Ditz

Issue date: 12/6/07 Section: Letter from the Editors

[Click to enlarge]

[Click to enlarge]

[Click to enlarge]

What is a ditz? Is it a hyper-feminine caricature who draws hearts over her 'i's? Is it the persona embodied by Jessica Simpson, who can't distinguish chicken from tuna? More importantly, is it someone incapable of intelligence?

We don't think so. The articles in today's women's magazines suggest that self-improvement is of the utmost importance, often neglecting the capacity of a woman to think. Or at least to think about anything other than how to please her man.

Alternative magazines have sprung up, attempting to discard all notions of fashion, makeup, or sex. This policy of rejection doesn't jive with us, either. Yes, women have brains capable of analyzing and discussing intelligent topics. But we're also allowed some vanity from time to time. We're allowed to care about health, clothing, fitness-and we're allowed to love the color pink.

Being a ditz doesn't mean your brain is full of marshmallow fluff. In selecting the name "Ditz" for our magazine, we're aiming to reconcile vanities with intellect. Just because you like to shop doesn't mean your magazine of choice should only include articles on fashion, just because you care about your health doesn't mean you're interested in the latest diet craze.

We'd like to think we have something for everybody, even those who refuse to self-identify with our magazine's title-even men. By offering a variety of subjects, we hope to appeal to every Oxy student, possibly even college students nationwide. We encourage any of you to contribute your ideas-if you hear someone talking about an interesting topic, tell them to write about it!

Some people may cringe when they hear our name. We hope everyone gives the site a chance before jumping to any conclusions, as we feel it contains both fun and compelling topics with a broad potential for discussion. Until you check it out, you don't even know.

Ashley Van Sipma & Linni Kral
Co-Founders/Editors-in-Chief

A Note on the Cover:

Juan Medina posed for our cover photo for Caroline Heldman's article on permissive lettering. The article notes that women often self-objectify by wearing clothing with writing on the butt or chest, and we wanted to show people what it would look like for a man to have writing on a sexualized region of the body. We'd like people to think about why this appears so absurd and unconventional, when it is often the norm for women.


We'd like to thank the following people for the invaluable contribution to our efforts this semester. This magazine wouldn't exist without the support of all of you.

Bob Sipchen, Caroline Heldman and her Fall '07 Gender & Politics class, Meredith Conroy, John Zipperer, Julia Cosgrove, the folks at Sierra magazine: Martha Geering, Chuck Baldwin, and Jennifer Hattam. We would also like to thank Juan Medina, Jessica Yant, Nonda Hanneman, Tom Logan, Alex Safransky, Adam O'Connor, Megan Locks, Mike Schoelch, Dave Reed, Arianne Salvador, Liza Detrick, Ari Tiziani, Katie Mills, Dana Marshall, Katie Sandoval, Luke Celdeberg, Lynn & Gary Van Sipma, and Peggy Kral. And the wonderful staff at the Oinkster, for maintaining our sanity this semester with their Belgian fries and homemade condiments.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools