Facebook, Twitter Fans To Decide Fate of Barbie and Ken

Take a look at the website if you want to have your say...

Facebook, Twitter Fans To Decide Fate of Barbie and Ken

We know you were all crushed when Barbie and Ken, yes, the dolls, split up on Valentine's Day in 2004. Fortunately for you, the cupids at Mattel are giving this plasticine couple another shot.

Toymaker Mattel has launched a massive social media campaign asking Internet users to help Ken, now in his 50th year, win back his old flame. After all, if dolls can't make it in the age of social media, who can?
At the core of the campaign is the website www.barbieandken.com, where users can vote on whether Barbie should take Ken back after apparently ditching her in 2004 (inspiring a Bachelor-like reality dating show). Voters can also help Barbie sort out her feelings by voting on her "Love-o-Meter," featuring a familiar option, "It's Complicated."

The campaign also uses Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, FourSquare, and Hulu to spread the message. Fans of either doll's accounts will note the two "flirting" online. For instance, after checking into the Metropolitan Museum of Art on FourSquare, Ken left the tip: "Barbie could spend hours looking at the timeless art, and I could spend hours looking at Barbie."

Not sweet enough? Mattell has also partnered up with Magnolia Bakery in Los Angeles and New York City to create a special cupcake that will only be sold on Valentine's Day. In a mock press release covering a Ken sighting, Mattel wrote, "On a mission to prove he's the ultimate boyfriend, America's most fashionable "first man" was overheard saying that designing a dessert for his beloved at her favorite bakery would really take the cake. With Valentine's Day around the corner, that's the kind of sweet-talking a girl can really go for.

But despite the grand "gestures," Barbie seems torn. Her @BarbieStyles handle recently tweeted, "At a loss with what to do about @OfficialKen. A walk on the beach is exactly what this Malibu girl needs" – referring to one of her classic incarnations, Malibu Barbie.