Lego won’t show girls building in its magazine?? Is this true?

From MomsLA.com

Lego now has a Lego Club Girls Magazine, which according to a mom whose kids are members, is the only place where Lego will feature pictures that girls send in of themselves with their “builds.” They no longer plan to put pictures of girls in their other magazine, which is both the defacto “boy magazine,” but will continue to be called the Lego Club Jr. Magazine. This segregates girls’ play. Boys should see girls building, and girls should see boys building. For boys, the one place where they might have previously seen girls in official Lego marketing, is now a boys-only space.

Tell me what you know.

Update: From the comments I’ve gotten here and on FB, it seems to me– and this is a guess– that Lego is in the process of deciding, Look at the comments and see what you think. Here is the comment I got back from LEGO on its FB page:

FROM LEGO: Hi Reel Girl! The pages in the magazines displaying children’s builds will feature pictures from girls and boys in both magazines. Thanks for clarifying with us! 🙂

I left LEGO more questions clarifying the clarifying. Will there be girls in Lego Jr Club? Why 2 magazines? Are you going for pretty much equal representation of genders in each or is your goal to primarily have boys reading one and girls reading the other?

12 thoughts on “Lego won’t show girls building in its magazine?? Is this true?

  1. And apparently, in the end of the girls magazine, you could continue with the girls magasine, or switch back to the REGULAR magasine! What, girls aren’t regular!?

  2. Pingback: Why My Daughters Won’t be Playing with Lego Friends | Moms LA

  3. Reel Girl:
    This is SO interesting. I was going based off of the impeus.com reporting on what she heard from Lego reps. And when I was researching this post, there WAS a Lego Girls Club magazine that you could sign up for on their website. However, I just called, and was told by a Lego rep that they would be putting girls photos in the regular magazine, and that he did not know if there would be a separate girls magazine anymore because “we’re still in the decision making process about what to do about that.” He said they might just do the Girls “Friends” stuff as an insert in the regular magazine that all kids get, instead of sending them just to girls and the other magazine just to boys. But he could not tell me for sure.

    SO it sounds like Lego might be listening to some of our feedback. Which is a GOOD think, don’t you think?

    • Elsie,

      Yes, it sounds like they are deciding. Just got this response on their FB page:

      FROM LEGO: Hi Reel Girl! The pages in the magazines displaying children’s builds will feature pictures from girls and boys in both magazines. Thanks for clarifying with us! 🙂

      I asked them one more time to clarify just to be certain.

      MM

      • So interesting! The Lego rep I talked to wouldn’t even commit to the continuation of 2 magazines, but yours seems to be willing to acknowledge that. It definitely sounds like they are at least considering changing course as we speak!

    • Elsie,

      Lego has not responded to my questions: “Why 2 magazines? Are you going for pretty much equal representation of genders in each or is your goal to primarily have boys reading one and girls reading the other?”

      My guess is they don’t know what they’re doing. But yes, it would be great if they’re listening to feedback.

      Margot

  4. I just grabbed the nearest stack of my son’s magazines. 3 from 2011 and 2 from 2010. The Jan-Feb 2011 issue has 2 pictures that include girls (in a picture WITH their brothers). In my quick sampling, no other issue included girls.

  5. Aninha,

    Lego encourages kids to send in pics of them building and their projects. Lego will publish these pics. While I knew they didn’t put girls in most ads, I didn’t know they segregated pics of real life kids building? If that is true, I have to admit, I’m shocked. I really hope its not true.

    MM

  6. Wasn’t it always so? I don’t remember having ever seen an ad, for instance, that had even a smurfette girl among several boys. Lego promotes its gender neutral toys exclusively for the boys (because you know, boys = neutral or masculine, girls = specific = whatever feminine definition is better for whatever marketing strategy).

    Of course, I could be wrong, perhaps I missed the few appearances on ads girls made, or I just don’t remember it…

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