OculusVR founder Palmer Luckey is one of the tech industry's brightest rising stars—a fact Time tried but ridiculously failed to capture on its newest cover.
As you can see above, Luckey is shown in mid ... uh, jump? Stumble? Rapturous epiphany? The only things viewers can tell for sure is that he's been Photoshopped in front of a beach and that he looks ridiculous.
And it's not just the image drawing heckles from tech enthusiasts. The story's intro is cringe-inducingly awful at a time when most people have stopped seeing nerds as socially worthless outcasts:
"Palmer Luckey isn't like other Silicon Valley nerds," the article begins. "He's a nerd all right, but not the kind who went to a top-ranked university, wrote brilliant code or studied business plans. He's cheery and talks in normal sentences that are easy to understand."
It's doubtful that all this is just artful baiting of the Reddit crowd, but had it been, the results would likely have been the same. Photoshop has been working overtime today as many took up the challenge to make Luckey (and Time) look even more silly:
Time irresponsibly created a terrible story and cover for VR, but the response has been totally internet. pic.twitter.com/vzHLUzJwfn
— Mike Mika (@MikeJMika) August 6, 2015
Hey guys I'm pretty sure I found Palmer Luckey's new book that @time magazine #VR cover is based on: pic.twitter.com/IJ8V438jr1
— StephenMauriceGraham (@400facts) August 6, 2015
Nerd: VR's just a fad. Nobody's gonna— Palmer Luckey: <FIVE-STAR FROG SPLASH> pic.twitter.com/zEnyoZtj2B
— Andrew Vestal (@avestal) August 6, 2015
We are just getting started.... CC @hmltn@oculus@PalmerLuckey@TIMEpic.twitter.com/JV5QRRYSrZ
— Robert McGregor (@ID_R_McGregor) August 6, 2015
You're welcome internet. I'm sorry Palmer. @TIMEpic.twitter.com/eYIjopOWqP
— Vanessa Marie @ RTX (@VRex7) August 6, 2015
But perhaps this un-Photoshopped take was the cruelest cut of all:
When Palmer Luckey was a kid, he said "Someday I'll be on the cover of Time Magazine, and everyone will respect me." pic.twitter.com/5svbQHX8kX
— Joel Bernstein (@CastIrony) August 6, 2015