Following a racist tirade by Dilbert creator Scott Adams, The Seattle Times announced this week that it would be removing the Dilbert comic from its pages effective immediately and instead grant the character a recurring Op-Ed column in the paper.
“We at the Times are appalled by Scott’s behavior, and we want to make it crystal clear that this disgusting, divisive rhetoric has no place in our comic spread. Our op-ed section, on the other hand …,” said Seattle Times Publisher and CEO Frank Blethen. “I, for one, can’t wait to find out what Dilbert thinks about homeless encampment sweeps.”
With more than 20 years at The Seattle Times, the paper was confident that the comic-strip character would make a swift adjustment to the opinion side of the paper.
“Dilbert is cynical, works in tech, and lives nowhere near Seattle, so he’s perfectly equipped to complain about the city’s issues,” continued Blethen. “Next week we’ll publish his first op-ed column: ‘They said defunding the police would fix everything. So why don’t I feel safe walking my Dogbert?’”
The Times said they would also look at moving The Family Circus out of the comics section after a recent poll revealed that no one has ever actually laughed at it.
