The New York Post Jumps the Shark

[Botany]

Source: Huffington Post

The New York Post today ran a cartoon that splashed classic dog-whistle racism (in black and white no less) depicting two cops, one with a drawn firearm, and a dead chimp. The kicker: "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."

Whose stimulus package is it? Come now. There's no room for the innocent shrug. Over at Air America, we have a special dog-whistle racism decoder: Racists have a long history of referring to African Americans as monkeys. This cartoon panders to that notion. Once upon a time, the New York Post editors called me (and to be fair Time Magazine) moral cretins for a book project I was working on. It wasn't true. Today I'm calling the Post a bunch of moral cretins, and it is true.

snip

In a different cultural setting this cartoon would have brought death threats already. Remember the Danish paper's depiction of verboten Muslim folk? Is it more acceptable in this instance? Not at all. We live in a tolerant society. That does not mean you have to buy the New York Post. Don't go to the site. Send people to good sites to see the bad journalism. It's that simple. Don't reward bad media with what they need--your eyes and ears.

You can act in the even older (than American racism) tradition of wu-wei--the spiritual boycott. Do nothing. At least when it comes to reading this rag and for that matter any Rupert-owned lie-machine. Spread the word about this American media atrocity. Mete out the penalty with loyalty to sites like Huffington Post, Air America and other progressive voices of truth and justice.

snip

Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/beau-friedlander/the-new-york-post-jumps-t_b_167892.html

---

The cartoon said to me racism and Presidential assassination.

New York Post
1211 Avenue Of The Americas W 48 St
New York, NY 10001
[phone]

[oldtime dfl_er]

1. That's hideous

I think many of us hold an unspoken fear in our hearts - a fear for the safety of our president. And that's because we know racism is alive, well, and pumping up the hate out there.

However, I feel conflicted. For the last eight years I've laughed as many of us compared dubya to a chimp. Of course that wasn't racially motivated, but it kind of makes me feel guilty now.

[movonne]

2. I am recommending this as it should be on the front page....

[bottomtheweaver]

3. The cartoon:

Rotten as hell. :mad:

[jberryhill]

5. ....and the actual chimp that was shot by police yesterday...

[Judi Lynn]

4. Shocked, startled beyond belief. What on earth were they thinking to let that image represent them?

Of course this is filthy beyond redemption.

The person who created this monstrosity should be expected to face public censure for this clear attack, as well as everyone else involved in the publication of his/her cheap, dirty drool.

This has absolutely NOTHING whatsoever to do with people's pointing out crude, primitive, unexpectedly immature, completely out of place behavior, physical expressions and personal deportment by the unelected pResident of the United States, _{George W. Bush.} Any attempt to draw a comparison between people's reference to _Bush, and this situation is, itself, beyond redemption.

You are right, Botany, I have no doubt whatsoever.

How dare they. May they get what we all know's coming to them! With interest.

[jberryhill]

7. The cartoonist might have been thinking about the chimp shot by police

Since the visual elements of the marked car, the unmarked car, and the telephone pole were all at the same scene:



So, it might have been a reference to that specific chimpanzee, but I have no idea what the cartoonist was thinking.

[dysfunctional press]

21. it's even got the same 'beware of dog' sign...

but some people HAVE to see racism everywhere. :shrug:

[Bjorn Against]

28. But what does that picture have to do with the stimulus bill that was referenced in the cartoon?

It is pretty clear that the cartoonist was attempting to tie the chimp to Obama as that shooting had nothing to do with the stimulus bill, to suggest this is only about the shooting and nothing more is an enormous stretch. This is a racist cartoon there is no doubt about it.

[dysfunctional press]

35. i guess that some people will see racism wherever they look...

i feel truly sorry for people who go through life with that kind of chip on their shoulder...:shrug:

[Bjorn Against]

36. And some people will refuse to see racism when it is staring them right in the face.

You never answered my question though, what does that picture have to do with the stimulus bill?

[dysfunctional press]

37. some people see it as being so convoluted....

that it must have been written by a monkey?

pretty obvious, actually.

but, i guess that some people see what they're programmed to see.

where were all these anti-chimp people when bush was being compared/called to chimps for the past 8 years? :shrug:

[Bjorn Against]

40. I think you should listen to what Eric Holder had to say yesterday.

I also think you should read some history about the use of monkeys in racist propaganda if you don't understand why this is different from the Bush chimp comparisons. When people think of the stimulus bill they think of Obama, they don't think of a monkey and a typewriter and you know it no matter how much you try and defend this right-wing Rupert Murdoch propaganda outlet.

[Seldona]

42. Better see a specialist.

Don't want to get that arm injured permanently from overreaching.

[jb5150]

6. Most Disturbing

That cartoon, with it's underlying message of racism and violence, left me speechless...

[bleever]

8. Tremendously bad judgment on their part,

and that's the least of it.

This deserves a good uproar.

[Botany]

11. The New York Post is going to lose lots $.

Who would want to place an ad in that rag now?

[WriteDown]

9. I see the PC police are at it again....

I guess I can never use the saying "a million monkeys with a million typewriters" could have come up with a better bill. Most people who see monkeys do not associate them with racism.

