Kim Kardashian bares butt in naked Paper magazine cover

Kim Kardashian and Paper magazine are attempting to "break the internet" by publishing a nude photo of the celebrity on the cover of the winter edition of the publication Paper.

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The American Keeping Up with the Kardashians star, and wife of rapper Kanye West, is giving fans a risque view of her derrière, posing provocatively in black evening gloves and pearls — and little else.

The New York-based magazine described its mission to "Break The Internet" on its website, explaining Kardashian was chosen because she's "a pop culture fascination able to generate headlines just by leaving her house.

"Kim is what makes the web tick."

The 'Champagne Incident'

​​​French photographer Jean-Paul Goude shot the images for the magazine, which also includes a recreation of his so-called "Champagne Incident" photograph. The original featured model Carolina Beaumont in 1976. 

Not long after the cover was released, Kardashian posted a cheeky message on her Twitter account. "And they say I didn't have a talent ... try balancing a champagne glass on your ass LOL," she wrote. 

• On mobile? See Kardashian's tweet here

Predictably, the cover has sparked a massive reaction online, with some fans suggesting that a 34-year-old married mother of one​ shouldn't be posing so provocatively. Some suggested the images seemed overly manipulated in Photoshop, while others reacted with memes.

• On mobile? See fans reactions here and here

​Despite the flurry of online activity generated by Kardashian's cover, the internet appears to be working fine.