Rolling Stone’s Boston Bomber Cover Ignites Outrage

Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev graces the cover of Rolling Stone’s August 3rd issue, a decision that has caused immediate outrage online.

People on Twitter called the cover  “tasteless,“ “sickening“ and “disgusting,“ and some even accused the magazine of “glamorizing terrorism.” The magazine’s Facebook post of the cover has already received more than 10,000 comments, mostly negative.

Two New England-based retailers announced Wednesday that they will not carry the magazine in their stores: the pharmacy chain CVS and the convenience store chain Tedeschi Food Shops.

Commentators suggest that the cover should have focused on people like Jeff Bauman, who lost both his legs in the bombing.  Journalists, however, supporting the decision say the cover follows a 200-plus year tradition of American journalism which often time focuses on the complexities of tragedy.

Rolling Stone defends their cover story:

Our hearts go out to the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing, and our thoughts are always with them and their families. The cover story we are publishing this week falls within the traditions of journalism and Rolling Stone’s long-standing commitment to serious and thoughtful coverage of the most important political and cultural issues of our day. The fact that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is young, and in the same age group as many of our readers, makes it all the more important for us to examine the complexities of this issue and gain a more complete understanding of how a tragedy like this happens. –THE EDITORS

Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/jahars-world-20130717#ixzz2ZM2mjOIV
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