Editing Playboy (section)

====2016{{ndash}}2018 changes and brief ending of full-frontal nudity====
{{quote box|width=30em
| quote  = This is what I always intended ''Playboy'' Magazine to look like.
| source = — [[Hugh Hefner]], when asked about ending nudity in ''Playboy''<ref name="nonnude" />
}}

In October 2015, ''Playboy'' announced the magazine would no longer feature full-frontal nudity beginning with the March 2016 issue.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Samaiya|first1=Ravi|title=Playboy says it will no longer print images of nude women|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2015/10/12/playboy-says-will-longer-print-images-nude-women/7pxX8hCPsNNLkS9Jgh8uBP/story.html|website=Boston Globe|access-date=October 13, 2015}}</ref> Company CEO [[Scott Flanders]] acknowledged the magazine's inability to compete with freely available [[internet pornography]] and nudity; according to him, "You're now one click away from every sex act imaginable for free. And so it's just passé at this juncture".<ref name="oldnews">{{cite news|last=Somaiya |first=Ravi | url =https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/13/business/media/nudes-are-old-news-at-playboy.html |title=Nudes Are Old News at Playboy |work=The New York Times| date=October 12, 2015| access-date =October 13, 2015}}</ref> Hefner agreed with the decision.<ref name="guardian">{{cite web | url =https://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/oct/13/playboy-magazine-to-stop-publishing-pictures-of-naked-women|title=Playboy magazine to stop publishing pictures of naked women |work=The Guardian|date=October 13, 2015 | access-date =October 13, 2015}}</ref> The redesigned ''Playboy'', however, would still feature a [[Playmate of the Month]] and pictures of women. Still, they would be rated as not appropriate for children under 13.<ref name="guardian"/> The move would not affect PlayboyPlus.com (which features nudity at a paid subscription).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/2015/10/13/9523879/playboy-nudity-no |title=The fascinating economics behind Playboy's decision to drop nudes from its magazine |website=Vox.com |date=October 13, 2015 |access-date=February 14, 2016}}</ref> Josh Horwitz of ''[[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]]'' argued that the motivation for the decision to remove nudity from the magazine was to give [[PB Lifestyle|Playboy Licensing]] a less inappropriate image in India and China, where the brand is a popular item on apparel and thus generates significant revenue.<ref name="quartz">{{cite web | url =http://qz.com/522672/china-not-online-porn-is-why-playboy-is-dumping-nude-photographs/|title=China—not online porn—is why Playboy is dumping nude photographs |work=Quartz|date=October 13, 2015 | access-date =October 18, 2015}}</ref>

Other changes to the magazine included ending the popular jokes section and the various cartoons that appeared throughout the magazine. The redesign eliminated the use of jump copy (articles continuing on non-consecutive pages), eliminating most of the space for cartoons.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Karlin |first1=Susan |title=The Playboy Revamp Continues: How The Magazine Is Redrawing Its Cartoon Lines, Too |url=http://www.fastcocreate.com/3057521/the-playboy-revamp-continues-how-the-magazine-is-redrawing-its-cartoon-lines-too |website=Co.Create |publisher=[[Fast Company]] |access-date=March 12, 2016 |date=March 7, 2016}}</ref> Hefner, himself a former cartoonist, reportedly resisted dropping the cartoons more than the nudity, but ultimately obliged. ''Playboy''{{'}}s plans were to market itself as a competitor to ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'', as opposed to more traditional competitors ''[[GQ]]'' and ''[[Maxim (magazine)|Maxim]]''.<ref name="nonnude">[http://www.wtae.com/money/playboy-enters-nonnude-era-sexy-but-safe-for-work/37812748 Playboy enters non-nude era: Sexy but 'safe for work'] [[WTAE-TV]], via [[CNN Money]] (February 24, 2016)</ref>

''Playboy'' announced in February 2017, however, that the dropping of nudity had been a mistake. Furthermore, for its March/April issue, it reestablished some of its franchises, including the Playboy Philosophy and Party Jokes, but dropped the subtitle "Entertainment for Men", inasmuch as gender roles have evolved. The company's chief creative officer made the announcement on [[Twitter]] with the [[hashtag]] #NakedIsNormal.<ref name="Playboy Reinstates Nudity">{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-38963007 |title=Playboy brings back nudity, claiming #NakedIsNormal |date=February 13, 2017 |publisher=BBC }}</ref>

In early 2018, and according to Jim Puzzanghera of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', ''Playboy'' was reportedly "considering killing the print magazine", as the publication "has lost as much as $7 million annually in recent years".<ref>{{cite news|last1=Puzzanghera|first1=Jim|title=Playboy is considering ending its print magazine, report says|url=http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-playboy-magazine-20180102-story.html|work=Los Angeles Times|date=January 2, 2018}}</ref> However, in the July/August 2018 issue a reader asked if the print magazine would discontinue, and ''Playboy'' responded that it was not going anywhere.

Following Hefner's death and his family's financial stake in the company, the magazine changed direction. In 2019, ''Playboy'' was relaunched as a quarterly publication without adverts. Topics covered included an interview with [[Tarana Burke]], a profile of [[Pete Buttigieg]], coverage of [[BDSM]], and a cover photo representing gender and sexual fluidity.<ref name="NYT Millennial" />