Mica Paris says the lightening of the complexion of black icons in the media is an outrage

The latest ad campaign from L'Oreal has caused a huge stir by featuring a picture of singer Beyonce Knowles looking much lighter-skinned than usual, her hair strawberry blonde. So has the picture been doctored to make her more attractive to white consumers? L'Oreal denies lightening Beyonce's skin tone, but she's not the first black or ethnic model to appear in a make-up advert looking bleached out. Here, TV presenter Mica Paris, 39, argues that the campaign is a betrayal of black women.

When I picked up the Daily Mail and saw the two faces of Beyonce staring back at me, I was angry and upset.

In one picture, she looked as she does in the flesh  -  black, beautiful and proud. But in the second  -  a bizarre and unreal image issued by L'Oreal to advertise their products  -  this black icon has been bleached out to the point where it looks like they are trying to turn her white.

It wasn't even a case of Beyonce's skin looking paler and washed out. Her hair had also been straightened with not a wave in sight, as if this was just one more step towards making her look Caucasian white instead of African-American.

Transformed: Beyonce modelling for L'Oreal (right)

This is no trick of the light. It's a deliberate attempt to lighten a black person in the hope of widening her appeal  -  it's not the only example.

Diana Ross looks much paler than normal in a MAC cosmetics ad, while the Hispanic Eva Longoria is anaemic in a poster for L'Oreal hair products.

What is truly disturbing about the image of Beyonce is that L'Oreal has taken one of the most talented and beautiful black women in the world, and, in my view, has deliberately lightened her colour and hair in order to sell a beauty product.

This has to be the ultimate insult to every black woman out there  -  Beyonce included. It is suggesting that in order to be beautiful and appealing, she needs to be white.

I've met Beyonce, and I can't imagine she would be happy with what they have done. But advertisers panic about using black models  -  it scares them. I am convinced that they believe a black face on a product will alienate white people, and result in a drop in sales.

I can't believe this would be the case in today's multi-cultural society  -  but the middle-class, white, middle-aged managers who make these decisions probably come from an entirely different era.

Transformed: Diana Ross, left, and in an ad for MAC cosmetics

They want 'hip' Beyonce to endorse their products, as she brings a young and 'with-it' feel, but they don't want to alienate the white big spenders. The answer? Have it both ways  -  a 'bleached' black face.

By doing this, they believe they are appealing to the widest audience.

Airbrushing, of course, is perfectly normal. I've been airbrushed myself, but never have my very dark skin or straight nose been altered. Nor would I ever allow it to be.

It is hard to make your way as a bright, beautiful and independent black woman in today's society. Beyonce has fought so hard to get where she has, but the message beaming out from her lightened face, perfectly straight hair and altered image is hugely disturbing.

What does it say to young black girls? Hide the fact that you are black? Your skin colour is something to be ashamed of?

Beyonce's lightened image screams the message that you can't stand up and be proud to be black. Yet this is why we are having so much trouble on the streets today. Young black kids can't see themselves in the media. They are desperate for role models who have become successful. I shudder to think what effect this computer generated image of Beyonce might have on young female fans out there.

Transformed: Eva Longoria, left, also promotes L'Oreal, right

Decades ago, black women in the entertainment industry, such as the singer Josephine Baker, were forced to use lemon juice in an attempt to lighten their skin colour. I thought this was barbaric, but it is no different to what has happened to Beyonce.

Advertisers are nervous about using black models, but with a bit of 'photoshop' they try to have it both ways. In the UK, it is rare to see black models used to promote products. When I travel through Italy and the rest of Europe, there are images of beautiful black girls everywhere.

But advertisers should look to the recent example from the Italian Vogue magazine, where one editor dared to print a special edition using black models only. Many warned it would have disastrous results on circulation. But this 'controversial' issue, in July this year, sold out.

But when will advertisers acknowledge that black, Hispanic and Asian women are also consumers.

Beyonce is a great signing for L'Oreal, she appeals to millions of fans of all races, but to be afraid of what she is, and to alter that to make her commercially acceptable is degrading and infuriating.

If Beyonce wants to show her true colours, she needs to fight back. And if she manages to change the way industry chiefs view darker skin, then she will prove her true worth as a black icon.