Dear Bezos, You and your Washington Post are orange blob tainted cowards. I am proud to boycott you and your inhumane anti democracy products, including Amazon.

Why I’m quitting the Washington Post, Democracy can’t function without a free press by Ann Telnaes, Jan 03, 2025, Open Windows

https://anntelnaes.substack.com/p/why-im-quitting-the-washington-post

I’ve worked for the Washington Post since 2008 as an editorial cartoonist. 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 that was killed criticizes the billionaire tech and media chief executives who have been doing their best to curry favor with incoming President-elect Trump. There have been multiple articles recently about these men with lucrative government contracts and an interest in eliminating regulations making their way to Mar-a-lago. The group in the cartoon included Mark Zuckerberg/Facebook & Meta founder and CEO, Sam Altman/AI CEO, Patrick Soon-Shiong/LA Times publisher, the Walt Disney Company/ABC News, and Jeff Bezos/Washington Post owner.

While it isn’t uncommon for editorial page editors to object to visual metaphors within a cartoon if it strikes that editor as unclear or isn’t correctly conveying the message intended by the cartoonist, such editorial criticism was not the case regarding this cartoon. To be clear, there have been instances where sketches have been rejected or revisions requested, but never because of the point of view inherent in the cartoon’s commentary. That’s a game changer…and dangerous for a free press.

 

(rough of cartoon killed)

Over the years I have watched my overseas colleagues risk their livelihoods and sometimes even their lives to expose injustices and hold their countries’ leaders accountable. As a member of the Advisory board for the Geneva based Freedom Cartoonists Foundation and a former board member of Cartoonists Rights, I believe that editorial cartoonists are vital for civic debate and have an essential role in journalism.I agree.

There will be people who say, “Hey, you work for a company and that company has the right to expect employees to adhere to what’s good for the company”. That’s true except we’re talking about news organizations that have public obligations and who are obliged to nurture a free press in a democracy. Owners of such press organizations are responsible for safeguarding that free press— and trying to get in the good graces of an autocrat-in-waiting will only result in undermining that free press.

As an editorial cartoonist, my job is to hold powerful people and institutions accountable. For the first time, my editor prevented me from doing that critical job. So I have decided to leave the Post. I doubt my decision will cause much of a stir and that it will be dismissed because I’m just a cartoonist. But I will not stop holding truth to power through my cartooning, because as they say, “Democracy dies in darkness”.

Thank you for reading this.Thank you Ms. Telnaes for your brilliant cartoons and for quitting. Bezos and his cowardly newspaper don’t deserve you or your work.

Democracy Under Siege Draw for change USA trailer 1:28 Min. by Clin d’œil Fims, Oct 21, 2024

Comment on the film by Ann Telnaes, Nov 04, 2024:

Laura Nix, an Academy Award nominated filmmaker, created this fantastic documentary with producer Hanne Phlypo about the U.S. election process which recently was shown in Germany, Belgium, and France. I am truly honored to be part of it.

Chappatte Cartoons@PatChappatte:

A cartoonist shows the way for courage and principle, while a major newspaper tramples on freedom of expression and humiliates itself in the process: @AnnTelnaes leaves the @washingtonpostafter the rejection of a cartoon showing @JeffBezos kowtowing to Trump.

Ann’s cartoon showing tech moguls including Disney, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos (the paper’s owner) courting Trump, depicted today’s power plays. By censoring it, the once-great American newspaper shows that it is now afraid of real journalism – and of the truth itself!

David Shipley, editor of @PostOpinions denies any censorship, saying the cartoon coincided with an article on the same subject…. The solution is simple, David: publish that cartoon on Monday! (And keep working with @AnnTelnaes, one of the best cartoonists in the world.)

Mike Peterson ‪@csotd.bsky.social‬:

The resignation of Ann Telnaes from the Washington Post is major news on social media. Here’s a deeper look at a talented political cartoonist who has long preached freedom and a free press and has now proven she can live up to those values.
www.dailycartoonist.com/index.php/20…

NPR‬ ‪@npr.org‬:

Washington Post cartoonist Ann Telnaes resigned after an editor rejected her sketch satirizing tech chiefs, including the Post’s owner and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.