名人芭比引争议。为什么美泰还应该坚持多样化道路

今年春季，美泰公司推出“有影响力女性”系列芭比娃娃，其中有一款是20世纪墨西哥艺术家弗里达·卡罗。原本可以让粉丝借此缅怀，然而美泰公司却遭到批评，因为这款芭比娃娃的眼睛变成浅色，弗里达的轮椅和自画像中的连心眉也不见了。

其他根据现实中知名女性制作的非白种人芭比娃娃则大受好评，包括（身披穆斯林头巾的）2016年代表美国出赛奥运会的击剑选手伊布蒂哈吉·穆罕穆德和2018年冬奥会美国单板滑雪选手克洛伊·金等等。

在过去六年间，美泰更换了三任首席执行官，销售额从2013年以来连年下滑。对深陷困境的美泰而言，最近芭比娃娃的销售业绩是难得的亮点。尽管关键的假日季已经结束，今年第一季度芭比的销售额仍然同比增长了24%。 

A doll of Frida Kahlo, released this spring as part of Barbie’s Inspiring Women line, should have been an occasion to celebrate for fans of the 20th-century Mexican artist. Instead the doll’s maker, Mattel, received scorn for depicting Kahlo with light eyes and omitting her wheelchair and the unibrow found in her self-portraits.

But other recent non-Caucasian Barbies based on real-life role models, including the U.S. Olympians Ibtihaj Muhammad (wearing a hijab) and Chloe Kim, have been much better received.

Lately Barbie’s sales have been bright for embattled Mattel, which is on its fourth CEO in six years and had posted sales declines every year since 2013. Sales of the dolls were up 24% in the first quarter of 2018, after the key holiday season.

玩具业专家理查德·戈特利布认为，无论是肤色还是体型方面，多样化都是销售业绩大增的重要原因。他说：“（多样化）不是针对孩子，而是针对母亲的。”他指出，现代母亲希望孩子接触形体更真实的玩具，所以不太愿意选择传统的芭比娃娃。

芭比目前的挑战是继续转型，推动人们对经典芭比的看法进一步改观。

戈特利布说：“这是宏观层面的文化问题。芭比面对的世界已经变了。”（财富中文网）

本文首发于2018年6月1日期《财富》杂志。

译者：Pessy

审稿：夏林

And diversity, whether in skin tone or body size, has been a big part of that sales boost, says industry expert Richard Gott¬lieb. “[Diversity] was not speaking to children, but speaking to the moms,” he says, noting that Barbie had become a problematic buy for modern mothers who want their children to see more realistic body types in toys.

The challenge for Barbie now is to lead that momentum into a larger shift around views of the iconic doll.

Says Gottlieb, “It’s a macro-cultural issue. The world shifted under Barbie’s feet.”

This article originally appeared in the June 1, 2018 issue of Fortune.