The magazine once published a naked male issue. This is not a typo. It's true! FHM decided to do something different and printed a special edition featuring well-known men without any clothes on. Why did they choose this unusual course? What impact did it have on their readership? Let's find out.
Let's understand what "naked" means. In general, it means without clothing or covering.
If you are sitting at home in your underwear, then you are naked. If you go swimming and take off your bathing suit, then you are nude. So, when FHM published an issue with no clothes, it was literally showing the bare bodies of its subjects.
Some people may still prefer to call these images "semi-nude," which is more polite language.
Let's look at why FHM chose to publish a naked male issue in the first place. They wanted to raise awareness for charity and get attention for a good cause. Specifically, they were helping fight breast cancer through The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. By showing famous males like David Beckham, Kanye West, Jake Gyllenhaal, and others without their clothes on, they hoped to generate interest and donations from readers. Some might think that using sex sells, but FHM went beyond that by selling charitable giving instead.
What kind of feedback did FHM receive after publishing this unique magazine? Some people loved it! Others thought it was distasteful and unnecessary.
Though, most commenters agreed that they respected the effort behind such a bold move. They also appreciated seeing celebrities who usually appear shirtless show their chests completely exposed. And because it came out for charity, many felt okay about buying something that they normally wouldn't.
We should ask whether or not the publication of this special edition had any lasting effects. Well, there have been other similar issues since then, so maybe it opened doors for other magazines to follow suit (no pun intended). But ultimately, FHM made waves with this creative idea and made headlines around the world for its bravery in tackling gender norms and promoting equality between men and women. It will be interesting to see how this trend continues over time.
While some may still debate the appropriateness of publishing nude male images in a mainstream magazine, FHM showed that anything is possible when done right and for a good cause. Their special issue raised awareness and funds, broke boundaries, and inspired future publications to do more than just sexualize their content.