Dilbert's demise no surprise to followers of both the comic and creator Scott Adams
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The comic strip Dilbert disappeared with lightning speed following racist remarks by creator Scott Adams, but it shouldn't come as a shock to anyone who has followed them both. Adams, who is white, was an outspoken presence on social media long before describing Black people as a 'hate group' on YouTube and, to some, Dilbert had strayed from its roots as a chronicler of office culture.
The comic strip Dilbert disappeared with lightning speed following racist remarks by creator Scott Adams, but it shouldn't come as a shock to anyone who has followed them both.
Adams, who is white, was an outspoken presence on social media long before describing Black people as a “hate group” on YouTube and, to some, Dilbert had strayed from its roots as a chronicler of office culture.
The editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, which dumped Dilbert last year, said the comic strip “went from being hilarious to being hurtful and mean.” The Los Angeles Times, which joined dozens of other newspapers in dropping the comic following last week's remarks, had quietly replaced four of Adams' strips last year.
“He kind of ran out of office jokes and started integrating all this other stuff so after a while, it became hard to distinguish between Scott Adams and Dilbert,” said Mike Peterson, columnist for the industry blog The Daily Cartoonist.
As individual newspapers told readers they were dropping Dilbert, the company that distributed the strip, Andrews McMeel Universal, said it was severing ties with Adams. By Monday, Dilbert was gone from the GoComics site, which also features many top comics such as Peanuts and Calvin and Hobbes.
Adams said Monday that the strip, which first appeared in 1989, will only be available on his subscription service on the Locals platform.
Dilbert is effectively dead, Peterson said.
