Sports Illustrated’s annual Swimsuit issue eliminates bathing suits. This year models are naked, supposedly to embrace the #MeToo movement. Because nothing says don’t objectify me like naked photos in Sports Illustrated.
Sports Illustrated’s annual Swimsuit issue will attempt to embrace the #MeToo movement by replacing some of the skimpy bathing suits with empowering words – but not everyone is a fan.
The magazine rolled out preview of the issue on Wednesday with a feature in Vanity Fairand a first-hand account from some of the models that was published on Sports Illustrated’s website. The Swimsuit issue will now feature more athletes, written pieces from models, a nude spread by a female photographer and an all-female crew.
A portion of the issue titled “In her own words” replaces clothing with painted-on word such as “truth,” “mother,” nurturer” and “human.” Editor MJ Day said her team decided the 2018 edition would dial back objectifying women months before Harvey Weinstein was exposed, sparking the #MeToo movement.
“I’m thrilled that this movement is going on because I feel like it’s going to change things for the better,” Day told Vanity Fair. “The ideal is to create something artful, to create a beautiful image that both the subject and the team is proud of and collaborates on together.”
While the issue will aim to mirror the #MeToo movement by “allowing women to exist in the world without being harassed or judged regardless of how they like to present themselves,” Day also promised Vanity Fair that the issue is “always going to be sexy, no matter what is happening.”
Day told Vanity Fair that the words written on the nude models in black marker were chosen by the specific models themselves and selected an assortment of women with different levels of experience and body types.
“In a way, it’s more than being naked. It’s not just that you’re nude, but it’s also ‘you’re nude and you show me the way you want me to see you,’” model Paulina Porizkova wrote.
Despite Day’s efforts, a quick glance at the magazine’s Twitter feed is evidence that the Swimsuit issue will still be showcase topless women rolling around on the beach — and critics have taken notice.
Musician and political commentator Kaya Jones tweeted that she is “appalled” by the photos that were released.
Read the rest at: Sports Illustrated
