Dilbert comic strip creator Scott Adams experienced possibly the biggest repercussion of his recent comments about race when distributor Andrews McMeel Universal announced Sunday it would no longer work with the cartoonist.
Scott Adams, creator of the comic strip Dilbert, talks about his work at his studio Oct. 26, 2006, in Dublin, Calif.
Andrews McMeel Chairman Hugh Andrews and CEO and President Andy Sareyan said in a joint statement that the syndication company was โsevering our relationshipโ with Adams.
In the Feb. 22 episode of his YouTube show, Adams described people who are Black as members of โa hate groupโ from which white people should โget away.โ Various media publishers across the U.S. denounced the comments as racist, hateful and discriminatory while saying they would no longer provide a platform for his work.
Andrews and Sareyan said Andrews McMeel supports free speech, but the comments by the cartoonist were not compatible with the core values of the company based in Kansas City, Missouri.
โWe are proud to promote and share many different voices and perspectives. But we will never support any commentary rooted in discrimination or hate,โ they said in the statement posted on the company website and Twitter.
The creator of the long-running comic that pokes fun at office-place culture defended himself on social media against those whom he said โhate me and are canceling me.โ
The backlash against Adams arose following comments on โReal Coffee with Scott Adams.โ Among other topics, Adams used the YouTube show to reference a Rasmussen Reports survey that had asked whether people agreed with the statement โItโs OK to be white.โ
Most agreed, but Adams noted that 26% of Black respondents disagreed and others werenโt sure.
The Anti-Defamation League says the phrase was popularized in 2017 as a trolling campaign by members of the discussion forum 4chan but then began being used by some white supremacists.
Adams, who is white, repeatedly referred to people who are Black as members of a โhate groupโ or a โracist hate groupโ and said he would no longer โhelp Black Americans.โ
โBased 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,โ Adams said on his Wednesday show.
In another episode of his online show Saturday, Adams said he had been making a point that โeveryone should be treated as an individualโ without discrimination.
โBut you should also avoid any group that doesnโt respect you, even if there are people within the group who are fine,โ Adams said.
Dilbert had already been dropped by several media outlets by the time of the announcement from its distributor.
โWe have decided to no longer publish the โDilbertโ comic strip in our international print edition following racist comments by Scott Adams,โ said Danielle Rhoades Ha, a spokeswoman for The New York Times who said Dilbert was published in the international print edition but not in the U.S. edition or online.
The Washington Post said it would stop publishing Dilbert in light of โScott Adamsโs recent statements promoting segregation,โ although the strip could not be prevented from running in some forthcoming print editions.
The Los Angeles Times cited Adamsโs โracist commentsโ while announcing Saturday that Dilbert will be discontinued Monday in most editions and that its final run in the Sunday comics โ which are printed in advance โ will be March 12.
The San Antonio Express-News, which is part of Hearst Newspapers, said Saturday it will drop the Dilbert comic strip, effective Monday, โbecause of hateful and discriminatory public comments by its creator.โ
The USA Today Network tweeted Friday that it will stop publishing Dilbert โdue to recent discriminatory comments by its creator.โ
The Plain Dealer in Cleveland and other publications that are part of media company Advance Local also announced they are dropping Dilbert.
โThis is a decision based on the principles of this news organization and the community we serve,โ Plain Dealer Editor Chris Quinn wrote. โWe are not a home for those who espouse racism. We certainly do not want to provide them with financial support.โ
Christopher Kelly, vice president of content for NJ Advance Media, wrote that the news organization believes in โthe free and fair exchange of ideas.โ
โBut when those ideas cross into hate speech, a line must be drawn,โ Kelly wrote.
Twitter CEO Elon Musk defended Adams in posts on the platform, saying the media previously โwas racist against non-white people, now theyโre racist against whites & Asians.โ
Popular videos from the past week you may have missed
Two brothers were rescued in Australia after drifting at sea, riders at a Florida fair were left hanging upside down after a Ferris wheel malfunctioned, and more popular videos from the past week you may have missed.
Itโs a good thing they planned to have drinks on the boat, it literally saved their lives.
Video footage shows how fairgoers at Floridaโs state fair were left hanging upside down as a ride malfunctioned. Veuerโsย Maria Mercedes Galupp…
Good news, Jedi. France has hosted its first lightsaber championship, four years after the national fencing federation recognized it as a comp…
The recent devastating earthquakes in Tรผrkiye have taken a heavy toll on the cultural and historical landmarks, including a well-preserved cas…
Hidden cameras have captured a first glimpse of two endangered Sumatran tiger cubs born at Chester Zoo in the U.K.ย January 7th.
This tradition has been going on for hundreds of years! Yair Ben-Dor has more.
The thorny trees and dung-caked homes of Umoja village make it resemble any other in Kenya's northeastern Samburu region, except in one key de…
This leopard mom used her brain and her butt to get out of a sticky situation in Kenya.
The man says he wouldnโt do it again, but enjoyed it nonetheless. Buzz60โs Tony Spitz has the details.ย
A wild elephant held up traffic while grabbing leaves from roadside trees in Thailand. Footage shows the huge jumbo named Yo-yo strolling alon…
