Here are my newest favorite Election Day cartoons!
By Dave Fitzsimmons
Gary McCoy
Ed Wexler
Dave Whamond
RJ Matson
Kevin Siers
John Darkow
Here’s one of my oldies that never gets old.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
Newspaper editors love nothing more than a general call to action for readers to vote. Cartoons urging readers to vote are among the most reprinted of all the cartoons. Here’s my new “vote cartoon.”
People like for me to post my rough sketches, so here you go.
I wasn’t happy with Uncle Sam so I drew him over twice. Lincoln and Liberty needed to be taller, but I didn’t redraw them, I just made an indication to remember to make them taller on the final line version. I looked at some photos of Lincoln and his dark, little eyes, so I changed Abe’s eyes, but I like the bigger eyes in the sketch better; I should have gone with the bigger eyes.
This Dave Granlund cartoon from last week is our most reprinted cartoon since we started keep these stats at the beginning of the year.
These “VOTE” cartoons are also among our most reprinted cartoons this year. This one is by John Darkow.
My recent VOTE cartoon is our 6th most popular cartoon of the year. (Here’s my archive.)
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
The cartoon that offends Erdogan shows him in his underwear, lifting the skirt of a traditionally dressed Muslim woman, exposing her bare bottom, with Erdogan exclaiming, “OOH! THE PROPHET!” Both figures appear to be drinking beverages containing alcohol, a taboo for observant Muslims. The cartoon is signed “Alice,” a cartoonist who I don’t know, who my French cartoonist friends don’t know, and who is not credited in any news reports that I’ve seen.
“Insulting the president” is a crime in Turkey and Erdogan has a history of retaliating against people who insult him; more than 36,000 people faced criminal investigation and thousands have been imprisoned for insulting Erdogan in 2019, according to a report from the Stockholm Center for Freedom.
Erdogan’s lawyer filed a criminal complaint against Charlie Hebdo’s management with Ankara’s prosecutor stating that the Charlie Hebdo cover cartoon amounted to “criminal libel” that is “not covered by freedom of expression,” according to state news agency Anadolu. Turkey is now promoting a boycott of French products. Protests against Charlie Hebdo cartoons are again springing up in a number of Muslim countries, focusing their ire on French President Emmanual Macron and demanding that cartoons criticizing the Prophet Muhammad should be banned in Europe. Here’s a good article from Britain’s Daily Mail.
Turkish cartoonist Musa Kart recently spent a year and a half in jail for his drawings. Kart famously drew a cartoon depicting Erdogan as an orange cat that landed him in prison on an earlier occasion. Cartoonists around the world drew cartoons in support of Kart; here’s one that I drew in support of Kart when he was in prison.
I did a quick search and I found that we have 716 cartoons about Erdogan on PoliticalCartoons.com. It is no surprise that Erdogan’s short fuse and suppression of the press has made him a favorite target for cartoonists around the world.
Freedom of expression is often brought up in defense of offensive cartoons, especially against tyrants who seek to ban speech that offends them. That said, freedom of expression is not a reason to publish offensive cartoons. Cartoonists have the freedom to be asses, but we should choose not to be asses.
I would have killed the cartoon on the cover of the current Charlie Hebdo issue if it had been submitted to me – but it is a top story in the news today, so I posted it here in our blog. It is the crazy reaction to the cartoon that makes the cartoon newsworthy.
Here is a nice selection from our vast, Erdogan cartoon archive.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
I had some mixed feelings about this one because it is a little simple and odd for an editorial cartoon, but I like cartoons with character and body language, which is just about all that this cartoon consists of.
The CagleCartoonists are doing great work recently! Here are my favorites from the past few days.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
Here are our most reprinted cartoons of last week (October 3rd, through October 10th, 2020). As usual, no drawings of President Trump were popular with editors, even with Trump dominating the news every day.
My own cartoon was #1 this week, by an unusually wide margin. Dave Whamond had a whopper of a week with three cartoons in the Top Ten. Steve Sack and Dave Granlund also had impressive weeks, each taking two spots on the Top Ten.
Congratulations to the other two cartoonists with Top Ten cartoons: Jeff Koterba and Rick McKee.
