Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
A Washington Post cartoonist announced she had left the paper this week because it rejected her cartoon of Amazon founder and Post owner Jeff Bezos prostrating himself before President-elect Trump.
Editorial post cartoonist Ann Telnaes wrote about her Substack page On Friday he announced his resignation from the outlet, accusing it of publishing the cartoon because it criticized the billionaire.
In the article, “Why I’m Quitting the Washington Post,” Telnaes said, “I’ve had productive editorial comments and conversations (and some differences) about cartoons I’ve submitted for publication, but in all that time I’ve never had a cartoon murdered by who or what I chose to point my pen at. Until now.”
A Washington Post cartoonist announced she was leaving the newspaper after she published a cartoon mocking Post owner Jeff Bezos. ((Photo by Karwai Tang/WireImage) ERIC BARADAT/AFP via Getty Images)
The cartoonist shared a draft of the unpublished cartoon, which showed Bezos and other unspecified wealthy businessmen genuflecting and holding up bags of money to the incoming president. Prostrate on the ground next to them was Mickey Mouse, apparently a representation of Disney’s supposed submission to Trump.
Explaining his drawing, Telnaes stated, “The cartoon that was removed criticizes billionaire tech and media CEOs who have been doing everything they can to curry favor with incoming President-elect Trump.”
Despite the complicated relationship between the two over the years, Bezos has expressed support for Trump following his 2024 election victory. Following Election Day, the Amazon owner told reporters that he was “very optimistic” on Trump’s regulatory agenda.
Bezos recently pledged to donate $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund. He also had dinner with the incoming president at his Mar-a-Lago residence in December.
Tech billionaires, including Bezos and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, have supported Trump since his election day victory. (Getty Images)
Bezos also angered liberals, including Post staff, just before the election by making the decision that the newspaper not be doing a presidential endorsement.
Other prominent tech moguls have met with Trump in the months since his victory, including Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai and Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Telnaes’ reference to Disney seems to be a hint at the aforementioned company. as a factor behind ABC News’ recent $15 million deal with Trump earlier this month.
In his Substack article, Telnaes went on to proclaim his belief that the Post squashed the cartoon because of its political intent. She wrote: “To be clear, there have been cases where sketches have been rejected or revisions requested, but never because of the point of view inherent in the cartoon’s commentary. That’s a game-changer… and dangerous for a free press”.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE MEDIA AND CULTURE COVERAGE
“As an editorial cartoonist, my job is to hold powerful people and institutions accountable. For the first time, my editor prevented me from doing that critical work. That’s why I’ve decided to leave the Post,” he added.
However, Washington Post editorial page editor David Shipley, who admitted to making the decision to add it himself, denied his accusation that the Post removed the cartoon for political reasons, saying in a recent statement that it did so to avoid “repetition” of a story.
He said: “Not all editorial judgments are a reflection of an evil force. My decision was based on the fact that we had just published a column on the same topic as the cartoon and had already scheduled another column, this time a satire, for The only tendency was against repetition.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Telnaes has not yet responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Fox News Digital’s Aubrie Spady and Aislinn Murphy contributed to this report.