Lingerie Barbie: Going Too Far?

The latest Barbie doll, Lingerie Barbie, is a bit different from your average Barbie doll. Although advertised as being for older consumers (those over 14 years old), particularly collectors, this Barbie is featured in the FAO Schwarz catalogue – and, as some critics have point out, there aren't many 14-year-olds who play with dolls.

On Tuesday's Early Show, Deborah Roffman talked about Lingerie Barbie and its impact. Roffman wrote a column that was published in last Sunday's Washington Post, presenting the point of view that Lingerie Barbie represents the latest assault on the youth of America's children.

"I think, for many parents, it was a last straw, because they've been feeling so overwhelmed for quite awhile about the increasing sexualization of our culture," Roffman has said. "Children are meant to be just that; they need guidance from adults who can read their level of physical, social and emotional development and provide information (including information about sex) in ways that are age appropriate so they can learn at their own healthy pace.

"It's just like any other subject," she continues. "The media now invites children and adolescents to know and think about sex from an adult perspective, which can easily be interpreted by them to mean that they are ready for grown-up things that are way beyond their years and capabilities. This can make them vulnerable in any number of ways. The underlying message to them from."

Roffman holds that "clear boundaries are crucially important to children and adolescents developmentally."

Barbie dolls have been one of the most popular dolls for little girls around the world since their inception in 1959. Controversy is nothing new to the doll, but usually the debate has centered on gender issues, not sexuality. Critics have long maintained that the dolls present an impossible vision of womanhood; for example, if Barbie were life-size, her measurements would be 39-23-33.

Deborah Roffman is an author who teaches children in grades 4 through 12. Her two books are Sex and Sensibility: The Thinking Parent's Guide to Talking Sense About Sex and But How'd I Get in There in the First Place? Talking to Your Young Child about Sex.