When defending comments in which Dilbert’s creator referred to persons of African descent as members of “a hate group” from which white people should “stay away,” the author of the Dilbert comic strip was met with a reaction on Saturday in the form of cancellations.
Dilbert cartoon has been removed from newspapers
The author of Dilbert, Scott Adams, has been called racist, hateful, and discriminating by several media firms in the United States. These publishers have also stated that they will no longer give a forum for Adams’s work.
The Andrews McMeel Syndication company, which is responsible for distributing Dilbert, did not immediately respond to calls for comment on Saturday. On the other hand, Adams has taken to social media to defend himself against individuals who, in his words, “hate me and are canceling me.”
The long-running comic strip Dilbert is known for making light of the culture of the workplace. The uproar started when an episode of the YouTube show “Real Coffee with Scott Adams” aired this past week. Adams referred to a study conducted by Rasmussen Reports in which one of the questions asked was whether or not respondents agreed with the phrase “It’s OK to be white.”
Adams found that only 26% of Black respondents disagreed, while the rest of the respondents weren’t sure what they thought. According to the Anti-Defamation League, the slogan first became widely used in 2017 as part of a trolling campaign conducted by users of the online discussion forum 4chan. However, it has since been adopted by certain white nationalists.
Adams, who is white, referred to persons of African descent more than once as members of a “hate organization” or a “racist hate group,” and he stated that he would no longer “assist Black Americans.”
Adams advised his white audience members on his show on Wednesday to “get the hell away from Black people” in light of the current state of affairs. Considering current affairs, Adams advised white people to “stay the hell away from Black people.”
In a different segment of his web show that aired on Saturday, Adams said he had been trying to convey the message that “everyone should be recognized as an equal” and that discrimination of any form was unacceptable.
But Adams cautioned, “You should also stay away from any group that doesn’t appreciate you, even if there are excellent people within the organization.” Stay far away from any group that fails to treat you with dignity.
The Los Angeles Times noted Adams’ “racist sentiments” when they made their announcement on Saturday that Dilbert would be canceled the following Monday in most editions, and that its final publication in the Sunday comics — which are produced in advance — will be on March 12.
Read Also: Los Angeles Flood 2023
“because of nasty and discriminatory public comments by the comic strip’s creator,” the San Antonio Express-News, which is a division of Hearst Media, announced on Saturday that it will no longer publish the Dilbert comic strip beginning on Monday.
On Friday, the USA Today Network announced via tweet that it will likewise cease publication of the comic strip Dilbert “because of recent discriminatory comments by its creator.”
Additionally, other organizations that are a part of Advance Local media, such as The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, have indicated that they would no longer be publishing Dilbert.
Chris Quinn, the editor of The Plain Dealer, explained in a letter to the publication’s readers that “this is a choice based on the principles of our news company and the community we represent.” “Those who subscribe to the racist ideology do not have a place here. They will not receive any kind of financial assistance from us under any circumstances.”
According to an article that was written by Christopher Kelly, the vice president of content at NJ Advance Media, the media company values “the free and fair exchange of ideas.”
However, there must be a boundary drawn when such views cross over into hate speech, as Kelly has argued.
Dilbert creator showed his true color (Video) Watch Now
FAQ
When was the first Dilbert cartoon published?
The first Dilbert cartoon was published on April 16, 1989, in a small San Francisco newspaper called The San Francisco Examiner.