[Seeking Serenity]

12. I'm kinda with you.

Stupid and really stretching to make his banal point against the stimulus bill, to wit, that it was so bad that it could only have been written by a bunch of lower primates -- yeah, that's funny; ha-ha, I git it -- but I did not see the racism.

[The Doctor.]

16. If you can't see the racism, then you're a racist.

In fact, the only way to prove you're not a racist is to see racism wherever it's marginally plausible.

[Seeking Serenity]

18. I'm looking at my crossword puzzle right now, and I notice

that there are many more white squares than black squares. That must be because of racism.

Am I getting it, Doctor?

(edited to add necessary verb)

[The Doctor.]

20. Yep... after all, what other explanation can there be?

In all seriousness, there's a chance the artist seized upon an opportunity to spark publicity... but even that doesn't necessarily mean he's racist.

If publicity by eliciting outrage was his goal, he scored big time.

[Usrename]

13. Fail

This cartoon is about only one monkey, the president. It's racist.

[The Doctor.]

14. No, you can't say that right now...

and certainly not for the next 8 years.

Any mention of a non-human primate will be taken as a de facto Obama reference... correctly or not.

[Seeking Serenity]

17. I really hope, over the next 8 years, that Democrats and their allies

don't resort to crying "racism" over any and all opposition of the president or his policies.

To me, that would only cheapen the word, to remove much of its power, and would make such accusations akin to Aesop's "boy who cried wolf."

[newtothegame]

19. Unfortuneatly we cheapened the word years ago...

and added sexism to the cheapened words during the primaries this summer.

[Beacool]

26. Hey, it was done during the primaries and used against fellow Democrats.

Why should the Repugs be spared?

:shrug:

[Igel]

23. True.

There's a fairly often-linked-to photoshop of Bush as a chimp.

Could you image a parallel photoshop? :hide:

[Beacool]

25. Then people need to grow up and get a sense of humor.

The mention of a primate is not necessarily a racist comment. Sharpton had to get involved for it to become another excuse for a national outrage over nothing. Reminds me of the poor Danish cartoonist who drew a cartoon about Mohamed. Some literally called for his death.

:crazy:

[The Doctor.]

31. I understand the objections...

but they're based on narrowly focused criteria; "Chimp"="racial slur" ergo- "racism!"

This guy pushed a lot of buttons, the only question I have with it is whether it was intentional or not.


At any other time in our history, saying that a monkey might have written a piece of legislation for the purpose of criticizing it wouldn't be considered 'racist'. The simple test for this is; "Were McCain President instead of Obama right now, how would the cartoon be racist?" The answer is simple; it wouldn't... and it's meaning would not be changed. That means that the only mitigating factor is that Obama is President, something that was quite realistically out of the author's control.

So what we're really saying with all this outrage is that we have to screen otherwise innocuous (if tasteless) depictions simply because Barack Obama is President.

That's political correctness, plain and simple.

[Beacool]

34. I don't think that cartoonists, comedians and the media should walk on egg shells lest they offend

just because we have the first biracial president. I saw too much of it during the primaries and it was just plain nonsense. The cartoonist would have probably drawn the same cartoon regardless of who was president. The fake outrage of people like Sharpton doesn't serve any purpose other than to incite the masses as is his wont on too many occasions. There are plenty of valid reasons to decry racism, this not particularly funny cartoon is not one of them. The constant crying wolf diminishes the effect when there is a real instance of racism. It desensitizes people to the real thing.

[kwassa]

39. Actually, you are wrong, and here is why.

Your test ignores history.

Historically, in racist cartoons and depictions, black people have been compared to monkeys. It is a sore point among African-Americans who are very aware of that use of this derogatory symbol. Calling a white person a monkey carries no such historical meaning or personal impact, because there is no real history of such depictions.

The meaning of this cartoon is DIFFERENT to you and to a black person, because you don't have the same history. To you there is no racism, because the symbol of the monkey is not indicative of anything to you. You simply judge it from your personal vantage point, which is fine, for you.

But it isn't political correctness, it is real offense. Whether the cartoonist intended this, or is just ignorant of the meaning of a chimp as a symbol, I don't know, I suspect the latter. But from his other work, he doesn't shy away from being offensive, particularly in his depiction of Muslims, as shown in the other cartoons posted in this thread.

[The Doctor.]

41. What you're describing can also be described as over sensitivity.

Injured people often see threats and reminders where there is no such intention. I watched an otherwise nice lady completely ruin her luncheon because she saw racism where it was not. I've seen many, MANY people play the sexism/racism/bigotry card

What you are ultimately saying is that no reference to a chimpanzee can be made, however innocent, because it could be construed as 'racist'.

What the cartoonist may have intended here was to ring some bells, I don't dismiss that possibility. That would mean that the outrage that has been generated was his goal. That makes him an opportunist and publicity-seeker, but not necessarily a racist.

[kwassa]

46. Uh, no, it can't.

It only appears to be over-sensitive to you from your life experience. That is your subjective viewpoint. That is all it is, too.

