The most controversial U.S. magazine covers of 2024

Sex, religion, race and politics were factors in the most controversial U.S. magazine covers of 2024.
Of course, you could say that in practically any year. But this was a presidential election year, so sensitivities are heightened.

Beauty mogul and possibly retired singer Rihanna stirred up controversy with her spring 2024 cover photo for Interview magazine.
Rihanna wore a nun’s habit along with an unbuttoned blouse that showed off her sweaty cleavage. The sexy nun portrayal was criticized for being in bad taste.
(See articles by Fox News, ABC News and Parade.)

Actress Emma Corrin showed off her armpit hair for the cover of the June/July 2024 issue of Harper’s Bazaar. Social media commentators thought the look was unattractive.
(See article by People.)

Actress Kristen Stewart went viral for her gender-bending cover for the March issue of Rolling Stone magazine. The photo showed Stewart wearing a jock strap with her hand feeling her crotch.
(See articles by The Hollywood Reporter, Rolling Stone and Us Weekly.)

Singer, dancer and actress JoJo Siwa pulled a similar stunt with her cover photo for Ladygunn magazine in September.
She wore an all-gold sequined outfit that included a male chest plate and a jock strap with a prominent bulge.
(See articles by the Daily Mail, Parade, the Independent, PopCulture.com, New York Post, USA Today, Today and HuffPost.)

The March 28 issue of Denver’s Westword magazine caught flak for the cover art for its article on youth and crime. The illustration showed a young boy with blue skin and curly, black hair wearing a hoodie. The boy had a handgun in his backpack.
Critics argued that the illustration presented harmful stereotypes that demonize black youth.
(See articles by Denver’s 9News and Westword.)

New York magazine’s March 11 issue drew complaints for its cover story subtitled “The moral case for letting trans kids change their bodies.”
Critics said it was an attempt to normalize surgery for sexually confused youngsters.
(See article by R. Albert Mohler Jr.)

Speaking of the trans debate, conservatives slammed Forbes magazine for including transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney on the cover of its annual “30 Under 30” issue.
(See articles by the Daily Mail and the Blaze.)

New York magazine received criticism for a June cover story and illustration, which some said insulted Republican women with ridiculous stereotypes.
(See article by the Daily Wire.)

Time magazine named WNBA basketball star Caitlin Clark as its “Athlete of the Year.” Some haters claimed Clark, who is Caucasian, earned the title because of “white privilege.”
(See articles by Daily Mail, Daily Mail again and New York Post.)

Time magazine earned disapproval from conservatives for its fawning cover story on liberal presidential candidate Kamala Harris for the Aug. 26 issue.
(See articles by Fox News, Fox News again and New York Post.)

And finally, Time magazine upset leftists after naming President-elect Donald Trump its “Person of the Year” on its Dec. 30 cover.
(See articles by Sky News Australia, Daily Beast and Variety.)

Late entertainment and technology predictions for 2021

When I posted my roundup of 2021 predictions on Dec. 31, some news outlets and analysts had yet to publish their predictions. What follows is a look at some of those Johnny-come-lately predictions.

New albums from Adele and Rihanna

Variety magazine predicts that Adele will come out with her long-awaited fourth album this year. The entertainment journal also forecasts that it will be the top-selling album of the year. Her last album, “25”, came out in 2015.
Variety also thinks 2021 will be the year Rihanna blesses the world with new music. Her last album, “Anti,” released in 2016. “Anticipation for a follow-up has grown, not dissipated — a new album will be a major event on a level none of her previous launches were,” Variety said. It will be her ninth studio album.

Comcast’s NBCUniversal buys MGM Studios

Comcast’s NBCUniversal will purchase movie studio MGM Studios to bulk up its direct-to-consumer streaming video offerings, LightShed Ventures predicts.
“In acquiring MGM, NBCU would gain access to the Bond franchise that has been severely underexploited beyond a movie every few years,” LightShed analysts said. “Within NBCUniversal, we could imagine how the Bond franchise could be expanded into its own Bond Character Universe (BCU) leveraging linear TV, streaming and theme parks.”
LightShed also is predicting that Comcast will sell its 33% stake in Hulu to Disney to gain more capital for its own streaming ventures.

Airbnb gets into short-term office space

Recent IPO Airbnb will diversify from short-term residential rentals to short-term office rentals, says Scott Galloway, professor of marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business. The Covid-19 pandemic cratered the market for office space and Airbnb will take advantage of that as knowledge workers return to shared offices, he said.

