Cartoonist Ann Telnaes received the Pulitzer Prize for illustrated reporting and commentary on Monday, shortly after she resigned from The Washington Submit over it reportedly censoring a cartoon crucial of Submit proprietor Jeff Bezos’ relationship with President Donald Trump.
“In a time when the free press is under attack by autocrats in their quest to silence dissent, editorial cartoons and satire are essential for a democracy to survive and thrive,” Telnaes stated in an announcement. “I’m honored to receive this award and encourage everyone to support their local cartoonist.”
Telnaes left the paper in January after a cartoon she drew was declined for publication by the Submit’s editorial web page. The sketch depicted Bezos, Mickey Mouse (Disney owns ABC), Meta head Mark Zuckerberg, Los Angeles Instances proprietor Patrick Quickly-Shiong, and Sam Altman of OpenAI bowing to Trump and providing him cash.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, who owns The Washington Submit
Days after the incident, Bezos was amongst these with entrance row seats to Trump’s inauguration—an occasion that he reportedly donated funds to.
Telnaes’ departure was a part of a gradual stream of figures leaving the paper on the finish of 2024 and early this yr. Staffers stop after Bezos spiked an endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris, and columnists Ruth Marcus and Jennifer Rubin additionally stop over the Submit’s capitulations to Trump.
Trump has expressed delight that Bezos is now in his nook. In a March interview, Trump hailed Bezos for “trying to do a real job” in altering the editorial tone on the paper.
Because the Trump administration has made a concerted effort to warp press entry on the White Home in favor of shops prepared to regurgitate right-wing propaganda—or, within the case of the Submit, not push again too laborious towards it—figures like Telnaes have continued to talk out.
Telnaes now operates a Substack for her cartoons, with over 98,000 subscribers. 1000’s of individuals will nonetheless see the award-winning work that didn’t bow to Trump—they simply received’t see it in The Washington Submit anymore.
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