But this is no ordinary pop portrait. The stark cover line, "The Bomber", overlays a picture of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the 19-year-old Boston Marathon bombing suspect, and when the magazine published the cover on Tuesday night there was an immediate backlash. One criminologist warned that it glorified Tsarnaev – accused of planting bombs which killed three people and injured more than 260 others – and could send a dangerous message to others.
Last week, Tsarnaev pleaded not guilty to 30 counts, including use of a weapon of mass destruction to kill, a charge that could result in the death penalty. Federal prosecutors allege that Tsarnaev and his brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, planted improvised bombs made from pressure cookers close to the finishing line of the Boston marathon on 15 April.
Three people were killed and 264 injured in the blasts. Three days later a police officer was killed during a gunfight between the Tsarnaevs and police. Tamerlan Tsarnaev also died during the standoff, and Dzohkar Tsarnaev was found the next day, hiding in a boat.