Our Top Ten is a measure of how many editors choose to reprint each of our cartoons, from the 62 cartoonists in our CagleCartoons.com syndication package. Just about half of America’s daily, paid circulation newspapers (around 700 papers) subscribe to CagleCartoons.com. 20% of the cartoons get 80% of the reprints, and the Top Ten cartoons are what most readers see inter newspapers.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
Dave Whamond shares 8th place with his second of three cartoons in the Top Ten.
#10
And Dave Whamond wraps up the week with his third cartoon on the list.
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Late last night we got the news that President Trump and First Lady Melania have tested positive for Coronavirus. Social media exploded with sarcasm and righteous indignation because of the president’s history of refusing to wear a mask, his super spreader, maskless rallies and his many statements diminishing the importance of the pandemic. The cartoons started coming in this morning – here is mine.
Here’s another one inspired by the laughter on social media, from our Dutch cartoonist, Jos Collignon.
Our conservative, Trump supporting cartoonist, Gary McCoy, almost never draws president Trump; this morning he made an exception.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
Here’s another debate cartoon that manages not to bash Trump, by Peter Kuper. Editors like cartoons about everyday folks reacting to the topics of the day, and editors like cartoons that avoid bashing Trump, so I’m guessing that this one will be popular.
Here’s one by Austrian cartoonist Petar Pismetrovic that puts Trump and Biden on equal footing.
Here’s Pat Bagley with a rare, even handed cartoon.
Here’s a similar, even handed cartoon from Jeff Koterba, who is usually even handed.
This rare, even handed cartoon comes from conservative cartoonist Gary McCoy.
Who would have thought that this crazy debate would lead to even handed cartoons?
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
As conservative media obsesses over law and order, the “mainstream media” obsesses over president Trump and his supporters and their “word salad” about a “peaceful transfer of power.” Here’s my cartoon.
Republicans have issued statements that don’t mention Trump, and include the self-serving nonsense implying that they will be eager participants in a constitutional crisis that looms with a possible close election. I hate wordy cartoons, but sometimes there is no good alternative.
CagleCartoonist John Darkow was less wordy …
Here’s my rough sketch. For some reason, people keep telling me that they want to see these.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
Trump’s big rallies with no masks and no social distancing are interesting to watch. The chants of “I love you” make me laugh. Here’s my new one and a batch of my recent favorite Trump/COVID cartoons by my CagleCartoonist buddies.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
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We’ve got a new blog design that should be more phone friendly! Also, comments should be easier! I’m still getting used to it. I like the “infinity page” thing. Leave a comment and let me know what you think.
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
President Trump has declared war on mail-in voting, a process that is safe regarding the coronavirus, but not so safe for the fortunes of Republicans who don’t fare so well when the process of voting is made easier for voters. Trump also doesn’t like the Washington Post, and by extension, the Post’s owner Jeff Bezos, who runs Amazon.com, which uses the Post Office a lot. Trump appears to be tearing down the Post Office so that it would lose the public’s confidence to process mail-in votes.
People ask me to show my messy sketches, so here you go. I printed out the USPS logo and taped it into place.
Here are my favorite, recent Post Office cartoons by the CagleCartoonists!
Our reader supported site, Cagle.com, still needs you! Journalism is threatened with the pandemic that has shuttered newspaper advertisers. Some pundits predict that a large percentage of newspapers won’t survive the pandemic economic slump, and as newspapers sink, so do editorial cartoonists who depend on newspapers, and along with them, our Cagle.com site, that our small, sinking syndicate largely supports, along with our fans.
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Newspaper editorial cartoonists love to draw president Trump! We make Trump fat. We give Trump a crazy, long, red tie, a bright, orange face and a grand swoop of yellow hair. Trump appears in editorial cartoons more than any other president, or anything else, has ever appeared in cartoons before. Just as Trump dominates the news on TV every night, he dominates political cartoons. Our problem is that newspaper editors don’t like publishing drawings of Trump.