Photo: Singer and entrepreneur Rihanna. (Savage X Fenty lingerie by Rihanna)

The most controversial international magazine covers of 2019

Several world leaders took offense at foreign magazine covers in 2019, causing international rows.
What follows is a list of the most controversial international magazine covers of 2019. In addition to politics, other hot-button issues hit by contentious covers included race, sex and religion.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan filed a legal complaint in Turkey over the cover story in the Oct. 24 issue of French magazine Le Point, which described him as “The Eradicator.”
The magazine’s cover used a photo of the Turkish leader giving a military salute, with a tagline that reads, “Ethnic cleansing, Ergodan style,” and a second tagline that asks, “Will we let him massacre the Kurds (and threaten Europe)?”
(See articles by Bloomberg, the Daily Mail, Agence France-Presse and Associated Press.)
Last year, Erdogan criticized a cover story by Le Point that labeled him a “dictator.”

The May 20 international edition of Time magazine caused a firestorm by labeling Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “India’s divider in chief.”
(See articles by Gulf News, India’s Business Today, Outlook India and the New Indian Express.)

Slovenian liberal political weekly Mladina magazine caused a stir when it depicted Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban giving a Nazi salute on the cover of its March 22 issue. (See article by Fox News.)

Serbian weekly magazine NIN removed a cover photo of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić from its Nov. 28 issue after receiving harsh criticism. The photo, which showed the president at an arms fair, could have been an invitation to kill him, critics said. The picture showed a gun pointed at Vučić. (See article by Balkan Insight.)

A Chinese embassy magazine aimed at promoting China’s ties with host country Myanmar sparked anger with a cover that imposed Chinese architectural features on the country’s famed Mandalay Palace.
The June issue of China Today magazine, a bimonthly journal published in Burmese, showed the 160-year-old Mandalay Palace, with a reflection in its famed moat of a Chinese-style palace and bastion. (See article by Radio Free Asia.)

Britain’s Daily Telegraph issued an apology after publishing a cover story in its magazine about U.S. first lady Melania Trump, saying it “contained a number of false statements.” It also paid “substantial damages” to the first lady, including her legal costs. The Jan. 19 cover story was titled “The Mystery of Melania.”
(See articles by Fox News, CNN and BBC.)

French magazine Paris Match was mocked for its July 4 cover photo that showed former French President Nicolas Sarkozy towering over his wife, former supermodel Carla Bruni. Sarkozy is 5 feet 5 inches tall while his wife is 5 feet 9 inches tall.
(See articles by Fox News, France 24, the Guardian and the Telegraph.)

In March, the Insurance Institute of Ireland pulled their members’ magazine after a controversial front cover was slammed as racist and insensitive.
The cover of the quarterly magazine carried the headline “The Dark Side of Insurance” and referred to the rise in cyber risks. The cover illustration showed thieves with dark purple faces stealing phones, money and passwords from a woman with a pink face and blonde hair.
(See articles by the Irish Independent and the Times.)

The April 16 issue of Football France raised hackles with a cover illustration showing star players Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo passionately kissing. (See articles by RT and Marca.)

In August, German Jews accused Der Spiegel of spreading anti-Semitic stereotypes with the cover of its historical issue. (See articles by the Times of Israel and Forward.)

Harper’s Bazaar Australia came under fire for its December issue titled “A celebration of Australian beauty.” The cover photo showed five thin, white models. Critics said the magazine showed a lack of diversity.
(See articles by the Daily Mail and Stuff.)

Singer Rihanna was called out for “cultural appropriation” for her cover shoot for August issue of Harper’s Bazaar China. Rihanna posed in traditional Chinese clothes for the magazine.
(See articles by CNN and Page Six.)

This month, a woman with a 17-year-old daughter with autism slammed a U.K. supermarket for selling a magazine that claimed autism can be cured. Get Well magazine touts “Alternative treatments proven to work” and had a cover story titled “Reversing autism.” (See articles by Good to Know and the U.K. Independent.)

In August, then 17-year-old pop singer Billie Eilish blasted Nylon Germany magazine for a cover illustration that showed her bald and topless. The magazine pulled the cover after the stinging criticism.
(See articles by Dazed, iHeartRadio, the Guardian and People.)

The student magazine of the University of Otago in New Zealand, Critic Te Arohi, saw Facebook ban its April 7 cover for violating its community standards around nudity. The cover of its annual “Sex” issue featured 24 naked students. (See article by Stuff.)

