Europe melts for Michelle: Politico
Sunday, April 5, 2009 at 1:46PM
Michelle Obama waves as she walks with Lilita Zatlere, wife of Latvian President Valdis Zatlers. Photo: AP Whatever it was, the Europeans fell hard. Dubbed Mighty Michelle by one British tab — because of her sculpted arms, her Ivy League pedigree, fashion sense and her power as a cultural symbol — Obama’s star power grew with every day of her European tour. Her fashion choices were front-page news. Coverage of her every move kept pace with coverage of the president.
She was careful never to overshadow him, but many observers noted that she seemed to resonate with the public in a way that even the popular president did not. To writer Tina Brown, Michelle Obama became “the inspirational It Girl and iconic female African-American role model” — the new Oprah, with a dash of Princess Di.
The Guardian Newspaper put it plainly, saying that the success of the Europe trip for “Brand Michelle …. was not that the international public think of her as more beautiful, or even as more stylish, but that they like her more, they relate to her more, and they trust her more.” more


















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