In October, Playboy abandoned its trademark nude centerfields in an effort to become more of a general-interest lifestyle magazine—the no-nudity men’s magazine Maxim has made stuttering progress on a similar transition this year.
Today, lad magazines took another hit when FHM announced it was suspending publication of FHM and Zoo, which both featured softcore pornography (and, it’s worth pointing out, few of the sophisticated articles and interviews Playboy is known for). It’s unclear if either publication will return, but it’s very clear that the decision was motivated by the magazines’ inability to compete with free, readily available online pornography.
As former FHM and Zoo contributor Carl Anka wrote in The Independent, “Instead of hurriedly shoving a copy of Zoo magazine down the back of your bed, hoping no one notices, British men are opting to use the internet for their visual kicks.”