This is What’s Trending Today.

The Barbie doll has been a part of American culture for more than 50 years. Tall, blond and blue-eyed, the doll became a symbolof the “all-American girl.”

But in recent years, critics targeted the doll.

Social commentators said Barbie was not a good representation of what women do or should look like.

The toy company that makes Barbie made some changes over the years. For example, it widened Barbie’s waist in more realistic proportion to the rest of her body.

But that apparently was not enough for consumers or critics.

So on Thursday, the manufacturer announced three new Barbie body types. Timemagazine reported the story.

Mattel describes the new dolls as tall, petiteand curvy.

The dolls will also represent different ethnicities, with a rangeof skin colors and hair styles.

Lots of people commented about the news on Twitter and Facebook.

Some people were excited to see the changes.

Geek Girl Diva tweeted, “The curves are cool. I’m way more stokedabout the hair color.”

Another Twitterer, Maura Brannigan, posted: “Welcome to the 21stCentury, Barbie.”

But others were not as excited about the news. They say people should not get so worked up about a toy.

Facebook user Michon Martin posted: “I never saw anything negative about her body or standards … she’s a fictitiouspiece of plastic.”

And that’s What’s Trending Today.

I’m Dan Friedell.

Words in This Story

symbol – n. an action, object, event, etc., that expresses or represents a particular idea or quality

curvy – adj.a term used to describe the shape of a woman’s body, a smooth, rounded line

petite – adj.having a small and thin body — usually used to describe a woman or girl

range – n. a group or collection of different things or people that are usually similar in some way

stoked – adj.very excited

worked up – adj. very angry, excited, or upset about something

fictitious – adj.not true or real