“Pimp My Kids”

Thursday, 05 May 2011 | by Pat's Picks

Forget the rides. For celebrities, it’s all about pimping the kids. Children, it seems, are the hottest accessories around. The New York Post says bringing children into the fold is a “surefire way to soften your image, drum up support for your brand [and] simply remind the public that you exist.” J-Lo does it. Tori Spelling does it. Katherine Heigel recently did it on the cover of W. But the proliferation of the strategy doesn’t put everyone at ease—experts (and Corey Feldman) talk to the Post about how childhood fame can have a lasting, destructive effect on kids.

Katherine Heigel, who’s had some image problems in the past, posed with her newly adopted baby on the cover of W. Writes the Post: “She has a reputation for being difficult. So — do a really down-to-earth interview and pose with pictures of your adopted Korean baby who has a heart problem!”

J-Lo recently featured her kids in an ad for Gucci: