scottmooreFeb 28, 2023
Jay Rosen

I watched the youtube clip where Scott Adams did his racist star turn, and another where he "explained" himself.

It seemed clear that he knew he would lose the strip. He was quite deliberate about it.

More like a career move than an outburst. Planned cancelling.

Not the quiet part said out loud, but the loud part delivered quietly and calmly.

https://www.npr.org/2023/02/28/1159605012/dilbert-cartoonist-scott-adams-rant-rebuke

Feb 28, 2023 at 5:54pmWeb
Show threadBret Pettichord Feb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu
Yes seems like an intentional and deliberate decision
Show threadEhproque has movedMar 1, 2023
@bpettichord @jayrosen_nyu yeah, it's like those people who are getting fired and tweet transphobic stuff, suddenly they have a lot more options from the "conservative voices are being silenced" crowd
Show threadDwight SilvermanFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Yep, flameout retirement.
Show threadDave Winer ☕️Feb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu -- yes no doubt -- it was obvious from the start. and everyone fell for it. ;-)
Show threadDefiance!Feb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Yep. "Getting canceled" is a deliberate marketing strategy designed to attract a reactionary audience
Show threadSheila DeBonisFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu I wish this article gave the opinions of cartoonists who are more pedestrian. I don't recognize those names. Can we have articles like this that interview Darby Conley, Garry Trudeau, Jim Davis, Hillary Price, Bill Amend, Bill Watterson, etc? And the Jump Start guy, Robb Armstrong, who is a black guy and writes about black characters.
Show threadokanogen VerminEnemyFromWithinMar 1, 2023
@sheiladebonis @jayrosen_nyu
Replace Dilbert with Zippy the Pinhead and elevate collective IQ points by 5%.
Show threadSheila DeBonisMar 1, 2023
@Okanogen @jayrosen_nyu Boston Globe already publishes Zippy. I'm pretty educated but I don't understand it. I find myself disagreeing with Adams a lot lately, but I do agree with him that often the only joke in Zippy is the one on the reader.
Show threadokanogen VerminEnemyFromWithinMar 1, 2023
@sheiladebonis @jayrosen_nyu Scott Addams is a zero talent hack with a racist misogynist schtick who can't draw and that's why he hates Bill Griffith.
Show threadSheila DeBonisMar 1, 2023
@Okanogen @jayrosen_nyu I liked his comic but yeah, his personality lately sucks. I never really liked Zippy too much, sorry. But I guess Griffith draws pretty good.
Show threadThe Puppet GovernmentFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu it’s a form of “death by cop” (in this case, permanent social approbation.
Post divorce Ye and Musk made the same calculation. And remain quite proud of themselves about it.
Show threaddsicFeb 28, 2023
@voiceofamericast @jayrosen_nyu the common theme is lose millions $$$
Show threadFunk_FunkyFeb 28, 2023
@voiceofamericast @jayrosen_nyu exactly what I was thinking
Show threadFardels BearFeb 28, 2023

@jayrosen_nyu

My impression as well. He's positioning himself as the victim of 'woke' cancel culture, all the better to stand as a #MAGA candidate somewhere.

Show threadElaine RiguesMar 1, 2023

@riggbeck @jayrosen_nyu He's been milking that sweet oh woe is me MAGA money since 2015 and positioned himself as a POS around 2010, I don't see why he would risk becoming a candidate when he's worth about 7 million dollars right now even after killing his syndication ties.

If anything, this gives him an excuse to get even more radical as an independent cartoonist, not restricting his strips playing by syndication rules anymore.

Show threadDan SugalskiFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu I do wonder if the strip or other strip-related deals was faltering and this was his way to end it without the embarrassment of fading into obscurity. He still fails, just this way he can blame it on other people and milk that for money/attention/ego points.
Show threadPennyAK1Feb 28, 2023
@wordshaper @jayrosen_nyu THAT is an amazing and probably accurate analysis. I loved his strips in the early days. I worked in Federal government and corporate culture. His strips reflected my life. But I have not looked at them in years. I don't think they are as relevant.
Show threadnightowlsincFeb 28, 2023

@PennyG @wordshaper @jayrosen_nyu

I know Ed Burmilla from Gin and Tacos isn't here, so I'm going to leverage his observation at the themes in Dilbert "stopped being relevant three economic collapses ago." Because it's true.

Show threadWillemFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Glad Scott has been punished for what he did.
Show threadAaron MoshiashwiliFeb 28, 2023
@wvanherk @jayrosen_nyu I think you missed the point completely. It's not punishment if he chose it and wanted it to happen.
Show threadAndyHatFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu I'm guessing it's all a promotional stunt for locals.com
Show threadJeff C. 🇺🇦🇬🇱Feb 28, 2023

@jayrosen_nyu At some point, I figure, there is going to be a surplus of “I wuz canceled!” grievance grifters and the market for what they’re selling will tank.

