Sarah Palin legs

Let me begin this column by stating, I am a staunch liberal and Democrat. If asked to align my beliefs with those of a string of politicians, among the group would be Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and the late Edward Kennedy, D-Mass. Given the option of voting for my old gym sock or Sarah Palin for future president and/or vice president of the United States, I’d place my bets on the gym sock.

This is why it will come as a shock to all who know me that I am, for once, on the side of former governor Palin.

The latest issue of Newsweek magazine features Palin on its cover. She is wearing a red workout pullover, black shorts and tennis shoes as her hand rests on her hip, leaning gently against a barstool draped in the American flag. The cover story reads “How Do You Solve a Problem like Sarah? She’s Bad News for the GOP—and for Everybody Else, Too.”

The cover has caused much controversy over the past few days as it’s been labeled “sexist” and “disrespectful.” Palin even took to her Facebook page to address the issue: “The choice of photo for the cover of this week’s Newsweek is unfortunate. When it comes to Sarah Palin, this ‘news’ magazine has relished focusing on the irrelevant rather than the relevant.... The one-page profile for which this photo was taken was all about health and fitness—a subject to which I am devoted and which is critically important to this nation. The out-of-context Newsweek approach is sexist and oh-so-expected by now. If anyone can learn anything from it: it shows why you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, gender or color of skin. The media will do anything to draw attention—even if out of context.”

And it is out of context. The image was originally shot for the August 2009 cover of Runner’s World, a monthly magazine for recreational runners focusing on health and fitness. Runner’s World issued a statement as well, noting that the photograph was not provided to Newsweek by them, but by the photographer’s stock agency.  

So is the cover sexist? At the very least, it is disrespectful. Although within the context of its original form the photo serves to portray Palin as a runner, and is completely appropriate, outside of that it attempts to delegitimize her as a politician—which, trust me, I understand she is very capable of doing herself. Would Newsweek ever dare do this to a male political figure? As journalist David Brody states, where are the “sexy photos of Tim Pawlenty with an unbuttoned shirt relaxing on a couch in the Twin Cities?” Or how about the famous shirtless photos of Barack Obama?

In the end, this is undoubtedly a ploy at increasing sales. It is no secret that the print world is suffering in circulation—Newsweek itself, according to its owner, The Washington Post Company, has stated that the magazine has been losing profit. They also noted, however, that in overhauling, the magazine would now target a smaller “elite audience,” while further reshaping itself as a “thought leader.”

Whether or not I agree with Palin’s views is irrelevant, as I still believe that an individual in her position should be granted the respect that her peers—especially, her male peers—are given. Some may argue that Palin’s entire political campaign was sexualized, and that she was a willing participant, but why then must Newsweek—a “thought leader”—buy into such nonsense? The fact of the matter is that Newsweek knew very well what they were doing. Their attempts at delegitimizing Palin as a political authority are quite transparent. Taking the cover on its own, the title asks the reader to question wherein the problem lies with Palin. Is it her legs? Is it her hair? By emphasizing her female features and portraying her as nothing more than a “pin-up girl,” the implication is that what is in fact wrong with her is her femininity, and that such an attribute marks her uneducated and unfit for political life.