35% Disagree with Schiappa’s Decision To Pose for the Playboy Cover

French government minister Marlene Schiappa’s Playboy cover recently made headlines. Schiappa, known for her advocacy of women’s and LGBT rights, etc., appeared on the cover of the magazine’s April 2023 issue wearing a suit and a smile.

This has raised several concerns. Firstly, the appropriateness of a French minster to be featured on the cover of a magazine such as Playboy, which has questionable opinions in society. Secondly, the suitability of Schiappa’s decision amid the current French situation concerning the

These have prompted Real Research, an online survey platform, to survey the French minister’s Playboy magazine cover to gain a public view. Here’s what the survey respondents had to say:

Key Highlights:

• 29.32% felt Schiappa’s Playboy cover was poor decision-making on her part and undermined her credibility as a political figure
• 34.78% disagree with Schiappa’s decision to feature on the Playboy magazine cover
• 35.89% “highly agree” with French Playboy editor Jean-Christophe Florentine’s claim that the magazine can be an instrument for the feminist cause

Awareness and Opinions

To start with, the survey reveals that up to 48.55% are closely following the news regarding French Minister Marlene Schiappa being featured on the cover of Playboy. Followed by 32.11% who are aware of the issue and 19.34% unaware.

When asked about their general opinions about the French Minister being featured on the cover of the magazine, 30.21% feel it is a personal choice and doesn’t affect her ability to do her job.

29.32% continue to say that it was a poor decision and undermines her credibility as a political figure. A further 20.55% say it was brave and a rather empowering decision.

The above highlights that although there are concerns about the Minister’s poor decision-making, it is ultimately her personal choice and would not necessarily affect her ability to do her job– given that the feature was for a commendable cause.

Why Did She Do It?

Further, the survey prompted reasons behind why Marlene Schiappa chose to pose for Playboy magazine.

As shown in Figure 1, a majority of 24.08% highlighted that she wanted to promote women’s rights, gay rights, and abortion, as discussed in her 12-page interview in the magazine.

19.31% feel that Schiappa intended to express her personal beliefs about women’s sexuality and body autonomy. The decision to go through with the Playboy cover feature demonstrates Schiappa breaking tradition.

Whereas 19.03% said that they wanted to support a feminist cause, as the French Playboy editor, Jean-Christophe Florentine, claimed.

Lastly, 17.59% feel she wanted to gain publicity for her political career.

French Pension Reforms, Schiappa’s Playboy Cover– Bad Timing?

France is currently under fire for Emmanuel Macron’s proposed pension reforms whereby retirement ages will be raised from 62 to 64. This has erupted a myriad of mainly opposing opinions. The people of France have resorted to strikes and protests to express their disapproval of the new reforms.

Given France’s unstable political conditions, Marlene Schiappa Makes Controversial by posing for the Playboy cover which only aggravated citizens further.

Accordingly, the survey asked respondents’ stance on whether respondents agreed or disagreed with Schiappa’s decision to feature on the cover given the current political climate in France.

Given the current political climate, 27.9% agree with the fact that her decision was inappropriate. A further 27.33% disagree as Schiappa has the right to decide about her body, regardless of the current political climate.

24.32% feel the issue is rather complex, and both sides must be considered.

Similarly, Schiappa has extensively advocated for matters such as women’s rights, gay and abortion rights, etc. She has prioritized her work for the said causes over others. However, given France’s current political climate, there were opinions about whether or not Schiappa should also advocate for France’s pension reforms.

44.62% feel Schiappa should ‘definitely’ advocate more for France’s pension reforms. While 31.4% feel she ‘probably’ should. However, 8.38% feel she probably should not, and 2.22% say she definitely should not.

Moreover, another poll revealed that 33.56% agree with Schiappa’s Playboy cover decision. This was concerning her claims that women have the right to do as they please with their bodies. Contrastingly, 34.78% disagree with the same, claiming that it is inappropriate.

Schiappa’s Playboy Cover–a Feminist Cause?

The uproar following Schiappa’s appearance on a Playboy cover resulted in French Playboy editor, Jean-Christophe Florentin, claiming that the magazine is used for a feminist cause. A poll from the survey asked respondents’ stance on the claim. 35.89% somewhat agree with the claim, while 25.84% highly agree with the claim. A further 19.7% somewhat disagree, and 5.05% highly disagree with Florentine’s claim.

Thoughts About Marlene Schiappa’s 12-page Interview on Playboy Magazine

Conclusively, respondents were asked about their opinions on Schiappa’s 12-page interview on women’s rights, gay rights, and abortion rights. 27.73% feel discussing topics in a magazine like Playboy was inappropriate. While 24.08% say that it was rather smart of Schiappa to do so, 24.01% say it was a positive step towards gender and LGBTQ+ equality.