to teach our kids is not on the toy companies but us, as parents we have to teach our kids what is appropriate and what is very unappropriate.

As someone who grew up with Barbies and is now an adult with a healthy enough self-esteem, I just can’t get worked up about this. This doll is clearly labeled at Barbie Collector.com as “for the adult collector over 14 years old,” as are several other dolls on this site. There’s a huge population of grownups who collect these special edition Barbies; I myself have a few that let me indulge my nostalgic tendencies.

It is just like anything else…don’t buy it if it doesn’t reflect your values. If either of my children saw that doll and made a comment about the outfit, I’d just say in a neutral voice, “Yeah, she’s wearing tights with diamonds on them” and move on to something more appropriate without getting upset. If my young niece saw it in the Wal-Mart toy aisle and asked me for it, I’d say, “No, I think that outfit is a little too grown up…let’s choose something else.” And that would be it.

While I agree that children are over-sexualized these days, this doll is clearly aimed at adults. The adult thing to do is to keep that in mind and then to steer the children to alternatives that meet your standards. Getting worked up about the mere availability of something will just make a kid wonder what all the fuss is about and want it even more. I see my job as guiding my children’s choices, not taking away other people’s.

where do you draw the line between freedom of expression and censorship?

do barbies pose a threat to perpetuating negative body image amongst children in todays society? of course!

is a barbie in fishnets something that should be marketed towards kids? i don’t think so

truth be told, with everything out there from britney spears, to tila tequila parents shouldn’t be focusing on protecting their children from the world as much as taking time to spend with their children, and talking with them, to equip them how to make good moral decisions.

children are insecure, sexual beings with an insane amount of curiousity
whatever you are hiding from them, they will find. on the internet, from their friends, etc. etc. so are you gonna ban barbies from your house? cut the tv and internet chord? keep them from talking to other kids?

well that’s your choice.

As the proud owner of 36 “vintage” Barbies, I think I can speak on the topic. My grandmother gave me all the dolls - at birthdays and Christmas. I was still getting them into my college years as a bit of a joke. After about a dozen typical Barbie (Pretty & Pink, Angel Face…) she declared that she was sick and tired of blonde Barbies (we’re all brunetts). That year I got a Black Barbie - this was the 80’s, she was actually labeled “Black”. After that it was all International Barbies - my collection is the color of the rainbow.
As for playing with them, I would dress my favorite Barbie in a white sundress, arm her with a cocktail sword and play Amazon Barbie Heros. In 7th grade I got an A on a history project because I dressed my Barbie in pilgram clothes and made her part of a diorama. (Ok, it helps when your mom can sew).
It should be noted that my parents bought their little girl lots of cap guns(I had an M-16 from the TV show SWAT), stick horses and cowboys hats, Adventure People (guys in canoes and jeeps), Star Wars figures, Tonka Trucks and shoe box full of Hot Wheels.
It’s called balance people! If Fish Net Barbie is the only thing the poor girls have to play with, then it might give them the wrong ideas. But girls like other stuff too - even if they let their Barbies drive the Tonka Truck - mine did!
Oh, and at the age of 10, it never occurred to me that Barbie’s chest was too big. My Sindy doll’s head was too big - that freaked me out more!

I played with Barbies as a kid clear up to junior high — when I was a kid, girls played with dolls until much later ages and didn’t grow up so early. I was bright enough to realize Barbie was a doll and not a real girl and therefore didn’t expect her to look like me or me to look like her. It’s a TOY. So I didn’t have self-image “issues” due to playing with her or her odd proportions. I should hope today’s girls are also bright enough to know the difference.

It’s exactly what american culture wants its women to be, no matter if they are underage or not. You can’t fault Barbie for mirroring this sick american culture we have going where women of every age are treated badly. Open them legs up Barbie and do what you were put on earth to do. Please those men and women, and keep your mouth shut girl! Cut the hypocrisy. Clean it up if you worry.

Oh, this just goes right along with those energy drink look alike cans the brewers are filling with alcohol to push to your kids. AB starts ‘em early. Now where did all the candy cigarettes go?

I played with Barbies as a kid and am looking foward to sharing the ones I saved from my childhood with my daughter. As someone else said, if my daughter wants to see reality, she can look at me and her friends moms to see that Barbie isn’t reality. I didn’t think I had to look like Barbie anymore than I thought babies actually came from cabbage patches! To me, this is just another thing the media is making into a bigger deal that kids probably wouldn’t have even thought twice about had it not been made into an issue.
If you don’t like what Barbie is wearing, don’t buy it and move on with your life! Parents have to be able to talk to their kids about what is appropriate rather than hope someone else will do it for them.
I have to agree though, that companies are trying to make kids grow up too early, that’s where I step in. Clothing manufacturers are making shirts and skirts shorter, that’s when it’s my job to make sure my kid wears things that are age appropriate. I don’t expect Mattel to teach my child about a positive self image any more than I expect the school to parent my kid. Oh wait, a lot of people DO expect teachers to be parents so they don’t have to be responsible….