# Does this Rolling Stone magazine cover offend you? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 17, 2013, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774 "2013-07-17T18:10:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/161 "2013-07-18T15:58:30Z")
> [@Andiethewestie](#): > > What the fuck, RS is out to sell papers. It’s hard to stay in business if you can’t sell papers. But again, tons of people have done stories about the bombers (and this one is pretty good) and a lot of them have used this photo. ---
**Author:** ![Andiethewestie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ba9def/32.png) [@Andiethewestie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andiethewestie)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/162 "2013-07-18T16:01:53Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > It’s hard to stay in business if you can’t sell papers. But again, tons of people have done stories about the bombers (and this one is pretty good) and a lot of them have used this photo. So why not use the picture of Adam Lanza for his henous crime? Too creepy? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/163 "2013-07-18T16:08:47Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > No. But there have been a few talking heads out there, some I like [michael smerconish] and some I despise [mike huckabee] that are refusing to give these fuckers the attention they want by NOT using their names but instead referring to them as “The bomber” or “The shooter” Yeah, that’s just stupid. Sure, some perpetrators of heinous acts might have been motivated by the possibility of fame, but, you know what, once it’s done it’s done. We need to be able to talk intelligently and thoroughly about subjects of public importance without those kinds of painful circumlocutions. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/164 "2013-07-18T16:10:44Z")
> [@Andiethewestie](#): > > So why not use the picture of Adam Lanza for his henous crime? Too creepy? Lots of people have written about Lanza and used his creepy picture. I don’t know if anyone has done the definitive story about him because we really know very little about who he was or what he did what he did. Unlike Dzokhar Tsarnaev, he’s dead and had few connections with other people. I think RS did a decent job explaining why they did this piece about Tsarnaev and put it on the cover. > [@Acsenray](#): > > Yeah, that’s just stupid. It is. They’re also commentators and as such have an excuse to not behave like journalists. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/165 "2013-07-18T16:19:10Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Yeah, that’s just stupid. > > Sure, some perpetrators of heinous acts might have been motivated by the possibility of fame, but, you know what, once it’s done it’s done. We need to be able to talk intelligently and thoroughly about subjects of public importance without those kinds of painful circumlocutions. Well, I think the majority of them are doing it for the fame. Also, I don’t see what’s keeping people from having an intelligent discussion by not using their names. Nor do I see what’s so laborious about it. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/166 "2013-07-18T16:25:29Z")
Laboriousness is a different issue. It’s stupid. Plus, it’s ineffective. That person is already famous and there’s nothing you can do about it. Avoiding the name does nothing to change that. Plus it smacks of Stalinist style revisionism. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/167 "2013-07-18T16:27:01Z")
I think the picture, and the article are very important. Not only can I not understand why I am supposed to be offended, as I stated earlier, but I think it’s vital to see him this way as well as a killer. Evil does not come in a turban and a beard, as many people have stated. Killers do not come conveniently marked for your convenience. Profiling has major, major flaws. If we do not examine how a young man like this came to where he is, how are we ever going to see it and predict it in the future? If we shut our eyes and close our ears and scream “EVIL!” and point, we do the victims a disservice. I think the Rolling Stone made its point, and very clearly. I also don’t believe they “don’t care” about the victims, as someone in this thread said. I’m pretty sure the editors at RS aren’t psychopaths. In fact, reading their articles about Goldman Sachs and the great article Taibbi did on HSBC makes me feel like they are exactly the opposite. ---
**Author:** ![Andiethewestie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ba9def/32.png) [@Andiethewestie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andiethewestie)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/168 "2013-07-18T16:30:26Z")
Yeah but Adam Lanza just looked like a geek. Point is he wasn’t pretty. He won’t sell like the Bomber. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/169 "2013-07-18T16:36:17Z")
Five chains so far won’t be selling this issue in their stores. Not enough to really slap RS down, but at least it makes the point. > [@](#): > > “CVS/pharmacy has decided not to sell the current issue of Rolling Stone featuring a cover photo of the Boston Marathon bombing suspect,” > \ > Other retailers who have said they will not carry the issue include Walgreens, Rite Aid, Stop & Shop, the grocery chain the Roche Bros and Tedeschi Food Shops, a Massachusetts-based convenience store chain. ---
