‘I think she’s truly beautiful’: Celebrity, gender and body positivity in plus-size fashion blogs

This article examines the intersections of celebrity, gender and body positivity in fashion blogs written by plus-size women. Through a qualitative, thematic analysis of fifty-four blog entries and 189 comments, I explore how the bloggers construct celebrities as their body positive role models, as well as the ways in which mainstream media discourse on (celebrity) women’s bodies is critiqued by the bloggers. The results of the study highlight the boundary work that takes place within the plus-size fashion blogging community, as the bloggers view some celebrities as ‘authentic’ representatives of their community, while
rejecting others. A boundary is also drawn between the blogosphere and the mainstream media, since mainstream media’s portrayal of women is highly criticized by the bloggers. The goals of the body positivity movement – such as bringing more diversity and acceptance of different bodies into media imagery – are present throughout the data. However, the study also draws attention to the problematic aspects of body positivity, such as the commercialization of an originally activism-driven social movement.