‘Dilbert’ distributor severs ties with creator Scott Adams over racist comments

Hundreds of newspapers across the United States said they will stop publishing the cartoon “Dilbert” after its creator Scott Adams went on what is being described as a racist rant on Youtube, last week. This comes after he called Black Americans a “hate group” and suggested that White people should “to get the hell away from Black people.” The comments were made in response to a poll conducted by a conservative organization’s poll which supposedly showed that many African Americans do not think it’s OK to be white.

“Dilbert” is a popular comic in the US which mocks the office and workplace culture. The once-popular comic strip that was launched in 1989 will no longer be carried by multiple media outlets, in light of these remarks, the newspapers announced in statements on Friday and Saturday. Some of the newspapers include The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and so on.

Additionally,distributor Andrews McMeel Universal, on Sunday (February 26) also announced that they are "severing" ties with Adams over his recent comments. In a joint statement, companyChairman Hugh Andrews and CEO and President Andy Sareyan said while the company values free speech but it will "never support any commentary rooted in discrimination or hate". It added, "Recent comments by Scott Adams regarding race and race relations do not align with our core values as a company".

Add WION as a Preferred Source

“If nearly half of all Blacks are not OK with white people - according to this poll, not according to me, according to this poll - that’s a hate group”, said the creator on his Youtube show ‘Real Coffee with Scott Adams’, on Wednesday.

He added, “I don’t want to have anything to do with them…And 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, just get the f**k away”.

The video began with Adams talking about Republican Vivek Ramaswamy’s presidential bid and minutes later, citing the results of a recent public opinion poll, conducted by Rasmussen Reports, which is said to be a conservative firm. The group reportedly surveyed thousands of Americans via telephone and online with the question, “Do you agree or disagree with this statement, ‘It's OK to be white’?”

According to the poll, 53 per cent of Black Americans agreed with the statement, “It’s OK to be White.” However, it has been noted that the phrase “It's OK to be white” has been used on right-wing websites and speeches which the Anti-Defamation League has also denounced as a hate chant. The organisation has also noted that the phrase emerged on the infamous message board 4chan six years ago as a trolling campaign which has a history in the white supremacist movement.

(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.