Publishers drop Dilbert comic strip after ‘racist comments’ by creator Scott Adams

The creator of the Dilbert comic strip faced a backlash of cancellations Saturday while defending statements that portrayed Black people as members of “a hate group” from which white people should “stay away. “

Various US media outlets have slammed Dilbert creator Scott Adams’ comments as racist, hateful and discriminatory while saying they will no longer provide a platform for his work.

Andrews McMeel Syndication, which distributes Dilbert, did not immediately respond Saturday to requests for comment. But Adams defended herself on social media against what she said was “hate me and cancel me.”

Dilbert is a long-running comic that pokes fun at office-area culture.

The backlash started after an episode last week of the YouTube show, “Real Coffee with Scott Adams.” Among other topics, Adams referenced a Rasmussen Reports survey that asked if people agreed with the statement “It’s OK to be white.”

Most agreed, but Adams noted that 26% of Black respondents disagreed and the rest were unsure.

The Anti-Defamation League said the phrase was popularized in 2017 as a trolling campaign by members of the 4chan discussion forum but began to be used by some white supremacists.

Adams, who is white, repeatedly referred to Black people as members of “hate groups” or “racist hate groups” and said he would no longer “help Black Americans.”

“Based on the current way things are, the best advice I can give white people is to get the hell out of Black people,” Adams said on his Wednesday show.

In another episode of his online show on Saturday, Adams said he was making a point that “everyone should be treated as an individual” without discrimination.

“But you have to avoid any group that doesn’t respect you, even if there are people within the group that are good,” Adams said.

The Los Angeles Times Adams’ “racist comments” were cited while announcing Saturday that Dilbert would be discontinued on Mondays in most editions and that its final run of Sunday comics — which were published in advance — would be March 12.

The San Antonio Express-Newspart of Hearst Newspapers, said Saturday it would drop the Dilbert comic strip, effective Monday, “due to hateful and biased public comments by its creator.”

The USA Today Network tweeted on Friday that it would also stop publishing Dilbert “due to recent discriminatory comments by its creator.”

The Plain Dealer of Cleveland and other publications that are part of Advance Local media also announced that they were removing Dilbert.

“This is a decision based on the principles of this news organization and the community we serve,” wrote Chris Quinn, editor of The Plain Dealer. “We are not a home for those who support racism. We never want to give them financial support.”

Christopher Kelly, vice president of content for NJ Advance Mediawrote that the news organization believes in the “free and fair exchange of ideas.”

“But when those ideas cross over into hate speech, a line must be drawn,” Kelly wrote.

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