Victoria's Secret Angel Erin Heatherton thinks that young girls are too smart to believe Photoshopped images like the ones in her company's catalogues.
Heatherton spoke to Fashionista about Photoshop and said that criticisms of heavy editing are a "waste of time."
Heatherton, who is dating actor Leonardo DiCaprio, said that parents, not the media, should teach children what healthy body image is.
She tells Fashionista:
"It’s not a fair message, but at the same time I think we’re all intelligent enough to know the difference between what’s real and what’s not. I think that’s something that children should be taught by their parents, it should be taught in schools. Healthy body image is not something that you’re going to learn from fashion magazines. But at the same time, Photoshop makes things look beautiful just as you have special effects in movies. It’s just part of life and I think that you’re missing the main problem. I think the main issue is people just knowing their own body, having strength in their own body image and their own confidence, which shouldn’t be affected by these kinds of things."
Academics have criticized Victoria's Secret, in particular its annual Fashion Show, for promoting unhealthy body types. All of the models are very thin.
But Heatherton said it's not the fashion industry's responsibility to promote a normal body type:
"We’re not selling reality, we’re selling a story," Heatherton said. "It’s all about creating this fantasy."
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