I'm not going to say that Annie Liebowitz is racist. Or Vogue itself. Or Gisele Bundchen. Or Lebron James. But the fact is, the cover makes an obvious allusion to King Kong. I think anyone who has seen the movie or the multiple images would see this allusion, conscious or not. This isn't necessarily racist, however. While I do think the denials only make the matter worse -- "What, you mean there is a cultural discourse about brutish black men and wispy white ladies?" -- I think it is possibly true that the shoot was not trying to define James as a brute or Bundchen as a helpless victim. But it is hard to deny that they are working in a culture where this kind of relationship between a black man and a white woman has been exploited for racist purposes.
Perhaps James enjoyed displaying his aggression alongside Bundchen's whimsy. The contrast is beautiful. And, James is an aggressive ball player. And, Bundchen is a ... model. Who pliantly does what she is told. The poses are not strange; they suit these two figures.
The real question is, why are these two figures on a magazine cover together? Vogue made a big deal out of having the first black man on their cover. So why did they have to go get a waify little white girl to accompany him on his trailblazing?
I know it sucks that these decisions get scrutinized, but let's be honest about our racial environment. Let's not pretend that anyone is innocently making decisions, without a past looming over or a profit dangling ahead. The cover may not be racist, but it is certainly not innocent.
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