Mattel's Hello Barbie draws ire of toy critic

New York

MATTEL Inc's Hello Barbie, a new doll that can hold Siri-like conversations with children, was meant to help spur a turnaround for the company. Instead, it's drawn the ire of one of the toy industry's most influential critics.

The product, unveiled last month at the Toy Fair in New York, has been targeted by Susan Linn, the activist and academic who led successful campaigns against Baby Einstein videos and sexually suggestive Pussycat Dolls. Hello Barbie's Web connection and speech-recognition software have the potential to violate children's privacy, Ms Linn alleges. And plus the doll is just plain creepy, she says.

Ms Linn and other detractors have managed to build a controversy around something that won't even be on store shelves until November, putting Mattel on the defensive. Though the toymaker has no plans to pull the product, the situation has created one more headache for a company already struggling to reignite demand for Ba…