Sweetie is cute but does she really qualify as a female face of 2011 in a year when woman was chosen to head the IMF? Picture: AP Source: AP
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OBVIOUSLY the world doesn't have enough inspiring women this year.
The BBC has come under fire for choosing a panda as one of its Female Faces of 2011.
Sweetie is one of a pair of pandas newly installed at Edinburgh Zoo joined 11 other faces on the list, including shot US Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, singer Adele and Sarah Burton, who designed Kate Middleton's wedding dress.
Twitter users accused the BBC of trivialising women's achievements, with many suggesting alternative names for "#realwomenoftheyear".
One, who tweets under the name campaigner, wrote: "I'm rather torn over #pandagate. These things are never just black or white."
Labour MP Stella Creasy said: "Whilst we all love a good panda story, in a year when Christine Lagarde became head of the IMF, or Helle Thorning-Schmidt became prime minister of Denmark or even the sad death of Amy Winehouse, its frustrating the BBC couldn't think of 12 human female faces who have made the news this year."
Twitter users also complained that many of the women chosen by the BBC were there because of their involvement in a wedding, rather than for any individual achievement.
The furore comes after, the BBC came under fire last month after its shortlist for the Sports Personality of the Year award did not include any women.
MPs accused the BBC of 'ignoring women's achievements' in 2011 by choosing an all-male shortlist.
The BBC defended its decision, saying: "Including Sweetie as one of the annual headline makers was a light-hearted addition to the list, and this isn't the first time it has featured a non-human. In 2009, Benson the Carp, a much-caught giant fish, was August's entry on the male list and last year Peppa the Pig was on the female list for April."
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