You can't have the same experience as an African-American. It is outside the possibility of your experience. It is YOUR OPINION, based on that lack of experience, that injured people see threats and reminders where there is no such intention.

Good luck with that.

I am not saying that no reference to a chimpanzee can be made, either. It is the specific context in which this reference is used that makes it racist. You are free to disagree, but you certainly, as a white person, are not in a position to arbitrate what is racist and what is not to black people.

[Beacool]

22. Yeah, there's always some reason to be outraged about..........

I wonder what KOS had to say.

:eyes:

[U4ikLefty]

30. Objections to calling Obama a monkey is now being the PC police?

Give me a freakin break!!!

There is a historical precedent in place here & calling a black man (our President) a monkey is CLEARLY racist.

[The Doctor.]

32. No one called him a monkey.

In fact the artist went out of his way to state that the chimp didn't represent any individual.

When people want to be outraged, they'll see whatever they need to.

[U4ikLefty]

33. The "artist" went out of his way to cover his ass so white folks will say

"I don't see the big deal, he's talking about Congress". Yeah, I got some swampland to sell.

The IMPLICATION is clear to all with eyes to see beyond his own nose.

I do not want to be outraged. I have enough fuel these days to stoke those flames. This cartoon, however, is has the white man's wink-wink nudge-nudge all over it.

...and just becuase YOU don't get offended by it doesn't mean it is not offensive.

[The Doctor.]

44. I didn't say I wasn't offended by it.

What I said was that you have to assume the artist intended it as racist in order to see racism. Was it? I don't know for sure. So far, the theories range from 'Dogwhistle' to 'publicity mongering' to 'stupid mistake'.

The 'dogwhistle' theory makes it racist.

The 'publicity mongering' theory might dove tail off the dogwhistle theory, or it might just be a ploy to push people's buttons for publicity's sake. It also means the author might have achieved plausible deniability with;

The 'stupid mistake' theory... means that no one can use or mention a non-human primate, however innocently, for the next eight years simply because Obama is President.

I have to say, this is a very interesting study. I'm also amazed at the number of people whose blind outrage has made them nearly incapable of examining this rationally. It seems that the artist has created quite an achievement whether he wanted to or not.

[Skittles]

45. just so I understand, Doc

wtf is the cartoon SUPPOSED to mean?

[Sandrine for you]

10. Disgusting, nt.

[femrap]

15. Who advertises with the Post?

Contact them....tell them why you are NOT going to buy their product or use their service.

Murdoch is complete scum...reptilian scum.

[Judi Lynn]

24. Already covered by The Guardian:

New York Post in racism row over chimpanzee cartoon
Oliver Burkeman in Washington
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 18 February 2009 18.58 GMT

~snip~
T-shirts portraying Obama as the children's book character Curious George, a monkey, made occasional appearances among audience members at Republican rallies during last year's election campaign, and a similar stuffed doll continues to be advertised online.

The Post's cartoonist Sean Delonas, meanwhile, has frequently been accused of bigotry: the New York gossip blog Gawker once nicknamed him "the Picasso of prejudice".

The criticism has centred on his portrayals of gay characters, which have linked homosexuality to bestiality. The pressure group Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation has repeatedly called his work "juvenile" and "immature".

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/feb/18/new-york-post-cartoon-race

~~~~~~~~~~~~
Vanity Fair:

Sean Delonas: Stupid, Racist, or Both?
by Julian Sancton
February 18, 2009, 12:00 PM

Sean Delonas may be the worst cartoonist on the planet. Smack dab in the middle of “Page Six,” that two-page spread of media gossip folded into the conservative New York Post, his artlessly drawn editorial cartoons gleam like beacons of right-wing idiocy. Looking at that rectangle of knee-jerk intolerance and lazy jokes is by far the worst part of my day, so I usually avoid it. But today’s cartoon really couldn’t go unaddressed. In it, two cops stand above the gunned-down body of a chimpanzee—a reference to Travis, the ill-fated rampaging ape—as one quips, “They’ll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill.” I’m struggling to find an interpretation of this that doesn’t odiously compare Obama, who just signed the stimulus bill yesterday, to a monkey, resorting to one of the most wretched racist stereotypes. But in all fairness, I think Delonas may just be too stupid to have realized that, and his editors probably stopped actually looking at his amateurishly cross-hatched doodles years ago. (They didn’t seem to notice when he turned in the exact same drawing two months apart.)

http://www.vanityfair.com/online/culture/2009/02/18/sean-delonas-stupid-racist-or-both.html

[Earth Bound Misfit]

27. More of the cartoonist's "work": Homophobic Racist SCUMBAG

Muslim terrorists love Democrats. What else is new, huh?


Gays: Stereotypical prancing beacons of corruption.


Heather Mills has only one leg. Haha

[The Wizard]

29. Everyone should start calling

the Post's advertising department and keep them on the phone for as long as possible. pretend to buy advertising and never stop talking. It could be a phone filibuster. Or throw rotten eggs and dog shit at their building.

[rolltideroll]

38. Jumping the Shark

[Heftheplayboy]

43. NY Post employees are not happy

There were protests today in front of their building for the tasteless racist cartoon. Good.