The editor of lads’ mag Loaded says the “days of ‘girlie’ photoshoots are in the past” for his magazine but that “glamorous women” will continue to feature in the title.
Aaron Tinney, who took the editor position at the Simian Publishing title last month, was speaking after director Spencer Hickson told Press Gazette the magazine now has a “zero-nipple” policy.
Tinney said that he would be taking Loaded back to its “roots”, praising the “excellent content” it published in 1994 when it launched.
"The days of 'girlie' photoshoots are in the past for us, but that does not mean we won't be featuring glamorous women,” he in an email to Press Gazette.
"Like any other so-called 'upmarket' magazines, that still has a place in Loaded – it's just going to be done differently.
"It was unfair for Loaded to get dragged into a debate about whether it belonged on the top shelf last year – it never did.
"What needed to happen was for it to become a magazine with substance again.”
The latest issue of Loaded, marking its 20th birthday, has Britpop – which is also 20 years old – as its theme, and features the Gallagher brothers on its front page.
As well as Guardian writer Julie Burchill, the title now features boxer Ricky Hatton and footballer Peter Crouch as columnists, with the latter revealing in the latest issue “the secret of how to get a woman like Abbey [Clancy].”
Tinney said: "And where are the female photoshoots? We have one shoot in the mag in the July issue – it's Holly Valance's younger sister Olympia, talking about how she's launching an acting career.
"My intent isn't to ban women from the pages of Loaded in order to pander to reactionary calls.
"If readers still wanted that material, plenty of other magazines would be running that.
"The 'lads' mag' era of Loaded was about giving readers what they wanted at that time – nothing more, nothing less.
"To brand it 'misogynist' or 'anti-feminist' for meeting business needs is a joke.
"Today, readers' demands have changed again. They can get their fill of women online.”
Tinney said that readers are “crying out for… a quality magazine, packed with quality reads and photographs”.
He said: "Other men's mags that have earned a 'respectable' tag feature far raunchier content than Loaded ever did – and every month are filled with pages of nude women.
"They get away with it because it seen as 'arty'.
"Loaded was never a soft-porn magazine and got dragged into a row about bagging up magazines unfairly.
"Those days are gone for the magazine anyway – now it's about providing quality content, whether it features women or men.”
He added: "And there is a market for the rebranded, relaunched Loaded
"We will not read like a boring shopping catalogue. People still want to see quality photoshoots and quality articles injected with a sense of humour.
"That option is missing in the men's 'lifestyle' mag market.
"The columnists I have on board are worth the cover price alone. It has a future at eye-level in supermarkets again – that is where we are headed."
Loaded is no longer ABC-audited but claims to havea print circulation of around 30,000 copies a month.
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