French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo stirred controversy with a graphic cover cartoon to mark the FIFA Women’s World Cup. The cartoon showed a vagina with a soccer ball entering it. A caption accompanying the cartoon read: “We will be munching on this all month!”
(See articles by Reuters, RT and Canoe.)

The most divisive Vogue magazine covers of 2018

Fashion magazine Vogue frequently stirs up controversy with its cover choices. Its magazines in 2018 were no exception.

The June cover of Vogue Arabia featuring a Saudi princess behind the wheel of a convertible drew widespread criticism.
The issue claimed to be “a celebration of the trailblazing women of Saudi Arabia,” including cover subject Princess Hayfa Bint Abdullah Al Saud. Saudi Arabia had recently lifted its ban on female drivers.
Critics called the magazine tone deaf, noting that at least 11 activists had been arrested in Saudi Arabia in the previous two weeks, most of whom were women who fought for the right to drive.
(See articles by NPR, CNN and Time.)

Vogue Italia was slammed for using “black face” with its cover image of model Gigi Hadid for its May 2018 issue.
Hadid and Vogue Italia later apologized for the photo shoot. Hadid said her skin was bronzed for the session, but also darkened in post-production.
(See articles by People, CBS News, the Daily Mail and Page Six.)

The February issue of British Vogue was mocked for featuring two white actresses, Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie, with the cover line “Why we need to talk about race.”
British Vogue has faced criticism for its lack of racial diversity within its covers.
(See articles by the Independent and AJC.)

The March issue of Vogue India was criticized for featuring reality-television star Kim Kardashian West on the cover instead of a South Asia woman.
She also was lambasted for cultural appropriation in the photo shoot. Kardashian West wore a lehenga, a traditional Indian skirt typically worn to formal events or on special occasions.
(See articles by Insider, Fashionista, Indian Express and the Daily Mail.)

Reality-TV star Kylie Jenner stirred up controversy on social media with her appearance on the cover of the September issue of Vogue Australia.
Her makeup artist, Ariel Tejada, implied that Jenner was makeup-free, except for moisturizer, on the cover. People took to social media to call B.S. on that claim.
(See articles by Insider and Dankanator.)

Readers complained about the cover selection for the first issue of Vogue Czechoslovakia. They called the cover ugly and said it wasted Czech beauty Karolina Kurkova by photographing her back.
(See article by the Fashion Spot.)

Finally, in May, readers ridiculed the cover of U.S. Vogue’s Met Gala Special Edition. They knocked Katy Perry’s outfit and said other celebrities at the show had much better ensembles. But no one dared to complain about Rihanna, who shared the cover. (See article by the Fashion Spot.)

Rihanna Photoshopped with bigger booty, breasts in online fakes

People love Rihanna, the pop singer and fashion icon. But some fans apparently wish she had a little more meat on her bones.
Lately I’ve noticed people posting Photoshopped pictures of Rihanna on Google Plus Collections. These pictures show Rihanna with bigger breasts, bigger butt and chunky thighs.
I’ve called out these Photoshop fakes in the comments section, but some internet trolls treat me like a killjoy for posting the original photos and links to news articles with them.
With the tide of fake news and information growing online, people need to step up and stomp on these types of activities, so the truth will rise to the top.
I’ll post a couple of examples of real and fake Rihanna photos here. (Real photo first, followed by fake photo.)

2017 magazine covers in review

It was an exciting year for magazines.
The election of Donald Trump as U.S. president and the controversies that followed him have given cover artists a lot of material with which to work.
Sex still sells and it shows in the number of magazines using attractive nude celebrities on their covers.
And people found a lot of things to get upset about with magazine covers this year, especially those having to do with race, Islam, sexism and overuse of Photoshop.
What follows is a summary of my recent year-in-review posts about magazine covers.

The most controversial U.S. magazine covers of 2017 (Dec. 16, 2017)

The most controversial foreign magazine covers of 2017 (Dec. 16, 2017)

Notable nude magazine covers in 2017 (Dec. 17, 2017)

Final issues and first issues in the magazine business in 2017 (Dec. 18, 2017)

Photos: Harper’s Bazaar cover featuring pop star Rihanna (top), and a Der Spiegel cover showing the baby Jesus arriving via Amazon.com.

The most controversial foreign magazine covers of 2017

Americans aren’t the only people who freak out when they see magazine covers that clash with their worldview or sensibilities.
What follows is a review of some of the most controversial foreign magazine covers of the year, as discussed mostly by English-language media.

