Obama Shirtless on Washingtonian | 04/21/2009 8:00 am
President Barack Obama Shirtless on Washingtonian Cover (Image)

The May issue of Washingtonian recycled the infamous paparazzi photograph of a shirtless President Barack Obama to illustrate one reason why people "love living here: Our new neighbor is hot."
The picture was snapped as Obama vacationed in Hawaii with this family in December, days before the first family officially moved to Pennsylvania Avenue.
Garrett Graff, editor-at-large at Washingtonian, a monthly entertainment and lifestyle magazine read by more than 400,000 people, told ABC News the idea for the cover came during a staff discussion about the Obamas arrival and the "celebrity aspect that has brought energy to the city and the attention of the paparazzi."
"The Obamas are the center of attention here and the whole world is looking to Washington now in a way we haven’t seen in years," Graff said.
In February 2007, a different beach photograph of the then-Senator of Illinois stirred a media frenzy. In response to the publicity, Barack Obama voiced his dismay that the public wasn’t curious about his policies but rather his pectorals.
"The problem is that that’s not what you guys have been reporting on," he said. "You’ve been reporting on how I look in a swimsuit."
Tell us: What do you think of the May issue of Washingtonian? Is it innocent? Fun? Disrespectful? Degrading?























68 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment
That won’t last too much longer, Mary QC. It’s "showtime" in America.
"he is president now and that photo is inappropriate for the cover of a magazine."
I agree completely. The office of president, and the president himself, should not be denigrated in this manner.