Popular US Comic 'Dilbert' Removed Over Author's Racist Remarks

"Black People Are a Hate Group... Get Away from Them"
Adams' Workplace Satire Cartoon Running for 35 Years

The comic strip 'Dilbert,' serialized in renowned newspapers such as The Washington Post (WP) and USA Today, will be discontinued due to the author's racist remarks.

According to WP and other foreign media on the 25th (local time), hundreds of newspapers across the United States, including those under the WP and USA Today networks, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and the Los Angeles Times, announced the suspension of the 'Dilbert' comic strip after confirming that its author, Scott Adams (65), made racist remarks against Black people on his YouTube channel.

'Dilbert' is a popular comic strip created by the famous American cartoonist Adams since 1989, serialized in over 2,000 newspapers in 25 languages across 65 countries worldwide.

The main character of the American newspaper comic strip "Dilbert" and cartoonist Scott Adams.
[Photo by AP Yonhap News]

Earlier, on the 22nd, Adams reacted against a poll result showing that just over half of Black people agreed with the statement "It's okay to be white," making racist remarks on his YouTube channel. He said, "If nearly half of Black people do not associate with white people, that is a hate group. I do not want to have any relationship with them." He also added, "My advice to white people is to get away from Black people." Furthermore, he criticized that "Black people do not focus on education" and expressed frustration by saying, "It is really tiresome to keep seeing videos of Black people attacking non-Black citizens."

After Adams' racist remarks became known, WP received a flood of demands to stop the 'Dilbert' serialization starting the next day. Eventually, WP yielded to readers' demands. A WP spokesperson stated, "Considering Adams' remarks that incite racism, we will suspend the publication of Dilbert." When WP asked Adams how many newspapers would continue to serialize Dilbert, he replied, "By Monday the 27th, it will be almost zero."

USA Today Network, a media group overseeing more than 300 newspapers including the Arizona Republic and Cincinnati Enquirer, also announced on the 23rd that they would suspend the serialization of Dilbert due to the cartoonist's recent racist remarks. Chris Quinn, Vice President of Content at Advance Ohio, which publishes the Cleveland regional paper Plain Dealer, said, "The decision to suspend Dilbert was not difficult," adding, "We are not a community that supports racism."

Adams Defends Himself: "My Remarks Are Taken Out of Context and Criticized"

As the backlash intensified, Scott Adams defended himself. Later on YouTube, he said, "My remarks are being criticized out of context," and claimed, "Any tax reform is racist," attempting to politicize the controversy. However, he acknowledged the seriousness of the situation.

Adams said, "My once good career has been irreparably damaged by this incident," and added, "My reputation for the rest of my life is destroyed, and most of my income will disappear next week."

The comic strip 'Dilbert,' which depicts various stories of the protagonist Dilbert, a corporate engineer, experiencing company life, gained popularity among corporate employees, IT industry workers, and engineers by satirizing corporate culture and delivering sharp criticism. 'Dilbert' was so popular that it was adapted into a TV program and related books were published. Adams received the prestigious 'Reuben Award' from the National Cartoonists Society and the Newspaper Comic Strip Award in 1998.