I can see how it would be easy to think that. I mean, we don't get to see how successful (or otherwise) a comic is if it were different, because it's not. We don't have sales stats for these comics with those objectionable points removed - we can look to see how they affect the comics afterwards, but even then, we can't know how successful it might have been.

Put another way. If i'm a DC executive, aware of the furor, and I then see the sales figures and see that Superman (or whatever) is selling pretty averagely, I might well conclude that the furor had no effect. But it's quite possible that other factors have come into play which effectively hide a drop rate. If i'm selling 100 Supermans, I don't know that I might well have actually sold 120 Supermans; or that the furor has cost me 20 purchases but other points have gained me 20.

I'd also be fired the next day for my low sales, but hey. ;)