I must say, this is my favorite Michelle Obama picture, the lower body solid and powerful the upper posture bespeaking “from the heart.” And all, of course, in a really cute outfit.
The picture is from a New York Times story by Katharine Seelye, about presidential candidate wives, “They Stand By Their Men, Loudly.” The story is a little bit weird in its construction, though I guess it wants to be about the changing presence of wives in the campaign.
Indeed, the story suddenly made me wonder if I should come up with a campaign equivalent of the “weight statement,” a term I’ve used to describe these sort of non-stories that are frequently trotted out by celebrithon media, in which a female actress declares that she “loves her curves,” or so on. It becomes a way for the media to talk about women’s bodies without saying anything directly, instead reporting what women are saying about themselves.
There’s a tinge of nonstory around this NYT report, so must ask, what is it really trying to say?
A few months ago I mentioned America Ferrera, of Ugly Betty fame, making her “