The strange logic of banned magazine covers: a look back

BANNED: Smiling celebrity couple with newborn-
This photo of "Lion King" composer Elton John, his long-term partner David Furnish and their swaddled new baby was deemed too racy for shoppers at an Arkansas grocery store. The issues were placed behind a "family shield", a magazine mask usually reserved for issues of Jugs and Hustler. The concern was that children would see two smiling middle-aged men holding a baby and then read the cover line:"Elton's Baby," and in effect become deranged, enraged and/or sexually psychotic. There's no question, magazines use controversial covers to sell issues but it's hard to predict what will be considered too hot for the checkout counter. If US Weekly's cover is cause for concern, you'd think an underage naked girl cupping her breasts would have an editor arrested. Somehow, that's not the case. Compare a handful of magazine covers that were removed from racks with comparable covers that weren't. less