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"&amp;amp;#8220;Maya Angelou told me I should go into politics,&amp;amp;#8221; Tyra Banks, 35, says. &amp;amp;#8220;I was like, &amp;amp;#8216;Child, I have one too many swimsuit pictures out there!&amp;amp;#8217;&amp;amp;#8221; But TV&amp;amp;#8217;s fiercest female-power icon probably has more pull than most politicians anyway. She draws about 3.8 million viewers for America&amp;amp;#8217;s Next Top Model, now in its sixth year, and 1.4 million for the Tyra Show, a chat fest that makes headlines with episodes about topics like breast implants, gay teens and weight discrimination (she donned a fat suit for that one). When tabloids criticized her un-skinny figure, she went on air in a swimsuit and told them to &amp;amp;#8220;kiss my fat ass.&amp;amp;#8221; Body confidence isn&amp;amp;#8217;t new to Banks. She started modeling on fashion runways, but when her curvy frame threatened her career, she asked her mother&amp;amp;#8217;s advice. The two went out for pizza and devised a new strategy: working with what Banks had. She soon found commercial success as the first solo African American cover girl on magazines like GQ and Sports Illustrated&amp;amp;#8217;s Swimsuit Issue. Today a bona fide TV titan, Banks draws comparisons to the queen of talk. &amp;amp;#8220;If Oprah is America&amp;amp;#8217;s mommy,&amp;amp;#8221; an MSNBC writer quipped, &amp;amp;#8220;Tyra is the cool big sister.&amp;amp;#8221; In that role, she runs the TZONE Foundation, which raises funds for groups that empower young women and girls. &amp;amp;#8220;I can&amp;amp;#8217;t change society,&amp;amp;#8221; Banks says. &amp;amp;#8220;[Right now] zero is the most attractive size. But I can help women feel good about themselves.&amp;amp;#8221;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/inspired/women-of-the-year/2008/tyra-banks>