After a flurry of negative comments online and some commercial stores vowing to refuse to sell this month's issue, Rolling Stone has defended its controversial new cover featuring Boston Marathon bombings suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev after triggering a firestorm of comments.
Rolling Stone issued a statement defending its cover story on Wednesday. It read, in full:
"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."
They added that "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."
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As soon as Rolling Stone released the cover image Tuesday night, Rolling Stone's Facebook page attracted much criticism. More than 15,000 mainly outraged comments were posted on Rolling Stone's Facebook page.
A separate Facebook page was created overnight -- Boycott Rolling Stone Magazine For Their Latest Cover. It had generated more than 40,000 "likes" by late Wednesday morning.
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 19, pleaded not guilty to 30 counts, including use of a weapon of mass destruction to kill, a charge that could result in the death penalty. Federal prosecutors allege that Tsarnaev and his brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, planted improvised bombs made from pressure cookers close to the finishing line of the Boston marathon on 15 April.
Three people were killed and 264 injured in the blasts. Three days later a police officer was killed during a gunfight between the Tsarnaevs and police. Tamerlan Tsarnaev also died during the standoff, and Dzohkar Tsarnaev was found the next day, hiding in a boat.
According to Rolling Stone, the story was drawn from interviews with Tsarnaev's friends, teachers, neighbors and law enforcement officials and the story, written by contributing editor Janet Reitman, delivers "a riveting and heartbreaking account of how a charming kid with a bright future became a monster."
Was Rolling Stone wrong to put Tsarnaev on the cover?
