Maxim Cover Criticized for Beautifying Violence Against Women

Men’s magazine Maxim is receiving some criticism for its latest cover featuring actor Kim Byung Ok.

The revealed photo shows the actor smoking while a woman’s legs are tied up and peek out of the trunk.

With this photo, Maxim also included the caption, “So girls like the ‘bad guy’ types? Here’s a true bad guy. It’s to die for, isn’t it?”

After the cover was released, many netizens criticized it, saying, “This is caricaturizing assault against women acceptable,” and “[MAXIM] has crossed the line.”

Maxim Korea explained, “Maxim’s September issue focuses on actor Kim Byung Ok, and each photo is centered around kidnap, murder, abandonment, prisons, and more.”

As controversy over the cover rose, MAXIM Korea wrote on its homepage, “You can guess from the various photos that this month’s issue was centered around expressing crimes, but nowhere in the pictorial does it focus on sexual assault. We did not beautify sexual assault. We only aimed to stylize these photos like a noir film, telling a story and giving off a certain atmosphere. We hope you understand our point.”

What are your opinions on this cover?

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