So there are places where sex doesn't sell. Well, one place for certain: Texas. The editor of the magazine Texas Monthly has admitted that he was wrong to run a front cover with the headline "Astronaut Sex!" It resulted in the May issue being the second-worst newsstand seller in the magazine's 34-year history, and it may yet prove to be the worst.
In a lengthy apology to readers on his editor's blog Evan Smith explained that he was deluged with complaints from readers who were upset by the word "sex". In what he calls "a very conservative state" people felt it "crossed a line". They "did not like having to explain to their sons or daughters what the word 'sex' means."
The illustration - showing two astronaut figures relaxing on a bed - was meant to illustrate a story about Lisa Nowak, the astronaut involved in a love triangle which led to her being charged with kidnapping. That image also offended sensibilities, in part because one of the pair was shown smoking a cigarette.
Despite the uproar Smith has retained his sense of humour. "No editor sends a cover out the door with the intention of offending people," he writes before admitting that he and his colleagues "had toyed, not entirely seriously, with other cover images and lines that were much more provocative." These included showing a shuttle covered by a condom, or placing a sign on a shuttle door that read, "Do not disturb: Entry in progress."
In fact, staring him and his fellow editors in the face was a cover line they should have used. It was the headline over the article itself, "Lust in Space." As he concludes: "Hindsight is, famously, 20-20." Indeed.