U.S. magazines have been reserved in their coverage of President Donald Trump compared with foreign magazines.
Ireland’s political and cultural magazine Village suggested that a sniper assassinate Trump. Its February cover showed Trump in the crosshairs with the headline “Why not.”
(See articles by Fox News, the Sun and Belfast Telegraph.)

The Feb. 4 issue of German news magazine Der Spiegel showed Trump with a bloody butcher knife and holding the decapitated head of Lady Liberty.
(See articles by BBC News and Business Insider.)

German news magazine Stern depicted Trump giving a Nazi salute while draped in an American flag on its Aug. 24 issue. The cover headline “Sein Kampf,” or “His Struggle” is a play on Adolf Hitler’s 1925 book “Mein Kampf.”
(See articles by the Daily Mail, the Hill and USA Today.)

First Lady Melania Trump’s appearance on the February cover of Vanity Fair Mexico provoked outrage for being insensitive to Mexico’s poor. She posed sitting at a dining table with a bowl of jewelry and using a fork to twirl a necklace like spaghetti.
(See articles by the Guardian and USA Today.)

Canadian news magazine Maclean’s painted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in an unfavorable light with a Photoshopped cover that gave him a balding head like his father.
(See article by Narcity.)

The July 31 issue of India Today pissed off mainland China by illustrating the country without disputed territories Tibet and Taiwan.
(See articles by Adweek, Times Now and South China Morning Post.)

A cover of Japanese magazine Brutus had Taiwanese media outlets up in arms, upset at how their country was portrayed. Some thought the photo of Guohua-jie, a street in Tainan famous for its fine cuisine, intentionally tried to convey a low standard of living.
(See articles by Nippon.com and Taiwan News.)

Animal rights activists hated a cover of Brides Indonesia that used an endangered orangutan as a prop.
(See article by Coconuts Bali.)

French music magazine Les Inrockuptibles was harshly criticized for putting on its cover rock star Bertrand Cantat who was convicted of murdering his girlfriend. The cover treatment seemed to glorify Cantat.
(See articles by the Guardian, New York Times and BBC.)

French sports magazine L'Équipe dared to focus on the impact of menstruation in sports for its Feb. 18 cover story “The champions break the last taboo of the sport.”
(See article by Liberation.)

Brazilian weekly news magazine Istoé came under fire for featuring only white faces on its “Brazilians of the year” cover – underneath a headline that asked why “angry racism” still exists. (See article by the Guardian.)

Actor George Clooney blasted French magazine Voici for publishing pictures of his newborn twins on its cover. He claimed photographers trespassed on his property and violated his privacy to take the photos.
(See articles by the Economic Times, the Hollywood Reporter, Gossip Cop and Mirror.)

Victoria’s Secret model Sara Sampaio said French publication Lui magazine pressured her to pose nude on set and published topless photos of her that were in violation of her “no nudity” contract. Sampaio exposes a nipple on the cover of the magazine.
(See articles by People, Fashionista, Celebrity Hive, Glamour and the Daily Star.)

French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo was the center of controversy for a front cover blaming terrorist attacks in Europe on Islam. A cover illustration in August depicted two blood-soaked pedestrians after being hit by a speeding van, with the caption: “Islam is the religion of peace eternal.”
(See articles by the Daily Mail, Town Hall and Anadolu Agency.)

Muslim commentators accused model Gigi Hadid of wearing a hijab as a “fashion statement” rather than religious apparel on the cover of the first issue of Vogue Arabia in March. Critics also accused the half-Palestinian model of “cultural appropriation.”
(See article by the Daily Mail.)

Singer and beauty entrepreneur Rihanna was criticized for cultural appropriation for dressing as Egyptian Queen Nefertiti on the November cover of Vogue Arabia.
(See articles by the Huffington Post and Stylecaster.)

Britain’s Evening Standard apologized for using Photoshop to remove an ornate hair braid from a picture of singer Solange Knowles on the Oct. 20 cover of its ES Magazine.
(See articles by Hello Giggles, Spin, Glamour and The Drum.)

Grazia UK magazine apologized to actress Lupita Nyong’o for using a photo on its cover that smoothed her natural hair and removed a curly ponytail.
(See articles by the Daily Mail, People, Page Six and the Telegraph.)

Actress and model Emily Ratajkowski slammed French magazine Madame Figaro for Photoshopping her breasts and lips on its cover.
(See articles by the Daily Mail, Allure, People and InStyle.)

Related reading:

The most controversial U.S. magazine covers of 2017