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| The Final Nude Playboy |
Well no sooner had i posted my article about the stylistic and content shift at Maxim magazine (see the earlier post) than the originator of the whole lads mag culture, Playboy, announced they would change as well.
After 62 years Playboy will no longer feature images of nude Women. If the shift at Maxim had not been enough evidence to support my thesis then surely Playboy making this move allows me to rest my case.
Sure Playboy management provided some lame excuses to explain the epic move attributing it mainly to the proliferation of hardcore porn on the web. In other words the prototypical hyper-masturbating young man can get his fix elsewhere. While there is no doubt an element of truth to this it is also even more the case that a magazine like Playboy seems rather archaic to today's generation of male. A magazine geared towards an immature 'lad' culture seems like something from another era and feels irrelevant to modern men.
These males are used to interacting with Women who are not only beautiful but smart, ambitious, competitive and demanding of respect. Reading a Playmate interview where the poor Girl has to answer a series of inane questions not only insults the intelligence of these beautiful Women but of the male readers as well. It doesn't ring true from men's own experiences.
Now don't get me wrong, males will forever continue to be fascinated by the Female form. Feminine beauty will always capture our gaze and imagination.
It was never really the nudity in Playboy that was the core problem it was the magazines attitude that was insulting. It was the attempt to dumb Women down that did such a disservice to both Women and males. Treating Women as purely sexual objects for male entertainment distorted males ideas about Women and stunted males ability to have mature adult relationships.
Today with the rise of Women the Playboy attitude not only is an anachronism but largely incomprehensible to young males surrounded by Female success.
So Dear Playboy, if you want to speak to today's male (or Female for that matter) then give Them/them something intelligent to read not just something beautiful to stare at.
