The Funny Papers:Ann Telnaes Resigns

Last week Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Ann Telnaes announced she had resigned from The Washington Post after the newspaper refused to publish that cartoon upo there depicting billionaire Post owner Jeff Bezos on bended knee in front of President-elect Felon:

“I have had editorial feedback and productive conversations—and some differences—about cartoons I have submitted for publication, but in all that time I’ve never had a cartoon killed because of who or what I chose to aim my pen at. Until now.”

The cartoon depicts Bezos, Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg and OpenAI chief Sam Altman on their knees, handing over bags of cash to a statue of The Felon next to a lipstick-holding Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong and bowing Mickey Mouse. Telnaes said the cartoon “criticizes the billionaire tech and media chief executives who have been doing their best to curry favor with incoming President-elect,” satirizing “these men with lucrative government contracts and an interest in eliminating regulations making their way to Mar-a-lago.”

The Association of American Editorial Cartoonists [AAEC] condemned The Post’s decision, accusing the newspaper of “craven censorship” and “political cowardice":

“Editorial cartooning is the tip of the spear in opinion, and the Post’s cowering further soils their once-stellar reputation for standing up and speaking truth to power. We weep for the loss of this once great newspaper.”

 The AAEC then called on other cartoonists to finish Telnaes’ sketch and post it online in a show of solidarity.

After resigning, though, Ann Telnaes created another cartoon and here it is: