Scott Adams, creator of the Dilbert comic strips, has sparked controversy over comments he made about the black community. Source: Scott Adams/Instagram
Scott Adams, creator of the well-known Dilbert comic strips has faced significant controversy and cancellations after describing members of the black community as part of “a hate group” and encouraging white people to “get away”.
Dilbert is a long-running comic strip, first published in 1989, that satirises workplace culture, staring a white-collar office engineer called Dilbert.
Backlash against Adams began after an episode of his YouTube show Real Coffee with Scott Adams last Wednesday. During the episode, Adams discussed a Rasmussen Reports survey which had asked if the respondents agreed with the statement, “It’s OK to be white”.
Most of those surveyed agreed, but 26% of black respondents disagreed with the statement, and others weren’t sure.
Adams, himself a white man, said he would no longer “help black Americans”, repeatedly referring to people who are black as “hate group” members or part of a “racist hate group”,
During the episode, Adams said, “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.”
On an episode aired on Saturday, he said his point was that “everyone should be treated as an individual” and without discrimination.
“But you should also avoid any group that doesn’t respect you, even if there are people within the group who are fine.”
Since the comments, various US media publishers have announced that they will no longer publish Adams’ work, and saying his comments were racist, hateful and discriminatory.
Last Friday, the USA Today Network tweeted that it had dropped Dilbert “due to recent discriminatory comments by its creator.”
At @Gannett, we lead with inclusion and strive to maintain a respectful and equitable environment for the diverse communities we serve nationwide. #TeamGannett pic.twitter.com/GvHR1w9ae3
— USA TODAY NETWORK PR (@USATODAY_PR) February 24, 2023
The Los Angeles Times made the same decision, citing Adams’ “racist comments”.
The editor of Cleveland’s The Plain Dealer, Chris Quinn, wrote that their decision to stop publishing Dilbert was, “based on the principles of this news organisation and the community we serve.
“We are not a home for those who espouse racism. We certainly do not want to provide them with financial support.”
Hundreds of other newspapers have made similar decisions.
Elon Musk came to Adams’ defence today on Twitter, accusing the media of being “racist against whites & Asians,” and that “Maybe they can try not being racist.”
For a *very* long time, US media was racist against non-white people, now they’re racist against whites & Asians.
Same thing happened with elite colleges & high schools in America.
Maybe they can try not being racist.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 26, 2023
