A Female’s Take on Booth Babes
I’m all for the empowerment of women or whatever, but I’m nowhere near being one of those fembot crazies that runs around crying and protesting mannequins in store windows because they set unrealistic expectations for women. Housewives are allowed to be housewives, and corporate she-sharks should be corporate she-sharks. Be who you want to be. With that being said, I’d like to plead my case FOR booth girls at conventions.
I’ve been hearing talk of conventions banning the use of booth girls, and I think it’s a bunch of crap, whether it’s fueled by women’s rights or censorship. Women’s rights activists and bat-shit women at conventions all over complain about the presence of these half-naked girls. Common complaints:
“You’re totally exposing these girls! They’re demeaning themselves just for sales! How do you think they feel?”
Sex sells. That’s it. At larger conventions, these women are professional models, so they should be used to being stared at all day. At smaller conventions, the girls may not be models, but either way they’re getting paid for their work. It’s ultimately her choice to be a booth girl. No one is forcing her.
“Blahblah unrealistic body type! All the other women here are going to feel terrible!”
All the other women “here” would also feel terrible going to the beach, watching television, or flipping through a magazine. Slave Leias and Sailor Moons aren’t going to upset them anymore than the underwear section of the Sears catalog. I definitely don’t have a perfect body, but the only thing I feel when seeing these booth-girls is “boob-envy”, as I’m sure many other less-gifted women do. I mean really, how can you not feel insignificant standing next to a girl with 38 Es?
“This is incredibly unfair. You’re taking advantage of all the men who just want to peruse merchandise. You can sell WITHOUT having models!”
Sure, vendors can sell merchandise without having walking pairs of boobs convincing hopeless WoW kids that they need five of the same item, but the point is vendors often sell more this way. These girls are more than models, they’re sales representatives. They push sales and educate potential customers on what is being sold. Even if they’re completely brainless, they at least provide amusement (either with their bodies or their air-headed comments about how Deadpool should not have had his own comic series).
*random rambling about censorship*
What about billboards? Commercials for products? Just shut up.
Penny Arcade’s rules on the matter, according to Ars Technica, leave room for interpretation. Models can dress up in revealing clothing as long as it is an accurate portrayal of a character. The model must also know the product inside and out, so as to be an effective salesperson.
I’m not sure what they mean by “no partial nudity”. What if the character is partially nude, a la the girls at the beginning of God of War (TOTALLY NSFW, GUYS. Or home. Don’t click here unless you’re an idiot.)? Just kidding, they’re way naked. But I’m not actually sure what “partially nude” is. Would the revealing cocktail dresses of Ada Wong from Resident Evil or those of Aya Brea from Parasite Eve be considered “partial nudity”, or would it take bikini bottoms and a short t-shirt to be kicked out of PAX? I need to know these things.
I’d say the problem is Penny Arcade hasn’t actually defined these rules. I can’t find a URL to the rules specifically published by Penny Arcade. I can only find blog posts about the rules by other people, and the results of the poll Penny Arcade conducted. I have to commend those 60% of people that answered with “like/love the booth babe ban” to said poll. Although most of them are probably women, I’m proud of you guys out there that can keep it in your pants. You make your kind look marginally more civilized.
If you want more reading for the defense of booth babes, check out Brian’s articles:
In Defense of Booth Babes at PAX (I could totally look like Red Sonja if I tried, though, so I don’t have that issue.)
Defending Booth Babes Once Again
Are there any other women out there that feel the same way as I, or am I just a ridiculous minority?
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Brian Pedersen, Darren Miller. Darren Miller said: New Geekcentricity: A Female’s Take on Booth Babes http://goo.gl/fb/dJXOY [...]
I’m actually right with you. I agree on every point. Though I will fight you to be Red Sonja. As long as they are actually pulling the costume off (and are not repeating the horror that was the Felicia cosplayer at AWA about four years ago)– this is a relatively straight woman speaking here, too. Most important point: No one is forcing any girl to be a booth girl. If a girl wants to be a booth girl,let her be a booth girl. She’s proud of her body, proud of her cosplaying skills, and proud of being a nerd. That’s just fantastic. As you said, the other women who are complaining are insecure. Hell, I’m insecure — but at least I have the ability to genuinely admire another woman’s beauty. Great article, Carmen! Let’s go play God of War.
