Ann Telnaes: The Washington Post Cartoonist Who Was Censored by Her Editor

“As an editorial cartoonist, my job is to hold powerful people and institutions accountable”, says Ann Telnaes. Since 2008 she has been an editorial cartoonist for The Washington Post and she has won numerous prestigious awards for her work. But then everything came to a sudden halt. For the first time in her career, her editor stopped one of her cartoons.

The cartoon that was killed criticizes the billionaire tech and media chief executives who had been doing their best to curry favor with incoming President-elect Trump, including The Washington Post owner, Jeff Bezos.

Ann decided to leave The Post and on January 4, she submitted her “resignation” on Substack, where she wrote: “Over the years I have watched my overseas colleagues risk their livelihoods and sometimes even their lives to expose injustices and hold their countries’ leaders accountable. As a member of the Advisory board for the Geneva-based Freedom Cartoonists Foundation and a former board member of  Cartoonists Rights, I believe that editorial cartoonists are vital for civic debate and have an essential role in journalism. I will not stop holding truth to power through my cartooning, because as they say: “Democracy dies in darkness”.

The reactions and support have been tremendous. Now, Ann is headed to The Nordic Media Days to talk about the gravity of this case, freedom of the press as a foundation for democracy, and the unique and important role of political cartoons.