I’m a cartoonist who runs a newspaper “syndicate” that distributes the work of about sixty of the top cartoonists from around the world to newspaper editorial page editors. Close to half of America’s approximately 1,400 daily, paid-circulation newspapers subscribe to my “package” service at CagleCartoons.com, where editors can pick what they like from a collection of up to twenty different cartoons on a single day. We have a broad range of political cartoons, reflecting a spectrum of content from liberal to conservative, across a range of issues, and editors are free to choose from any of it, with each cartoon presented in the same way. Subscribing editors choose to download high-resolution images of the latest cartoons to print in their papers, and I track the statistics of what the editors choose to download.
Since our our subscribing editors represent a very large and fairly random sampling of newspapers, I can safely project that the trends we see in editors’ choices are representative of all American newspapers, including those that subscribe to our competitors who offer a similar range of editorial cartoons in their syndicate packages. I don’t think anyone has ever tracked statistics like this before, and what the stats reveal about editors is surprising.
The most surprising thing the statistics reveal is that editors simply don’t want political cartoons that depict Trump. Sometimes, when Trump makes lots of news, the majority of the editorial cartoonists draw the president and editors still avoid the Trump cartoons.
The last cartoon depicting president Trump, that made our Top Ten cartoons of the week, was this one I drew of Trump and a looming COVID 19 wave, back in March.
I post a collection of the Top Ten most reprinted cartoons of the week, every week on my blog at DarylCagle.com. 20% of our cartoons get 80% of the reprints, and the Top Ten cartoons are by far the most reprinted. The last time a drawing of Trump made our Top Ten list was in March; it was a drawing I did of a tiny Trump who is oblivious to a giant wave of coronavirus that was about to hit him.
Most newspapers are small, rural or suburban newspapers in conservative areas; big city papers tend to be the liberal ones. Most cartoonists are liberal, and the conventional wisdom among cartoonists has been that conservative cartoonists are more widely reprinted because there are few conservative cartoonists and most, small and red state papers want conservative cartoons; recent stats show that this is all wrong. Even though we hear from conservative editors who complain that there aren’t enough conservative cartoons, editors from both liberal and conservative regions tend to select the same cartoons – funny cartoons about newsy topics that express little or no opinion. In fact, the more strongly an opinion is expressed in a cartoon, either liberal or conservative, the less likely editors are to choose to reprint the cartoon.
Editorial cartoonists have their own, macho culture. We like to draw strong cartoons that hit readers over the head with our point of view. We draw out of passion. We’re certainly not in the business for the money, so the choices editors make are very frustrating for us. Some strong metaphors can almost guarantee that a cartoon won’t be reprinted, no matter what the point the metaphor is used to make. Cartoonists, especially foreign cartoonists, like to draw blood in cartoons to represent terrible violence, they like images of the Ku Klux Klan to represent racism, and drawings of Hitler to depict a murdering, fascist tyrant; these cartoons rarely get reprinted.
American editors don’t like cartoons from foreign countries at all; conversely, foreign editors don’t like reprinting American cartoonists. The idea that cartoons are a “universal language” is a canard; editorial cartoons stop at national borders. Unless there is a huge foreign story involving America overseas, American editors don’t choose to reprint cartoons about foreign events even by American cartoonists.
New events find their way onto the Top Ten. We’ve had some cartoons on the Black Lives Matter protests and racist monuments show up on our Top Ten recently, but not as many as I’d like to see. There were many more images of Trump in cartoons that got ink in the early days of the administration.
What do editors like? Lately they like cartoons about the pandemic, with cartoons about families coping with shortages, masks, back to school, social distancing and sports topping the list. In normal times, editors prefer cartoons that comment on popular culture, celebrity schadenfreude, modern family dynamics, struggles with technology, the workplace and new trends.
The timid choices that newspaper editors make are disturbing enough to bring a tear to the eye of the Statue of Liberty.
This “back to school” cartoon I drew made #1 on our Top Ten list one week. This is typical of the type of cartoons editors prefer now.
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Here’s a nice one from New Yorker cartoonist, 
We’ve got a new blog design that should be more phone friendly! Also, comments should be easier! I’m still getting used to it. I like the “infinity page” thing. Leave a comment and let me know what you think.
