Yahoo Autos 'I don't feel sorry for him. Do you?': Readers react as Dilbert comic strip dropped by hundreds of newspapers after racist rant
Canadian newspapers including The Globe and Mail and The Toronto Star dropped the comic over misaligned values
The distributor of the "Dilbert" comic strip, a cartoon dating 1989 and satirizes office life, announced Sunday that it's ending their relationship with the cartoon's creator, Scott Adams, as the cartoonist's comments about race "do not align with our core values." The cartoon has also been dumped by many newspapers around the world.
On Twitter, Andrews McMeel Universal (AMU) announced the break up in a statement on behalf of AMU Chairman Hugh Andrews and the company's CEO and president, Andy Sareyan.
— Andrews McMeel (@AndrewsMcMeel) February 27, 2023
"As a media and communications company, AMU values free speech. We are proud to promote and share many different voices and perspectives. But we will never support any commentary rooted in discrimination or hate. Recent comments by Scott Adams regarding race and race relations do not align with our core values as a company," the statement reads.
"Our creator-first approach is foundational to AMU, and we deeply value our relationships with our creators. However, in the case with Adams, our vision and principles are not compatible."
What sparked the 'Dilbert' blacklash?
The Dilbert creator drew backlash after his recent Youtube episode on Feb. 22, where he referred to Black Americans as a "hate group."
On the episode, Adams shared results from a Rasmussen Reports survey that asked respondents if they agreed with the statement: "It's OK to be white." The cartoonist emphasizes that 26 percent of Black people disagreed, which means, to him, that African-Americans result as a "hate group."
"If nearly half of all Blacks are not OK with white people ... that's a hate group," Adams said in the Youtube video. "And I don't want to have anything to do with them."
"I would say, based on the current way things are going, the best advice I would give to white people is to get the hell away from Black people," Adams continues. "Just get the fuck away. Wherever you have to go, just get away. Because there's no fixing this. This can't be fixed."
The reaction: Newspapers around the world drop 'Dilbert'
As predicted by the creator, hundreds of newspapers dropped Dilbert. In the U.S., media giants like the Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post, the USA Today, and others will no longer carry the satirical strip.
"In light of Scott Adams's recent statements promoting segregation, the Washington Post has ceased publication of the Dilbert comic strip," the newspaper released in a statement.
