“It may be seen as a bad decision to put a criminal or a killer on the cover, but Rolling Stone took a gamble,” said Samir Husni, director of the magazine innovation center at the University of Mississippi. “In the long-term this is not going to hurt them. …

“I don’t think anybody truly believes this will hurt Rolling Stone,” said Linda Ruth, a magazine publishing consultant with PSCS in New Hampshire.

“Rolling Stone knew going in they would get kicked out by retailers,” she said. “What they get here is bigger than what they lose.”

Rolling Stone, like most U.S. magazines, is subscription-driven. According to ABC (Audit Bureau of Circulations), its newsstand sales are just 75,000 out of a total circulation of over 1.4 million last year.

“Newsstand sales are only a tiny proportion. But Rolling Stone also got more publicity than money can buy,” he said, suggesting the controversy could help the magazine add more sales.