Report: Threats to Cartoonist Worldwide Are Changing
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A new 52-page report documents a troubling rise in threats against cartoonists worldwide has been published. The report finds threats are extending beyond arrests, imprisonment and censorship to include legal harassment and prolonged court battles. It also raises awareness that these threats are not longer confined to authoritarian regimes but are increasing in free-speech friendly countries like the United States.
Key findings
Legal Harassment and Censorship Are Replacing Overt Violence
Of the 87 cases of threats against cartoonists around the world, 22 were made through judicial channels. Abusive lawsuits, pre-trial detention, “national security” laws, and regulatory pressure are replacing breaking hands.
Democracies Joining Authoritarian Regimes
Democracies like India, Turkey, Hungary, Israel, and even the United States are joining long-standing authoritarian states (China, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt) as major offenders against free speech.
The United States Now a Major Area of Concern
The space where American cartoonists can freely criticize their government is shrinking. The Trump Administration removed a Smithsonian exhibit that included an illustration by Felipe Galindo’s (Feggo); Adam Zyglis faced death threats for criticizing the Trump Administration’s handling of a food in Texas; Ann Telnaes faced censorship, and resigned, for her cartoon criticizing the relationship of her paper’s owner with President Trump.
War Zones Are Deadly for Cartoonists
Palestinian cartoonist Mahasen al-Khateeb was killed in an Israeli military bombing in Gaza, Twelve Afghani cartoonists have been forced into hiding or are in exile with the return of the Taliban.
Social Media Platforms Are Silencing Dissent
Social media sites are no longer neutral platforms. Forty-three percent of surveyed cartoonists reported having work removed online. Forty-eight percent suspect their work has been shadow banned. Twenty percent of respondents experienced temporary account suspensions.
The report was produced jointly by Cartooning for Peace, Cartoonists Rights, Freedom Cartoonists Foundation, FORHUM, Columbia Global Freedom of Expression at Columbia University and Reporters Without Borders. You can download the full report for free from the Cartooning for Peace website. There will be a press event tomorrow at the Festival International du Dessin de Presse et des Médias ÇA PRESSE.
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