20 January 2015 - No more topless page 3 in The Sun
The Sun calls time on topless Page 3 models after 44 years
Lisa O'Carroll (The Guardian)
The Sun, Britain’s top-selling newspaper, has scrapped Page 3’s topless women after 44 years, delighting the legion of critics who have branded the photos of bare-breasted models sexist, offensive and anachronistic.
Insiders said the decision has been taken to kill off the controversial feature quietly but that the feature would continue online.
“This comes from high up, from New York,” said one senior executive in a reference to the paper’s owner Rupert Murdoch.
The Sun refused to respond to any calls, emails or texts from the Guardian throughout Monday but told the Times, which is also owned by Murdoch: “Page 3 of The Sun is where it’s always been, between pages 2 and 4, and you can find Lucy from Warwick at Page3.com. “
The paper reported that last Friday’s edition of the paper will be the last that would “carry an image of a glamour model with bare breasts on that page”.
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History
Kashmira Gander (The Independent)
The respected media commentator Steve Hewlett told Newsnight that the end of page 3 topless women was a near certainty, while The Times, a News International sister paper, ran a story in Tuesday's newspaper headlined "The Sun has got its top on . . . page 3 covers up after 45 years".
Sources at the News UK group-owned newspaper earlier told The Guardian that the feature has already been quietly dropped, potentially marking the end of a four-decade-long tradition which has been branded a sexist anachronism by campaigners.
"It's an historic moment, but the devil will be in the detail, and there’s still a lot to be done," No More Page Three campaigner Angela Towers told The Independent.
"It's an indication that people power is causing change on some level," she said.
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Context
Bill Gardner (The Telegraph)
Topless models were first introduced by the Sun in 1970, less than a year after Rupert Murdoch bought the title. In recent years, the paper has faced growing criticism from campaigners who said the feature was out of date in the modern world.
According to the Guardian, executives had planned to drop Page 3 quietly, without fanfare. It is understood the change may be reversed if it causes a dramatic drop in sales.
Sun editor David Dinsmore refused to comment, but is understood to accept that Page 3 was a relic of the past.
The Sun’s Irish edition dropped topless pictures in August 2013, after editor Paul Clarkson cited “cultural differences”.
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Available online
Nicole Lyn Pesce (The NF Daily News)
The paper will reportedly continue to flash partially-clad women on the front inset, but they’ll be wearing a bra and panties, at least. And paying online subscribes can feast their eyes without offending anyone.
The Guardian also reports this change may be reversed if there’s a noticeable slip in Sun sales.
On Twitter, the Sun’s apparent move was lauded as long overdue, but there was some wistfulness, too.
“The Sun has dropped Page 3?” posted @unnamedinsider. “But how will I find out what Sandra (22) thinks of the situation in Syria?!!”
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20 January 2015 - No more topless page 3 in The Sun, La Clé des Langues [en ligne], Lyon, ENS de LYON/DGESCO (ISSN 2107-7029), janvier 2015. Consulté le 30/12/2024. URL: https://cle.ens-lyon.fr/anglais/key-story/archives-revue-de-presse-2015/20-january-2015-no-more-topless-page-3-in-the-sun