Elon Musk jumps to defend Dilbert comic creator Scott Adams following racist remarks
Over the weekend, several newspapers in the US decided to stop featuring the Dilbert comic strip following its creator, Scott Adams's racist remarks. The cartoonist went on a tirade and labeled Black Americans as a "hate group," while suggesting that White people should distance themselves from them.
The USA Today Network, which manages hundreds of newspapers, confirmed that it has discontinued the comic strip. The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, as well as The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, also announced that they would no longer publish the comic.
Today's Cleveland Plain Dealer. I can state, with absolute honesty, that this the first time a Dilbert strip has made me laugh out loud. pic.twitter.com/RozSgfk9Mc
— Derf Backderf @derfbackderf@masto.social (@DerfBackderf) February 25, 2023
Adams made these remarks in response to a poll conducted by the conservative company Rasmussen Reports. The poll stated that 53% of Black Americans agreed with the statement, "It’s OK to be White," which the Anti-Defamation League has connected to white supremacy on the Internet forum 4chan since 2017.
The Dilbert comics were created by Scott Adams, an American cartoonist and humorist. The first Dilbert comic strip was published on April 16, 1989, in several newspapers across the United States.
The inspiration for Dilbert came from Adams's own experience working in various corporate jobs before he became a full-time cartoonist. He observed the absurdities and frustrations of office life and decided to satirise them through his comics. Adams also drew inspiration from the work of other satirical cartoonists, such as Gary Larson's The Far Side and Garry Trudeau's Doonesbury.
In the early days of the Dilbert comic strip, it was relatively unknown and had a small following. However, as more and more people became familiar with the strip, it gained in popularity and began to appear in more newspapers across the US. Dilbert's popularity grew even more in the 1990s, as Adams began publishing collections of the comic strips in book form.
- However, upon closer examination, it becomes evident that the comic strip contained a number of flaws that detract from its overall quality.
Harmful workplace stereotypes
Dilbert often reinforced harmful stereotypes about people in the workplace. The comics' portrayal of the workplace reality and its repeated use of problematic tropes perpetuated harmful attitudes towards minority workers in its fictional office space.
Dilbert's characters lack depth and complexity which its creator prided himself upon. While some characters are given more attention than others, they are ultimately reduced to one-dimensional caricatures that fail to reflect the complexity of real-life individuals.
Art Spiegelman called out Dilbert in 1998 for its flat artwork and shallow take on modern life, and I think time has proved him right. pic.twitter.com/sQlNbJVepC
— Jeremy Fassler (@J_fassler) February 25, 2023
While Dilbert has been praised for its satirical take on corporate culture, it is not immune to criticism for its own lack of diversity. The comic features a predominantly white, male cast of characters, with few characters of colour.
Lack of diversity
The lack of diversity already made the comic feel dated and out of touch with contemporary work spaces and limited its ability to address important issues related to diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Adams has previously attempted to justify his deliberate exclusion of characters of colour by citing fears of being called out for not depicting African American character’s “sensitively”.
Chief Twit Elon Musk was quick to accuse the American media of being racist against Whites and Asians after the many newspapers dropped Dilbert.
For a *very* long time, US media was racist against non-white people, now they’re racist against whites & Asians.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 26, 2023
Same thing happened with elite colleges & high schools in America.
Maybe they can try not being racist.
Twitter has since been having a field day responding to Musk’s support of Adam’s statements and criticisms of the media.
Remember kids: not supporting a racist cartoonist is itself an act of racism
— Zack “Buy My Book…Please” Hunt (@ZaackHunt) February 26, 2023
Uncle Elon says so pic.twitter.com/JYQYLg4jYC
You are the media, Apartheid Clyde. You sat next to Murdoch at the SB, two racist Pepe frogs on a log, squatting in awkward silence.
— Dave Zirin (@EdgeofSports) February 26, 2023
You’re doing reverse-racism fake victimhood nonsense? Seriously?? You’re one of the most rich and powerful men on the planet and in the history of the world. Your potential is almost unmatched. You’re power nearly unfettered. And this is the cause? A straw-man media-racism whine?
— Luke Zaleski (@ZaleskiLuke) February 26, 2023