One of South Africa’s most well-known political cartoonists has become embroiled in controversy since the publication of a cartoon with what he said were unintended racist overtones. The cartoon by Zapiro, AKA Jonathan Shapiro, depicts the country’s top prosecutor Shaun…
Tag: political cartoons
Herblock Prize Recipient on Political Cartoons and Free Speech
Zunar and Gado Win Cartooning for Peace Prize
In recognition of their respective fights against censorship and repressive governments, political cartoonists Zunar and Gado have been jointly awarded the biennial International Editorial Cartoons Prize from the organization Cartooning for Peace. In conjunction with the prize, their work and…
Cartoonist Gado Won’t Be Silenced by Kenyan Government
In the aftermath of Kenyan cartoonist Godfrey Mwampembwa (better known as Gado) being fired from the Kenyan newspaper The Daily Nation earlier this month, fellow cartoonists, free speech advocates, and cartoonist rights activists are supporting the artist and condemning Kenyan press for undermining freedom…
Government Forces Firing of Kenya’s Top Cartoonist
After decades of doing work for Kenya’s largest newspaper, the Daily Nation, the celebrated and most syndicated cartoonist in East and Central Africa Godfrey Mwampembwa (better known as Gado) has been fired due to suspected political pressure from the Kenyan…
New Malaysian Museum Dares to Exhibit Zunar Cartoons
There’s some rare good news for Zunar this week: despite the nine charges of sedition currently hanging over his head, the Malaysian political cartoonist’s work is now on display in a dedicated section of the brand-new Asia Comic Cultural Museum…
Farghadani Acquitted on “Illegitimate Relations” Charge
Iranian cartoonist Atena Farghadani, currently serving a nearly 13-year prison sentence for caricaturing members of parliament as animals, has been spared even more prison time as she was recently acquitted of “non-adultery illegitimate relations.” That charge was brought after she…
Five Years Later, Cartoonists Have Faith in Arab Spring
This month marks five years since the regional wave of uprisings known as the Arab Spring began in Tunisia. Both before and after the regime changes in that country, Egypt, and Libya, as well as ongoing civil wars in Syria…
Turkey’s Püff Adds to Diversity of Satirical Voices Against Repression
In Turkey’s increasingly repressive media environment, where journalists may be arrested for criticizing President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan or officially forbidden from covering certain stories such as this week’s suicide attack in Istanbul, satirical magazines are nevertheless forging ahead. And while…
Reflecting on Charlie Hebdo One Year Later
Just over a year ago, the cartooning world was shaken by the attack that killed 12 people, including five well-known cartoonists, at the offices of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. The ensuing months have been packed with commemorations, commentaries, debates…