Naked ambition: Wannabe journalist fishes for donations to fund boob job

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Naked ambition: Wannabe journalist fishes for

donations to fund boob job

By Heslam

Sunday, May 14, 2006

A self-professed budding broadcast journalist bared

all on Craigslist, where she placed an online ad

begging “kind-hearted” people to pony up $3,000 for

breast implants because her “small chest” is holding

her back.

Hoax or not, the ad illustrates the ever-increasing

pressure on wannabe television journalists to look

like models.

But are double-D cups a requirement for female TV

newsies?

“Some of these people might need a brain transplant

before they need fake boobs. They are the boobs,” said

Tobe Berkovitz, associate dean of Boston University’s

communications department.

The woman who posted the ad said she had earned her

journalism degree and believed the breast implants

were the “final piece” she needs to have more

“self-confidence and gain better job opportunities.”

She also included a photo of a woman presumed to be

her cupping her breasts.

“I am seeking understanding, kind-hearted people who

are willing to invest in my A-cup breasts and help me

finance a breast augmentation surgery and advance my

career in broadcast journalism,” the woman wrote.

“In this day and age, I know how important looking

good is for any career,” she wrote.

The ad was posted this week under “items wanted” on

Craigslist.org in Washington, D.C. The posting has

since been pulled, but not before it appeared on the

www.newsblues.com Web site.

While looking good on camera always has been an issue,

the women on local and cable TV news today look like

they’ve stepped out of Elle magazine, said Belle

Adler, associate professor of journalism at

Northeastern University.

“It’s very clear that they’re chosen for their looks.

Now, that’s not to say that they’re not intelligent,

although some of them are clearly not,” Adler said.

jheslam@...