ABC has launched the Be Ugly in ’07 campaign, supposedly as a “pro-social movement.” Yeah, it has nothing to do with keeping those Ugly Betty ratings up.
The campaign includes a song by Jason Mraz, a T-shirt that will raise money for Girls Inc., and a plan to hand out Ugly Betty masks in Times Square and at Walt Disney World on New Year’s Eve.
I guess it’s kind of a cool idea; I mean, fine, let’s all “Be real, be smart, be passionate, be true to [ourselves] and be ugly.” But the message is sort of mixed. The campaign web site says “Ugly beauty is not about physical appearance,” but the thing is, America Ferrera is beautiful. What if she couldn’t take off her fake braces, fake bushy eyebrows, and bad wig at the end of the day? Would she still be a star? It’s like Salma Hayek‘s monobrow and mustache in Frida: easy to overlook (and to feel fine about) because we all know she doesn’t really look like that. (She looks like this:) I dunno. Ultimately it’s probably good to make people think about the whole notion of beauty. I do like the idea of revelers wearing Ugly Betty masks on New Year’s Eve, though it’s still not enough to get me anywhere near Times Square.
