Feminist social commentator and former advertising writer Jane Caro wants to know, are the men OK?
The timeless question follows the announcement of the resurgence of lads mag FHM (aka For Him Magazine so hands off, ladies!) in Australia.
It will be run under the stewardship of Michael Downs and Nuclear Media, with the publisher positioning the revived title for men who “train harder, think bigger, and still appreciate the perfect cover girl”.
But for Caro, the magazine’s comeback feels less like a retro revival and more like a bad rerun.
“It seems incredibly old-fashioned and a bit embarrassing. It’s kind of sad,” Caro told Mediaweek. “It’s really turning the clock back, and not in a nostalgic way, but kind of desperate way.”
“If they want to look at boobies…”
Caro is baffled at the premise of dusting off a glossy men’s mag in 2025, when the internet is – well – already doing that job for free.
“Why do you need a magazine? If men want to look at boobies, go right ahead. There’s a full, free internet out there, full of nothing else,” she said.
Caro isn’t just rolling her eyes at the premise, but questioning the stereotypes being sold. “Given we’re in an era of Andrew Tate, and TV shows like Adolescence, these are very narrow stereotypes of men.”
“Is that what masculinity is?”
In an interview with Mumbrella Downs pitched the relaunch as “irreverent, unapologetic and pandering to nobody.”
But for Caro, that choice of language comes with a murky undertone: “It almost seems like a battle cry disguised as quotes.”
“What does ‘pandering to nobody mean’? It means you’re going to be allowed to say really sexist, horrible things and we’re going to treat it as a joke,” she said.
“And look, no one’s being offended. That line really gets me – we’re always accused of being offended when we point out that something is juvenile. But in fact, if I was a man, I’d be offended by a magazine like FHM because its so patronising to men and treats them as these stereotyped cartoon characters rather than real human beings,” she said.
Caro also went on to question what sort of masculinity the revived magazine being modelled. “Are they wearing this terrible objectification of women as a sort of badge of masculinity, really? Is that what masculinity is? The exploitation of women and the objectification of women, is that how you prove you’re a man?”
And if it’s meant to appeal to men, she’s not sure it lands.
“It feels like it’s patronising to men as if they’re being stereotyped as these kind of cartoon characters rather than real human beings,” she said.
Jane Caro
Off-brand for booze, on-brand for betting?
Caro also questions where the advertising dollars would come from. “Unfortunately, I can think of some advertisers who might want to be aligned, but I don’t know that many who would want to be in a print magazine. Those advertisers are much more likely to spend their money on TV or internet or a streaming service. And that’s probably sports betting.”
As for the traditional big-spenders? “Beer has gone into being kind of boutique and very cool. And you kind of think of people who drink beers aren’t really the macho guys this seems to be aimed at.”
Before wrapping up the Caro, was quick to throw this clanger in the mix: “Look, let’s be honest, most men who read FHM will never get within cooey of a woman who looks like any of the models in there.”