The New Yorker is barely relevant anymore. A biweekly magazine is a dinosaur in the age of cable news and the Internet. Yes, they broke the Abu Grab story, but what about all of the stories that they have gotten wrong? The New Yorker has been taking more risks with their reporting in order to try and keep up with the new media.

This cover is really a publicity stunt designed to get people talking about the magazine again, so in that respect, it has already been a success. I agree that it was lazy work, and I would add that it is a cheap cry for attention.