Tyra Banks Responds To Weight Critics
Tyra Banks is speaking out against critics who say she has gained too much weight since leaving the runway.
Unflattering photos of Banks in a bathing suit have been posted on the Internet with captions like "America's Next Top Waddle," "Fat Tyra" and "Tyra Porkchop." Web sites and tabloids have criticized her for gaining 30 to 40 pounds.
Banks is now firing back in a People magazine article. She admits that she has gained some weight since her modeling days and that her weight does fluctuate depending on how well she is taking care of herself.
"They have been mean, calling her ugly, fat, disgusting — all because she put on a little weight," Galina Espinoza, senior editor for People magazine, told The Early Show co-anchor Julie Chen. "Tyra wasn't aware people were talking about her. She came back from Australia and saw pictures on the Internet and people were calling worried saying, 'You gained 40 pounds, we should talk about this.' She thought, 'What is all the fuss about?' "
Banks says she's hurt by the comments, that she's "still hot," and that she's more "relatable" at 155 pounds instead of 145 pounds. She plans to address the situation during an episode of "The Tyra Banks Show" set to air next week, Espinoza said.
"She's saying yeah, she's put on a little weight but she's at a healthy body weight and a healthy size and her big concern is young girls who look up to her, saying, 'We think you are so beautiful and love that you are not a size 2,' " Espinoza said. "What are they going to think if they see my picture being called these horrible things?"
Banks sees herself as a role-model now that she's launched her career as a talk show host. Espinoza said that Banks knows she contributed to this image of perfection during her years modeling.
"Now she wants to be honest about all the work that goes into looking that good and what she really looks like," Espinoza said. "Tyra found this ridiculous, saying, 'What does my weight have to do with all of my years of experience and success? I'm not a model any more.' "
On "America's Top Model," Banks doesn't pick excessively thin women and deliberately chooses models of all body sizes. Espinoza said Banks gives advice about getting in better shape, but also acknowledges that she is not a model anymore and doesn't have to adhere to those standards.
This has been a struggle Banks is long familiar with. Even when she first became a model, critics said she was too big.
"She said there was a list of designers who wouldn't work with her because she had hips," Espinoza said. "She's used to being criticized for her body but has always turned it into a positive. So she went to places like the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue and Victoria's Secret, where curves are valued. That's a message she wants to send. You don't have to conform to one beauty ideal there are lots of ways to be beautiful."