Editors Angry About Late Warning on 'Doonesbury' Strip
By E&P Staff
Published: May 17, 2004 10:25 AM EST
NEW YORK Some newspapers are fuming that Universal Press Syndicate's warning about a "beheading" image appearing in the May 23 edition of the "Doonesbury" comic strip arrived too late for them to remove or replace it.
As revealed Friday (Newspapers Warned About Upcoming 'Doonesbury' Strip), the notice from Universal, and offer to send a substitute strip -- in the wake of the beheading of American Nicholas Berg in Iraq last week -- came too late for the hundreds of papers that print their Sunday comics 10 days to two weeks in advance.
Among the major papers stuck with the strip: the Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J.
"We're going to have to publish it because we've already printed," Elizabeth McIntyre, the features editor for The Plain Dealer of Cleveland, told the Washington Post. "If I'd known on Wednesday, I could have done something about it." McIntyre may run a note to readers on May 23, explaining that the strip was drawn and printed before Berg's execution.
As E&P revealed on Friday, "Doonesbury" creator Garry Trudeau will release a statement on his Web site, www.doonesbury.com, on May 23, saying, "I regret the poor timing, and apologize to anyone who was offended by an image that is now clearly inappropriate."
Lee Salem, editor of Universal, said one client noticed the beheading strip in the pipeline last Thursday. "We probably should have made the connection, but we did not," Salem said.
"Every single day I'm saying yea or nay on some comic that's problematic, and that was never the case five years ago," Kyrie O'Connor, deputy managing editor of features for the Houston Chronicle told the Washington Post. O'Connor was among those who managed to pull the "Doonesbury" strip before it was too late.
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Papers Warned About Upcoming 'Doonesbury' Strip With 'Head on Platter'
By E&P Staff
Published: May 14, 2004 1:11 PM EST, updated at 2:23 PM
NEW YORK Clients of Gary Trudeau's "Doonesbury" comic were alerted today to the fact that the May 23 strip, drawn in April, "contains the image of a head on a platter." Lee Salem, editor of Universal Press Syndicate, referred to the strip's content as "an unfortunate coincidence," explaining, "Given its timing following the recent grisly tragedy in Iraq, and the realities of Sunday color-production cycles, we felt we should call this to your attention."
The strip in question, which was obtained by E&P, shows the character "Boopsie" discussing the loss of her coaching job after she suspended the football team following a sex scandal. The final panel shows an apparent fantasy in which the head of the university president who fired her rests on a platter.
Universal will be offering a replacement strip to those newspapers that have not already printed that Sunday's comic section, but it is already too late to make the switch at many other papers. According to Universal, Trudeau plans to post this message on his Web site the morning of May 23, explaining his "chagrin," given the grisly tragedy in Iraq: "Most Sunday sections are prepared five to six weeks in advance, and today's strip was unfortunately overtaken by events. I regret the poor timing and apologize to anyone who was offended by an image that is now clearly inappropriate."
"We do this routinely," said the spokeswoman Lillian Kuras. "If we feel there is [a comic strip] that will be controversial, we give our editors a heads-up. We respect their knowledge of the newspaper and their market."
By E&P Staff
Published: May 17, 2004 10:25 AM EST
NEW YORK Some newspapers are fuming that Universal Press Syndicate's warning about a "beheading" image appearing in the May 23 edition of the "Doonesbury" comic strip arrived too late for them to remove or replace it.
As revealed Friday (Newspapers Warned About Upcoming 'Doonesbury' Strip), the notice from Universal, and offer to send a substitute strip -- in the wake of the beheading of American Nicholas Berg in Iraq last week -- came too late for the hundreds of papers that print their Sunday comics 10 days to two weeks in advance.
Among the major papers stuck with the strip: the Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, the Chicago Tribune, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J.
"We're going to have to publish it because we've already printed," Elizabeth McIntyre, the features editor for The Plain Dealer of Cleveland, told the Washington Post. "If I'd known on Wednesday, I could have done something about it." McIntyre may run a note to readers on May 23, explaining that the strip was drawn and printed before Berg's execution.
As E&P revealed on Friday, "Doonesbury" creator Garry Trudeau will release a statement on his Web site, www.doonesbury.com, on May 23, saying, "I regret the poor timing, and apologize to anyone who was offended by an image that is now clearly inappropriate."
Lee Salem, editor of Universal, said one client noticed the beheading strip in the pipeline last Thursday. "We probably should have made the connection, but we did not," Salem said.
"Every single day I'm saying yea or nay on some comic that's problematic, and that was never the case five years ago," Kyrie O'Connor, deputy managing editor of features for the Houston Chronicle told the Washington Post. O'Connor was among those who managed to pull the "Doonesbury" strip before it was too late.
*************
Papers Warned About Upcoming 'Doonesbury' Strip With 'Head on Platter'
By E&P Staff
Published: May 14, 2004 1:11 PM EST, updated at 2:23 PM
NEW YORK Clients of Gary Trudeau's "Doonesbury" comic were alerted today to the fact that the May 23 strip, drawn in April, "contains the image of a head on a platter." Lee Salem, editor of Universal Press Syndicate, referred to the strip's content as "an unfortunate coincidence," explaining, "Given its timing following the recent grisly tragedy in Iraq, and the realities of Sunday color-production cycles, we felt we should call this to your attention."
The strip in question, which was obtained by E&P, shows the character "Boopsie" discussing the loss of her coaching job after she suspended the football team following a sex scandal. The final panel shows an apparent fantasy in which the head of the university president who fired her rests on a platter.
Universal will be offering a replacement strip to those newspapers that have not already printed that Sunday's comic section, but it is already too late to make the switch at many other papers. According to Universal, Trudeau plans to post this message on his Web site the morning of May 23, explaining his "chagrin," given the grisly tragedy in Iraq: "Most Sunday sections are prepared five to six weeks in advance, and today's strip was unfortunately overtaken by events. I regret the poor timing and apologize to anyone who was offended by an image that is now clearly inappropriate."
"We do this routinely," said the spokeswoman Lillian Kuras. "If we feel there is [a comic strip] that will be controversial, we give our editors a heads-up. We respect their knowledge of the newspaper and their market."
