December’s issue of Vogue features a two-page spread of eight high-profile Asian models, photographed by the legendary Steven Meisel. The mag, which has never once featured an Asian model on the cover of its American edition, declares that the women featured are “redefining traditional concepts of beauty.”

As of Jen Wang of Disgrasian.com notes:

Which raises the question, “traditional concepts of beauty” where, exactly? Because there are plenty of places in the world where, traditionally speaking, Asian women have long been considered beautiful. Like in, um, Asia, for example? Even in Western countries, Asian beauty, for lack of a more specific term, isn’t a new concept.

Having given the Asian models a little pat on the head, Vogue will surely have us back to our regularly scheduled parade of white faces by next month’s issue.

We here at FBLA don’t want to tread on blogger territory too harshly, but we only bring up Gawker‘s “scoop” on Anna Wintour‘s departure from Vogue as good example of listening to the wrong people — and then reporting it.

When Wintour herself declines any comment and Conde Nast Chairman S.I. Newhouse openly proclaims: “This is the silliest rumor I ever heard,” it makes you take pause.

Now, far be it from us to complain of the sorry standards for editing or regulation concerning blogs in the U.S. But we think some attention must be paid to outright mistakes that crop on blogs in general. For all of us writers on papers and mags out there, this was usually left to these nocturnal creatures called Copy Editors.

But in this Wild West universe of the blog, it falls on the writers to police themselves. That’s a dangerous precedent and it’s one that needs minding. We may not have the right answer, but we know it needs to be considered.

In fact the only reason we here on the Left Coast are even writing about it is the uncanny parallel to the successful indie film, “The Devil Wears Prada.”

We actually thought if it actually were true, then life would truly be imitating art. And maybe that’s a good thing.