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In reply to the discussion: 2014 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Revealed. [View all]redqueen
(115,113 posts)The reason is status.
That's the reason.
Look at the difference between this and porn. Free porn is porn, it's intended for one thing.
This? This is a popular, mainstream, sports magazine. But every year, they celebrate soft-core porn. What does that say about society and how it views women? This is one of the biggest signs of higher status there is.
An allegedly respectable sports magazine (far too many still seem to consider it as such anyway) turns into soft-core porn and hardly anyone challenges it. It confirms for them that what Hugh Hefner said was right. Women are sexual playthings not people, and it's totally ok to portray them that way, cause look - everyone but the 'angry feminists' says it's totally acceptable. If you're someone who is heavily invested in reinforcing that misogynist view, this is like Christmas. An annual reminder of just how socially acceptable the objectification of women (this is supposedly a sports magazine) actually is.