Of the new spinoff magazines. CosmoGIRL! is the most Tiger Beat of the bunch -- offering such girly goodies as Britney Spears stickers and cut-out posters of hunky teenage babes with their shirts off; but it's also the most blatantly feminist -- or, in the fuzzy colloquial lingo of the teen mags -- "girl power"-inspired. "CosmoGIRL! is a place where we're all strong," chirps the August letter from editor in chief Atoosa Rubenstein, whose early internship at Sassy magazine is evident in her ideology. "We wanted to create a world. The kind of world we wanted to live in but couldn't seem to find. You know what I mean, right? The real version of our daydream. A place where we're all accepted. All beautiful. All nice to each other. All friends. Strong, full of guts and passion. That's what being a CosmoGIRL! would mean."
ELLEgirl and Teen Vogue aren't nearly as gushy; rather, they cop the slightly glacial attitudes of their parent magazines. While CosmoGIRL! serves up advice for the lovelorn, celebrity gossip and most embarrassing moments galore, ELLEgirl and Teen Vogue offer a stricter diet of high fashion and makeup.
That's not to say that ELLEgirl isn't also about girl power; but this magazine's version of the mantra has less to do with being strong and a lot to do with shopping wisely. "So what is ELLEgirl about? Helping you discover your personal style, starting with your closet," explains editor Holley. "If you try something new, you might discover something new about yourself. Yeah, it's just clothing and makeup, but that's only the beginning. Once you start experimenting and taking chances, there's no telling where you'll end up."
There are moments when this ideology translates nicely: especially when the magazines track down "real girls" in the streets of London, New York, Tokyo and Los Angeles and ask them about their looks. Unfortunately, "personal style" also manifests itself as the same old strict beauty regimens teens have been spoon-fed by magazines for decades.
While ELLEgirl's "personal style" frowns on anorexic ballerinas -- according to a feature article in the magazine -- it also, apparently, condones a beauty routine of self-bronzer applied twice a week, weekly hot oil treatments and daily manicures, plus regular tooth bleaching and skin masks.
Then there's Teen Vogue, which gushes that "finding yourself and what makes you feel happy and healthy [is] always in fashion," but also runs ads for breast enhancement tablets. For $229.95, you too can grow bigger boobs, "feel more beautiful and sexier than ever" and have "more self esteem, more confidence." Sure, it's advertising, and maybe today's savvy girls are able to discern between editorial and ads (though, considering how often the two are conflated in the world of fashion magazines, that may be an unfair assumption); still, the messages between those covers are decidedly mixed. What's next, advertisements for preventive cosmetic surgery and liposuction, all in the name of personal fulfillment? (When the New York Times interviewed Teen Vogue editor Amy Astley about the ads, she responded that "I am personally committed to having Teen Vogue promote images of health and well-being for our readers.")
More disturbing, however, is that some of the fashion-bible spinoffs are upping the ante in their teen glossy fare. Take, for example, the predominant presence of pricey designer Marc Jacobs, whose clothes are featured in more than a dozen fashion spreads across ELLEgirl and Teen Vogue; his outfits, while preppy and perhaps appropriate-looking for teenagers, also hover in a price range of $200 and up. Fashion spreads in these two magazines, while often avoiding the dread midriff and leaning toward pocketbook-friendly labels like Old Navy and H&M, also include a liberal sprinkling of catwalk designers like Vivienne Tam, Miu Miu, Anna Sui, Katayone Adeli and Alberta Ferreti.
Should we expect any less from magazines that are, ultimately, about peddling products? The answer from teen mag editors tends to be a bit murky, evasive or just plain indignant. Teen Vogue editor Amy Astley says that such high-end spreads are meant to supply "inspiration" for fashion rebels. "Fashion now is about scrapping the 'rules' and suiting yourself. You can really see and feel this spirit of independence in our fashion stories this month." But it feels an awful lot like consumption training for little girls: You too can aspire to own the $320 Chloe jeans that even your mother can't afford.
"I don't think that to be into fashion and into your style means that you have to be a label whore," Holley explains. "This book [ELLEgirl] is totally not about creating a fashion victim mentality. This magazine is giving a girl a chance to dress the way she wants, think the way she wants, not be a lemming. It may sound shallow, but there's nothing wrong with being strong and looking good. "
But suggesting that empowerment can be found in great black pants seems more of an encouragement for conspicuous consumption than personal fulfillment. Consider the bubblegum wisdom of actress Tara Reid, who, when interviewed about life's little dilemmas for Teen Vogue, explained, "I can handle a full plate because the alternative to being busy is being bored and broke, but being without great black pants makes me depressed."
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