WE WILL PLAY GOD OF WAR IMMEDIATELY.
I forgot Red Sonja was yours. ._. I have my character anyway, so I’ll stick with Barriss.
<3
A good read. Generally, I agree. I have one thought, though.
People generally consider stereotypes to be wrong. Personally, I think stereotypes are generalizations which, when used in moderation, can be useful and functional for humans who, everyday, have to make on-the-spot judgments about the world around them. That being said, some stereotypes, mostly taken to an extreme and believed to be absolute,are bad.
I wonder if these booth girls reinforce a bad stereotype, one that is extreme and absolute. Moreover, I wonder if it is one that does them harm without them realizing. For example, in your own article, you say “Even if they’re completely brainless, they at least provide amusement (either with their bodies or their air-headed comments about how Deadpool should not have had his own comic series).” There seems to be an assumption present in the aforementioned statement that booth girls are inclined to be brainless, and I have to ask myself if their actions aren’t producing this stereotype (and, therefore, such actions should be curtailed for the betterment of all).
Just a thought.
Awesome article, Carmen! Good food for thought.
Well, she says “Even if…” — some people are air-headed, some are not (I am air-headed). I think she meant, even if they aren’t the best sales representatives, they’re still representing, in the physical sense, games and geekology. For the most part, booth girls that I’ve spoken too are very intelligent and knowledgeable about their wares, just also, as a plus, good cosplayers and genuine geeks. Huzzah! I don’t think “booth girls” are a large enough number to be stereotyped. Many girls who are booth girls are seasonal. I was offered to work at a stall (so proud!) when I was at Boston Con some years back, and one of the key points was that I had a bubbly, congenial personality. They understood that if I had, it would have only been temporary and I’d only be available if they were in the region. From what I understand, it’s a part-time job unless they run the booth or are related/married to the person who runs the booth.
Haleigh: I’m pretty sure you’re right about the seasonal job thing. Like I said, at large cons they’re professional models, so I’m guessing they have other jobs too. Also, I can’t imagine being a “professional booth girl” would rake in enough money.
Eric: Haleigh’s right, I didn’t mean that they’re ALL air-headed. That’s just one of the points that other people bring up, so I was rebutting.
Thank you guys for reading!
It should also be noted that I don’t really go to conventions (not yet, anyway). As well, I’m not saying that I disagree with you–I’m just thinking outloud. K, I’m done now.
Hah, you’re allowed to think aloud (heeeeh). It’s quite alright. That’s what the question at the end was for, even though you’re not a woman.
I agree with you and Haleigh, as well. Sure, a lot of women feel insecure when they see a gorgeous half-naked babe being gawked at by every male in a half-mile radius, but that’s never going to change. We should be commending the booth babes’ self-confidence instead of trying to force them out of a job. Because to them, that’s all it is – it’s a job. They’re not trying to do anything but make money, just like the people selling their merchandise, and no one has an issue with THAT. =/ People need to chillax and realize that women’s rights extend to the women who choose to be objectified, choose to be viewed sexually, and choose to adhere to society’s dictations of what makes a woman beautiful. Women’s rights include the right to be a scantily-clad model, if the woman so desires, and no one should be trying to take that right away.
For the record, also a relatively straight female, also a con-goer, also a nerd, but not quite as nerdy as Haleigh and Carmen about video games and stuff.
I also commend their self-discipline. It takes a lot of effort to look like that.
What I don’t get is how people can actively support this double standard. Everyone points to women like Hilary Clinton or Nancy Pelosi or Condelezza (sp?) Rice as “empowered” because they choose to be politicians, yet a woman like Giselle what’s-her-name (the supermodel) is “exploited” because she chooses to model underwear. I mean, isn’t the whole point here that these women are doing what they themselves *choose* to do? I always thought that was the goal, but I guess, since I’m just “some inferior male whose brain is in his pants” (actual quote from one of the neo-feminists, or whatever they’d be called, that my girlfriend’s college campus is wrought with), I just don’t get it…
Now, if a woman is being unwillingly exploited, I’ll be more than happy to cry foul, but until then, I just say live and let live.
This. Exactly this.