Checkout ban: Walmart chucks out Cosmo

Walmart is to remove the women's fashion title, Cosmopolitan, from checkout aisles at 5,000 stores across the US, and limit it to the magazine racks section.

According to a message posted online by the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), a conservative non-profit group which pushed for the policy change amid the Me Too movement: “Walmart is using its platform to take a stand against sexual exploitation…Families and individuals will no longer be automatically exposed to Cosmo’s hypersexualised and degrading article titles that regularly promote pornography, sexting, BDSM, group sex, anal sex, and more, all while marketing toward young teens with Disney star cover models. We have been working behind the scenes with Walmart for months regarding this policy improvement, and applaud them for making their checkout aisles family-friendly and sexploitation-free."

Walmart said the change was "primarily a business decision" but admitted that "concerns raised were heard". Cosmopolitan has yet to comment.