LONDON — U.K.'s giant Tesco supermarket chain will no longer display front covers of tabloids to avoid instances where children could see "Page 3" images.
Only the names and logos of the tabloids will be visible on shelves in the U.K., Tesco officials told the International Business Times. All stores will receive the new display units by the end of this month.
The decision to sanitize Tesco's newsstands follows a two-year campaign by two groups, No More Page 3 and Child Eyes, which both lobbied for change at U.K. supermarkets.
Page 3 is a feature found in The Sun, comprising a photograph of a topless glamour model typically published on the newspaper's third page.
The Sun has featured topless models — known as "Page 3 girls" — in its print edition since November 1970 as well as on its official Page 3 website since June 1999. Numerous other British tabloids have since copied the format.
Just last year, the Irish edition of the Sun replaced topless Page 3 women with clothed glamour models.
Also last year, supermarket chain Co-op said it would ban lads' mags unless publishers delivered the magazines in so-called "modesty" poly bags. But the chain refused to do the same with tabloids that include Page 3-like material.