Newsweek, the struggling weekly magazine that tries to shock readers into buying copy with phallic images and rainbow halos, is at it again. For the Aug. 13 issue, Newsweek lists the 101 best restaurants in the world.
Naturally, the magazine took this opportunity to feature two pieces of a phallic vegetable aimed down towards a woman’s glossy red lips. Did this cover make you look? Probably. Is it titillating? That’s pushing it. Is it stupid? YES. And for a few reasons:
Firstly, this photo is not creative nor is it necessary. As Slate points out, all Newsweek needed to do was photograph a mouthwatering slab of meat on a plate, or a flaky and creamy piece coconut cream pie, and our country’s food-obsessed readers would certainly line up to buy that.
Secondly, the photo isn’t even an original. It’s a stock image that was used on the cover of UK’s Observer Food Weekly in April 2008, and two months ago in Russian Harper’s Bazaar, as Eater.com noted.
So if you’re going to try and be scandalous, Tina Brown, at least do so with your own original photo. We understand that your magazine is going under, but surely there is an intern with an iPhone camera who could snap a pic of a Shake Shack burger and slap it on the cover.