Updated: Mon Sep. 15 2008 16:58:44

ctvedmonton.ca

A racy weekly newspaper cover and photo spread has prompted one Edmontonian to launch a petition to have the issue hidden from the public eye.

Michelle Gimenez said she was appalled to see the cover of the current issue of Vue Weekly, which recently published the results of its annual sex survey.

The cover features two nude women holding hands with a naked man with the words "Sex in the city" strategically covering their private parts.

Inside the paper, there are 22 pages of survey results and racy photos.

Gimenez said she can't understand why the paper is allowed to be displayed out in the open.

"I took a double take because I couldn't believe that it had something like that on the cover of it," she said.

The Edmonton resident compared the magazine to a current issue of Playboy.

"It's basically the same thing you can get in an adult magazine," she said. "We don't allow children to purchase that stuff and then when it's somewhere that's ... eye level with them."

Gimenez said she is starting a petition to have the window on the paper's box blacked out so only people who are interested in the publication will open the door.

Vue publisher Ron Garth defended the paper's annual issue Monday, saying his publication is known for pushing the limits and printing edgier content.

"We publish what we feel is of interest and people try to create some diversity of voice and this is just one more example," he said.

Garth said the paper's racks are mainly in the downtown arena, near places where only adults typically visit.

Officials estimate Vue Weekly is read by about 70,000 to 80,000 people. Less than two per cent of the paper's readership is under the age of 18.

CTV Edmonton wants you to have YOUR SAY on the racy cover. Is it appropriate to display the paper in public view?

Please Add Comments

Jan, Edmonton
How is Vue Magazine "forcing" their material on you, Mr Grey? Did someone come up to you and tell to take it or else? Did the magazine jump out of the box at you and not let go? Probably not. If you picked up the paper yourself, it was not forced on you at all. You took it of your own free will. I saw nothing offensive in this magazine. There is a little skin showing. So what. Kids see more and worse on TV every day. So suck it up, Buttercup. No one can force anything on you that you don't want unless you allow them to.

Michael Nunweiler
Covering the window is a bogus idea. What's next, wiping our nose when we get a cold? Tucking us in at night so the boogie man won't get us?

This type of stuff is only a fraction of what kids are exposed to on TV. I think it is the parents responsibility to keep an eye on what their kids are looking at, and if they do see it, step up and explain to you kids what they are looking at.

Covering the front of these boxes would take us one step closer to George Orwell's 1984.

Zapper
RELAX people, stop complaining, it is a "racy" magazine not a porn, you don't think you kids have seen racier images on the music videos they watch????

Now let me get this right, you obviously must have opened the cover and seen what was printed inside to be "so offended" so in the end, the Vue wins. Now the story makes the mainstream news and they will sell even more copies.....where did you say those stands were located :)

Ray Jorritsma
Oh, dear! Let's run right out and cover up the Venus de Milo, put a shroud over Michelangelo's David, and paint clothes on all those nude masterpieces in museums all over the world! Millions of children have seen those artworks and all of them are still well-adjusted kids--who knew? This is much ado about nothing. The human body is a beautiful creation and many kids relish stripping off their clothes and running around naked. A bare breast or bum or even genitals will not corrupt them in the least. What WILL damage them is telling kids not to look, or hiding nudity from them--they will end up ashamed or even scared of their own bodies.

EDB
I happen to like racy photographs. But when they're placed at eye level for my 5 year old, I get a gut feeling that it's wrong. Everything should have a place.

Mike from Edmonton
Nice! A free advertisement for a free weekly paper wrapped up in the guise of a "news" story. Vue Weekly couldn't buy this type of advertising if they wanted it. They couldn't afford it!

David
Some people have FAR too much time on their hands! With all the problems in the world, this woman thinks the latest edition of Vue Weekly is the biggest problem?? She need a head shake...Turn on the news and see how violence is escalating, or how the economy is slumping! Sex & the human body are natural!! Why hide something that promotes love??

gene
I don't think we have to make excuses for smut. what exactly do you want? when are things going to turn around to the point we'll have a little modesty. when will we realize that these sorts of things are having a negative impact on people. my thought is what type of sick perverted individual thinks up this sort of cover and why they want people to be shocked. As if we weren't getting enough already.

John Smith
With everything that's happening in the world, you're getting upset about this? Get over it.

Roger the Grey
True, Vue Weekly is known for pushing the boundaries. Even so, regardless of their list of excuses, freedom of expression and freedom of rights DOES NOT give Vue Weekly (or anyone) the so- called 'right' to DENY the rights of OTHERS, or FORCE offensive material on others. So what if Vue Weekly's "racks are mainly in the downtown arena, near places where only adults typically visit"? There are many adults WITH CHILDREN downtown and all around Edmonton. In fact, there's a right stand outside a large window of the Edmonton Library (across from Churchhill Square), and that window looks out from the CHILDRENS' section of the Library! It's a matter of being ethically and morally responsible. I have seen children look out that window quite often. Can you imagine those children looking out the window to see someone reading these articles (from the reader's perspective, since it gives them an over- the- shoulder view of what they read)? Enough with the excuses. If Vue Weekly wants to produce an adult magazine that pushes the boundaries and is insensitive to the rights of others, then maybe they should rethink the locations that they consider "places where only adults typically visit"? Personally, I think the one outside the downtown Library (and other libraries) should be relocated some distance away from them, and I think the idea of covering the display window is a great idea. At least then it will be less offensive to those who are offended, and it will demonstrate some degree of ethical awareness and sensitivity.

Jennifer
What is so wrong about the naked body and sex? It's a natural part of life.

Korey
Relax people, it's just the human body, and guess what? We all have one!

Jay-R
I was riding on the bus and a bunch of copies of those magazines were everywhere on the bus, where a kid could just pick it up and read it. The pictures in the magazine were exposed pictures of women and basically naked men. This shouldn't be tolerated. How are they allowed to publish something like this out in the open.