We have received negative responses from several readers regarding the political caricature of the three major 2019 mayoral candidates which appears on the cover of our September issue. In publishing that cover, we were following a long-standing satirical tradition. It was not our intention to demean any of the candidates or to satirize one more than the others, but we are sympathetic to the perceptions our readers have shared. We regret and apologize for any pain this caricature of public figures has caused.

For over four decades now, Memphis magazine has been a progressive voice in this city, a city which has historically had very few voices of that persuasion. With every issue we publish, we hope we are building upon that progressive tradition. We would ask any of our readers who think otherwise to review the past issues of Memphis contained in our archives, which are available at memphismagazine.com/archives.

As is the case with all of the media properties that co-exist under our locally-owned parent company, Contemporary Media, our purpose always is to inform, entertain and enlighten the Memphis community in as intelligent a manner as possible. All of us at Memphis will continue to strive towards that goal.