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Editorial: Cartoons provoke thought
Published Wednesday, October 15, 2008
When Bill Clinton was president and was in the middle of the Monica Lewinksy turmoil, there were plenty of political cartoons making fun of him. Now George W. Bush is mired in low popularity with the American people and his own party, and there are plenty of cartoons making light of him.
Cartoonists don’t necessarily think of themselves as liberal or conservative. Though some definitely lean one way or the other, they aren’t sheep. Cartoonists that lean liberal will make fun of liberals sometimes, and cartoonists that lean conservative will make fun of conservatives sometimes.
Some people ask why the Tribune has cartoons making light of Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin? To be sure, we have had cartoons that show her in a positive way, but people don’t recall those as much as the ones that poke at her. However, now even the conservative-leaning cartoonists are making light of her sometimes.
It must reflect that even Republicans are somewhat upset with John McCain’s choice of her as the veep candidate. You can speculate on the reasons.
The political cartoons get people thinking. You can provoke thought in a drawing in different ways than you can in prose. That’s the point of political cartoons.
You don’t read a newspaper to find only news and commentary with which you agree. You should disagree with the cartoons sometimes. There is value in disagreement. American politics isn’t a football game where you are rooting for one side or another. Maybe for some people who are diehard Democrats or Republicans, it is, but for the rest of us in the middle, we appreciate and need fresh perspectives. Cartoons provide that.
Otherwise, people need to relax. Folks aren’t going to vote Nov. 4 based on what they saw in political cartoons.
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Comments
Posted by Disgusted (anonymous) on October 15, 2008 at 12:59 p.m. (Suggest removal)
This Editorial sounds like you are trying to justify something that has been done in the past/present. The majority of newspapers are leaning towards the left. It stands to reason the "lefties" would want the cartoonists that lean in the same direction. This "sometimes we do - sometimes we don't" dissertation means nothing to me. Why don't you just admit you are biased!
Posted by mgoodmanson (anonymous) on October 15, 2008 at 6:31 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Isn't it entirely possible that since the Bush ticket has historically provided fodder to the fire, that this is why you see an increase in cartoons/articles/opinions attacking (this is a laughable concept) the "right".
People always slow down to see an accident. This administration has been one long 8 year accident, providing plenty of material for people to pay attention to.
If Obama is elected, I am quite certain there will be plenty of SNL skits, cartoons and opinions "attacking" the "left".
It is complete paranoia to think that the media is out to get the "right". If that were the case, I would love to see the business case that can validate eliminating possible subscribership/viewership by alienating half the populatiion as a good idea.
Posted by Disgusted (anonymous) on October 16, 2008 at 7:23 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Take a look at the bottom line of the Los Angeles and New York Times for starters. Compare the number of nightly viewers who watch NBC and it's cable affiliate to other networks and cable news sites. If you still aren't convinced check into newspaper employee layoffs that have taken place in the last couple of years. If you still believe the statement you made in your last paragraph you can call me paranoid as many times as you want to. Have a good day, mgoodmanson.
Posted by scurvydog (anonymous) on October 16, 2008 at 9:43 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I once read a statistic that approximately 85 percent of employees of the media identify themselves as liberal or Democrat.
I would guess that if the field attracts liberal minded employees, that maybe the majority of political cartoons drawn reflect the same. There simply might not be as many submitted to the media that reflect a conservative viewpoint.
As far as why there may be fewer cartoons drawn favoring a conservative viewpoint - perhaps conservatives have better things to do than draw pictures making fun of their opponents. Or maybe they simply take the higher road.
Posted by allake (anonymous) on October 16, 2008 at 9:44 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The Tribune with a far left bias. Nahhh But I do have a bridge in brooklyn that I could let you have cheap..
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