**Author:** ![Emiliana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@Emiliana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emiliana)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/170 "2013-07-18T16:36:44Z")
> [@Andiethewestie](#): > > The Rolling Stone picture glamorizes the monster in the same way it glamorized Manson. For me it’s just a waste of time and money because people who are soft in the head are going to see that pic and feel sorry for him, just as they felt sorry for Charlie. How many millions has Charlie cost the state of California? Gurd your loins, Massachusetts, you’re in for paying big time for this waste of space. I’m pretty sure the costs of imprisoning Bomber Monster (see cover of RS) will be borne by the federal government. I suppose the state may charge him with the murder of the police officer but as of the moment he’s in a federal prison facing federal charges. And I’m completely sure that Manson’s imprisonment costs are completely unrelated to his presence on the cover of RS which could not have in any case led anyone on God’s good earth to feel one iota of pity for him. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/171 "2013-07-18T16:37:56Z")
> [@Andiethewestie](#): > > Yeah but Adam Lanza just looked like a geek. Yes, he did. His photo wouldn’t tell work with this kind of story, although of course it could work with a different kind of story. > [@](#): > > Point is he wasn’t pretty. He won’t sell like the Bomber. Do you think anybody is going to buy the magazine just because Tsarnaev is handsome? ---
**Author:** ![Andiethewestie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ba9def/32.png) [@Andiethewestie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andiethewestie)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/172 "2013-07-18T16:39:35Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Yes, he did. His photo wouldn’t tell work with this kind of story, although of course it could work with a different kind of story. > > Do you think anybody is going to buy the magazine just because Tsarnaev is handsome? Absolutely. There are fangirls already in love with him. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/173 "2013-07-18T16:40:03Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Five chains so far won’t be selling this issue in their stores. Not enough to really slap RS down, but at least it makes the point. _What_ point does it make? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/174 "2013-07-18T16:41:42Z")
That stupid people can frighten merchants. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/175 "2013-07-18T16:41:51Z")
> [@Andiethewestie](#): > > Absolutely. There are fangirls already in love with him. Ok, that’s true- as someone else mentioned, this already seemed to be their favorite picture. But I doubt there are so many of them that it’s going to move a whole bunch of magazines. ---
**Author:** ![Andiethewestie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ba9def/32.png) [@Andiethewestie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andiethewestie)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/176 "2013-07-18T16:41:59Z")
Fangirls all obsessed with the “poor” bomber. > **[Smitten teen girls stir up #FreeJahar mania for Boston Marathon bombings suspect](https://nypost.com/2013/05/12/smitten-teen-girls-stir-up-freejahar-mania-for-boston-marathon-bombings-suspect/)** > > ( )This love is terrifying. Thousands of American teen girls are crushing on Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar “Jahar” Tsarnaev, 19 — and leading a social-media movement to exonerate him. The swoonin… ---
**Author:** ![Emiliana](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@Emiliana](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emiliana)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/177 "2013-07-18T16:43:50Z")
This particular photo was used, in part, _because_ there are fangirls in love with him. Again, it’s getting at our completely irrational and counter-productive insistence that evil be obvious and ugly. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/178 "2013-07-18T16:47:12Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > You think dehumanizing is better? No, but I understand why people aren’t particularly inclined to humanize this one, and so I see little point in being outraged about the outrage. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/179 "2013-07-18T16:47:28Z")
Hey, I think we are all forgetting something. Innocent until proven guilty, right? Maybe he was “standing his ground” against American Imperialism. That’s right. I went there. ---
**Author:** ![Renifer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71c47a/32.png) [@Renifer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renifer)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2013, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774/180 "2013-07-18T16:48:02Z")
> [@Sparky\_the\_Wonder\_Spirit](#): > > Except they didn’t ‘pose’ him - it’s a picture the guy took of himself. > > Since it seems that part of the thesis statement of their article is what a seemingly “normal” kid the guy was, I don’t think it’s inappropriate. > > We as a society seem to enjoy pretending that evil always looks ugly and bad. I think that’s kind of childish of us. I agree. I’m not offended because this is the point that the magazine is trying to make. To quote a commenter from this Fark thread: **i don’t see as sexy but as showing him as what he in many ways is- a baby faced young man. Its the old “face of evil” thing- these guys aren’t all a bearded mullah wearing a turban and an AK strapped across the chest.** > **[Rolling Stone magazine responds to outrage over new cover, says it "falls...](https://www.fark.com/comments/7847327/Rolling-Stone-magazine-responds-to-outrage-over-new-cover-says-it-falls-within-traditions-of-journalism-They-apparently-forgot-word-yellow-in-there)** > > Rolling Stone magazine responds to outrage over new cover, says it "falls within the traditions of journalism." They apparently forgot the word "yellow" in there [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-rolling-stone-magazine-cover-offend-you/663774.md?page=10)