Gabourey Sidibe, the portly star from Precious, is on the cover of Elle Magazine, and it's sparked some stupid controversy by people who have nothing better to do than rabble rabble until they're blue in the face. Elle released four magazine covers highlighting different actresses in their mid-20's: Lauren Conrad, Megan Fox (the word "actress" used loosely for these two girls), Amanda Seyfried, and Ms. Sidibe. People immediately played the "one of these things is not like the other" Sesame Street game with the covers:

In addition to conspiracy theorizing that Gabourey's skin color was lightened for the magazine cover, many are voicing complaints that the three skinny actresses get a fuller body shot for their covers, whereas Gabourey's cover features a close up shot that engulfs the entire page.

Regarding the "skin lightening," it's entirely possible that her skin looks less dark due to lighting and flash; after all, it's a photo shoot for a high fashion magazine. I'm pretty sure they make all sorts of tweaks to highlight clothes, hair, accessories, etc. as much as possible. Maybe they lightened her skin via Photoshop, but it seems more likely that her skin tone was washed out from lighting. After all, look at Lauren Conrad -- she's tanner in real life but on her cover she looks as white as Amanda Seyfried, and nobody's outraged that she was "lightened." If you look at various pictures of yourself, you'll notice that your skin tone varies from photo to photo depending on where you're at and the various lighting conditions.

As for the complaints that Gabourey didn't get a full-body shot...dude, come on. Elle is in the fashion business, and most fashion designers showcased in their magazine don't design plus sizes. It's a harsh truth, but Elle's customers are probably more likely to think "I want that halter dress Amanda Seyfried is wearing!" than "Wow, where can I find that top Gabourey is wearing, only in a less gigantic size?" 

I've read various articles about the "controversy" referring to Gabourey Sidibe as being "full-figured" or "curvy." Uh, Christina Hendricks is full-figured. Salma Hayek is curvy. Gabourey Sidibe, on the other hand, is neither of these. She's fat, and she's not just fat, she's obese. Possibly even morbidly obese. If you saw Gabourey walking through the mall as a non-famous, everyday person, you wouldn't describe her as "curvy" or "full-figured," you'd refer to her as "fat."

I'm sorry, this is not "curvy"

Now that she's famous, it's as if people are trying to look the other way when it comes to her weight. They bemoan the fact that Gabourey is barely on any magazine covers, and when she is, she's not photographed attractively. It's because she's obese. If you're trying to sell copies of your magazine, would you put an unhealthy person on the cover? How come Elle Magazine hasn't put a sweaty, strung out Tom Sizemore on the cover wearing a fancy ascot and smoking jacket? Isn't that just as discriminatory?

The three thin to potentially slightly underweight girls on the cover are arguably still much healthier than Ms. Sidibe. Being that obese is not good for your joints, your heart, your cholesterol -- it's just plain unhealthy. At that size, she's flirting with a host of health issues ranging from asthma and apnea to Type II diabetes. I think highlighting someone that obese and unhealthy is just as irresponsible as showcasing an impossibly thin woman or Photoshopping someone to unreal proportions.

What do you think about the magazine cover controversy?

What do you think about the Gabourey Sidibe Elle cover controversy?