Filed under: Tabloid Tactics
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I know gossip reporting is not typically rooted in kindness and compassion - and without tabloids and blogger gossip, I wouldn’t have much subject matter to inspire my illustrations and parodies here on GOTA. That being said, Holy Candy and I decided it was high time to collaborate on a Daily Mail parody. The UK’s second largest daily newspaper, the Daily Mail has increasingly turned their focus toward conjuring up fear and disgust over the natural process of ageing. Unfortunately, this fear is focused mainly on women. Ageing men featured in the newspaper are fawned over, celebrated, and praised for looking so “natural”. Women, on the other hand, are scorned for having veiny hands, wrinkles, cellulite and jowls. Often, a zoomed-in photo of the guilty body part is featured and Photoshop-enhanced to make it look even worse.
Holy Candy and I decided to see what would happen if Paul Dacre, editor of the Daily Mail, was placed under the same scrutiny as the female subjects featured in his newspaper. Just look at his deeply etched crow’s feet. The marches of time have not been kind to his age-ravaged face. His veiny hands and pendulous pot belly reveal his true age, and his thinning wisps of grey hair and crooked yellow teeth are sure signs that Father Time is gaining on him. You would think with all that money he makes off bashing older women, he’d be able to afford hair replacement, botox, dental work, and liposuction. medium: photoshop. graphic assembled by 14, text written by Candy Kirby.
Posted by 14 ♦ December 6, 2007
At 12:31 pm Sloth said:
Ha! I love the photoshop-enhanced eye wrinkles. Isn’t that exactly what they do to Madge’s “disturbingly veiny” hands?
December 6, 2007
At 12:33 pm Vernice said:
I actually don’t mind when he bashes Madonna. Other than that he’s a cunt. Thanks for the turn around. The sound you hear is the millions of women worldwide rejoicing at this piece!
December 6, 2007
At 12:44 pm sabina said:
you are my hero for doing this. thank you. i am so sick of women always being critized by both men (and women). What the f–k are we supposed to do, get plastic surgery or stay natural? Either way, we’re still screwed.
December 6, 2007
At 1:14 pm Cici said:
Thank you so much for this. The Daily Mail is the most hateful paper I have ever read, in ever aspect, not just on its frankly quite appalling ideas about feminine aging. I was in the dentists a few years ago, with nothing but a Daily Mail to read in the waiting room- I was flicking idly when I came across an article which stated, in essence, that men who choose to have plastic surgery, have their hair styled and even use male grooming products like moisturiser are effeminate, vain and a disgrace to their gender. Flicking to another section of the magazine, I read another “article” pouring scorn on Iman, who, looking stunning otherwise, chose to show a little cellulite on the beach. Flicking to Jeremy Clarkson’s column, the most antiquated, misogynistic and reactionary of them all, I noticed him describing a fellow celebrity as a “lumpen old sow”. This has always stuck in my mind as the archetypal Daily Mail, full of double standards, hysteria and craziness.
The overall message is, men can get as pot bellied, balding and hideous as the wish (Mr. Clarkson is doing a fantastic job) but the sight of a naturally aging woman is unbearable, and corrective measures should be taken against wrinkles, fat, stretch marks, etc. Don’t be surprised that Mr. Dacre doesn’t hold himself in the same lofty standards- after all, he’s a man, therefore he is already good enough as he is.
The thing that strikes me as odd is the Daily Mail sneers on “low-brow” publications like Heat, and yet they’re doing essentially the same thing as they are. Last thing I heard, the Mail was railing at the Spice Girls for turning Britain’s young womenfolk into binge-drinking whores.
December 6, 2007
At 1:24 pm jerkygirl said:
I like this thread you’re on. Up with real, fleshy, naturally aging women and down with the jackholes who put them down for committing the heinous crimes of being over 18 and eating more than a bite of celery and a tic tac for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day!!! Yay for 14 for joining forces with J. Lo. Hew (hee) to fight the cruel madness that attempts to make normal women hate themselves into starvation and mutilation to try to cram themselves into a mold that’s way more than 2 sizes too small. Thank you, 14. We “aging fatties” need these posts.
December 6, 2007
At 2:14 pm Kate said:
I cannot begin to express to you how deeply gratifying this was to see. I frequently browse the Daily Mail and lament over how often they bash aging women in their publication. They should put this on their front page.
December 6, 2007
At 3:30 pm midevil said:
It’s about time people reverse the attention from women to men as mere objects.
December 6, 2007
At 4:13 pm Jess said:
This is golden!
December 6, 2007
At 5:31 pm Eize said:
THANK YOU!!!
Revenge is so sweet—AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAH!
December 6, 2007
At 5:43 pm Siduri said:
Thank you for doing this.
December 6, 2007
At 5:58 pm Jahara said:
AWESOME - and I agree, thanks.
December 6, 2007
At 7:26 pm Victorian Veronica said:
Women are, in essence, bashed for not having the grace to die at 25. How dare women get old! Who gave them that right?!
December 6, 2007
At 7:59 pm Javelin said:
I think celebrities (esp. in the UK) should carry around a copy of this to hold up next to their “flawed” faces when the paparazzi descends. Then we’ll see if Mr. A-hole keeps zooming in for detail.
December 6, 2007
At 8:23 pm Lia said:
I don’t know… it’s nice to try and make someone taste their own medicine, but honestly, if he were to see this, I’m afraid he’d just laugh. Beauty expectations for men are just nowhere near as high as they are for women (though this is changing somewhat), so to turn the tables on a man unfortunately doesn’t come off with the same ferocity. Kind of like how lots of white people wouldn’t be offended being called “honkey” or “cracker”; these words just don’t correspond to any real-world discrimination.
December 6, 2007
At 10:31 pm Becca said:
Just me, but a bit too depressing to be funny.:/
December 6, 2007
At 11:32 pm des said:
You are my hero, 14, in so many ways. Keep it up!
December 6, 2007
At 3:40 am Nanners said:
Excellent job. I despise the Daily Mail.
December 7, 2007
At 9:06 am cassie said:
Until this moment, I had not realized that you are a genius. This is GREAT!!!! Do it again on another a&#hole.
December 7, 2007
At 12:03 pm Demon Kitty said:
Bravo 14 and Holy Candy!
This is the reason why I hate Trump. I just don’t understand why men think they are immune to this bullshit. I think any straight woman can identify with me when I say that the thought of a wrinkled, grisly, balding, pot bellied, motherfucker’s orgasm face as he shoots his load! Ew!!!!! The prospect of this man shooting his load! Ew! Blech! Barf!
When I was an undergraduate at the University of Southern Mississippi, I was appalled at the double standard of beauty. Guys truly did not think it mattered a damn but what they looked like. If you had a vagina, you could never be beautiful enough. Even on TV, Drew Carey’s girlfriend was too pretty for him!
I am so glad I am a lezbo. Lots of men get fucking scarey when they age! Have you ever seen and older guy with that look of horny excitement in his eye? It is fucking SCARY AS FUCKING HELL!!!!! They don’t realize that they are not 16. When you get past 25, letting anyone know you have a boner on any level, no matter how subconscious is just fucking scary!
I agree with you Vernice.
Dear Lia, “honkey” and “cracker” really offend me.
December 7, 2007
At 2:08 pm MK said:
I just discovered this site and I have to say the work you do is brilliant. I will undoubtedly be linking to you heavily in the future.
December 7, 2007
At 4:24 pm Amazing said:
God/dess love you! About dang time.
December 7, 2007
At 7:45 am Fairmaiden327 said:
Bravo.
December 9, 2007
At 8:47 pm frewtloop said:
Cassie, you crack me up. No I don’t want to visualise him shooting his load - I just ate.
I’m sooo gratified to learn there are others out there that get riled up about this sort of crap as much as I do. But what is really worrying to me is the scores of young women out there who join in the female bashing too. What happened to women being united against chauvinism and misogyny?
December 9, 2007
At 4:55 am Clair said:
We’re singing from the same hymnsheet, girlfriend…!
December 10, 2007
At 8:43 am cubezombie said:
You’ve made my day once again. Revenge is SO sweet!
It’s a shame they continuously put fear into our hearts for naturally aging, but if they’re going to be ageist bastards they should at least do that equally for both sexes.
Thank you 14 and Candy for making a proper retort to the insanity!
December 10, 2007
At 1:26 pm Demon Kitty said:
Dear 14,
Please continue to wage war on the daily mail, because this man is a fucking cunt.
December 10, 2007
At 3:33 pm JosiePie said:
That is fucking awesome!!!! Thank you both for doing that. It is so disgusting how glaringly obvious it is that it is practically a CRIME in this world for a woman to not look like a perfect, airbrushed cover girl wherever she goes. We live in a very sick, dysfunctional society - thank you both for being a voice of sanity, and doing it in such a brilliant way, I might add. Maybe you can find a shot of that Dacre old fossil in swimming trunks so we can see what an Adonis he looks like!
December 13, 2007