25 Pop Culture Controversies

Pop star Katy Perry is on the hot seat this morning after a photo surfaced of her holding a knife. While the image was taken several years ago, the recent wave of teen knife crime in the UK brought the controversial photo to light. This certainly isn’t the first time a magazine or celebrity has taken provocative photographs, and it won’t be the last; just a few weeks ago the world marveled as a photo of Angelina Jolie breastfeeding made it onto the cover of ‘W Magazine.’

Katy Perry is no stranger to controversy. Her first single, "I Kissed a Girl," discusses girl-on-girl experimentation, much to the chagrin of her parents--as well as preachers. Katy Perry’s rise to stardom is largely credited to her ability to channel this controversy into success.

Click through the articles in this cluster to explore some other provocative images. There’s a collage of Paris Hilton made solely of cutouts from an adult magazine, some incredibly controversial ‘Vogue’ photo spreads and even some shocking art exhibits. Katy Perry’s knife photo has stirred up far more media criticism than most of these pieces, strangely enough.