The decision by Cosmopolitan magazine to put 17-year-old Dakota Fanning on the cover of the February 2012 issue has raised criticism in the media.

The Twilight Saga actress, who began her career when she was just six years old, has posed on the cover in a pink beaded glittery J. Mendel dress. Her breakthrough performance was in the film I Am Sam, for which she was nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award.

She has already been featured on the cover of publications like Marie Claire, Teen Vogue and V. However, her cover on Cosmopolitan has raised questions about the aptness of sexualizing a 17-year-old. The feature article, Welcome to Your Cosmo Years, Dakota, documents her journey into adulthood.

This is not the first time Fanning has raised eyebrows over her media exposure. Earlier her advertisement for the Marc Jacobs fragrance Oh, Lola! that depicted the young star with an oversized fragrance bottle placed provocatively between her legs was banned in the UK.