Amanda Beard is the complete package: beauty, composure, great public image, and athletic prowess. A three-time American Olympian with many swimming medals to her credit, she has parlayed her accomplishments into a career as a model (Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition and others) and spokesperson (Red Bull). Now, she has agreed to give America a peak beneath the red, white and blue in a photo spread for Playboy (NYSE: PLA).
Her appearance is another coup for a company that has made great strides in airbrushing the worry lines from a once-tired brand. At one time, the flesh magazine trade could find success offering nubile and attractive but anonymous females. The market, however, has been changed forever by the Internet, and for magazines such as Hef's to succeed, they need exclusive content.
The money shots are those of women who have built their own fame beforehand, and contribute their credibility to the magazine's. (Are you listening, Condoleezza Rice?) Look at the list of those who have appeared over the past few years: Drew Barrymore, Katarina Witt, Mariah Carey,
If ever there was a company whose success depends on its brand, Playboy is that company. Playboy's brand, at its best, represents the playful side of sex, clearly differentiated from the tsunami of misogynist porn swamping the Internet. Featuring models with positive public images isn't just good business for Playboy, it's essential.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-16-2007 @ 1:34PM
Jim said...
Adding Jessica Alba to that list is quite irresponsible. She was quite upset that Playboy put her on the cover this past year, and threatened to sue. Playboy eventually settled out of court with her. She's never appeared nude in Playboy or anywhere else, and you should point that out, but you didn't.
5-16-2007 @ 1:50PM
Ron said...
I guess we are all supposed to know who Amanda Beard is. I had to click your link to Wikipedia to discover that she is a swimmer. All you had to do was to add one word to your article to make that clear. Why didn't you do that? Does AOL make more money when it requires its readers to click on hot links to other websites to discover basic information which normally would be included in an article? Hmmmm . . . .
5-16-2007 @ 2:49PM
Tom Barlow said...
Jim- you're right; the list I was using was wrong about Alba. Ron, I've added the word. I suspect the swimming outfit would have tipped off many about her sport...
6-01-2007 @ 11:07AM
fernando vasconcelos said...
You are wrong about Mariah Carey too. She was only in the cover of Playboy, special music issue, in march 2007. Anyway, I agree with you: Playboy has nude pictorials completely different in essence from all of the rest of nude girls magazines. Hugh Hefner has a strong brand and he honors it.