Washington Post cartoonist quits after paper pulls her cartoon slamming Post owner Bezos
A Washington Post cartoonist announced that she had quit the paper this week because it rejected her cartoon of Amazon founder and Post owner Jeff Bezos groveling to President-elect Trump.Post editorial cartoonist Ann Telnaes wrote on her Substack page Friday that she was resigning from the outlet, accusing it of spiking the cartoon because it was critical of the billionaire.In the article, “Why I’m Quitting the Washington Post,” Telnaes said, “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a cartoon killed because of who or what I chose to aim my pen at.Until now.”The cartoonist shared a rough draft of the unpublished cartoon, which depicted Bezos and other unspecified wealthy businessmen genuflecting and holding up bags of money to the incoming president.
Prostrating on the floor next to them was Mickey Mouse, apparently a representation of Disney’s supposed subservience to Trump.Telnaes explained her drawing, stating, “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.”Despite a prickly relationship between the two over the years, Bezos has expressed support for Trump following his 2024 election victory.In the wake of Election Day, the Amazon owner told reporters he was “very optimistic” about Trump’s regulatory agenda.Bezos recently pledged to donate $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund.
He also had dinner with the incoming president at his Mar-a-Lago residence in December. Bezos also made liberals, including Post staff, irate just ahead of the election by making the decision that the paper would not be making a presidential endorsement.Other prominent tech moguls have met with Trump in the months following his win, including Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai and Ap...