Has Adams been invited on Tucker Carlson’s show yet?

Show threadNotReadyForThisFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Adams has been wading deep in the alt-right cesspool even before that was even a thing, yet he was never a figure head of the whole movement. I think his controversies predate 4chan, if you can believe it. Nor was he ever one of its relevant mouthpieces or its spin doctors. When he was big he was mostly know for his misogyny but guess what, there is racism in there too. Morally ambiguous from the start he just turned to full moral bankruptcy to stave of irrelevance a little longer.
Show threadMattFeb 28, 2023
@cli @jayrosen_nyu he has a long history of awfulness
https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Scott_Adams
Scott Adams

Scott Adams (1957–) has a self-reported IQ of 185, and don't you forget it.[4] He is an American trained hypnotist[5] and cartoonist known for Dilbert, a long-running satirical comic strip about a white-collar office worker in America. His blog, which is currently a fascinating study of a man going insane,[6] attracted major media attention during the 2016 election. Long before that, he advanced some crank positions, including questioning evolution and the validity of the fossil record. He has appeared on InfoWars, further cementing his genius IQ.[7]

RationalWiki
Show threadReallyCanadianFlyMar 1, 2023
@MattFerrel @cli @jayrosen_nyu I'm not sure how I avoided all this. It seems like early in his career he hadn't gone off the edge yet, he still had some humility. I'm not sure when he went off the rails and started believing in his own infallible brilliance. I'm guessing some time after he released God's Debris, maybe even before.
Show threadDavid W. JonesFeb 28, 2023
@cli
Based on some of his business writings I read many years ago, I think that Mr Adams is a sociopath. Could his condition mean that he isn't merely "morally bankrupt" but completely amoral?
@jayrosen_nyu @n69n
Show threadnewsorpigalFeb 28, 2023

@jayrosen_nyu

Scott Adams probably has a ton of money already. Maybe saying what's on his mind appeals to him more than making more money.

Show threadKudra Feb 28, 2023
@newsorpigal @jayrosen_nyu See JKR. Has demonstrably lost significant income for anti-trans statements, yet continues to dig in heels. Scott is nowhere near as rich or powerful, but I doubt he's anywhere near uncomfortable even if he doesn't ever earn another cent.
Show threadnewsorpigalMar 1, 2023

@kudra
@jayrosen_nyu

JKR probably has infinite money by now and doesn't care.

Show threadDarrel PlantFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu
It worked for Bari Weiss!
Show threadCharles J Gervasi ⚡🛡️🥥Mar 1, 2023
@darrelplant
I recall Bari Weiss quitting #NYT and not saying anything racist, although I easily could have missed it. I didn't follow the story closely.
@jayrosen_nyu
Show threadDarrel PlantMar 1, 2023

@cgervasi @jayrosen_nyu

That was more of a comment on the "planned cancelling" to stomp off and grift in other pastures, but Weiss complained that while she was still at the NYT other staffers called her a racist (according to stories from 2020 in places like New Republic) so there's that.

Show threadSam GrossFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu @mmasnick I do wonder if it will emerge that the decline in newspapers running Dilbert over the last year was going to result in his publisher dropping him anyway. Maybe he gave up a year or two of shrinking revenue for a *great* advertisement for his book (in stores this fall!)
Show threadRyan CampbellFeb 28, 2023
@SamTheGeek @jayrosen_nyu @mmasnick The publisher dropped his book haha
Show threadSam GrossFeb 28, 2023
@pendragon @jayrosen_nyu https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0csHgHwTC8
Frolic (Theme from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" TV Show)

YouTube
Show threadDarrel PlantFeb 28, 2023

@jayrosen_nyu
Never has "Robot Chicken" wielded so much power (this aired in March 2022):

https://youtu.be/G6oyWvlUmXs

Dilbert Vs his own creator

YouTube
Show threadWillie AbramsMar 1, 2023
@darrelplant @jayrosen_nyu That is amazing.
Show threadThadFeb 28, 2023

@jayrosen_nyu He also stated, outright, that he was trying to get canceled months ago, when he introduced his first Black character with the only joke conservatives know.

People mostly ignored it, so he had to keep ratcheting up the hateful rhetoric until his business partners couldn't ignore it anymore.

Show threadPennyAK1Feb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu I think what he wrote was horrible. But I can't find an explanation of what he was responding to. HE says the Black survey indicated Blacks hate white people. I wonder what the survey REALLY was about, and what it said.
Show threadPeter ButlerFeb 28, 2023

@PennyG @jayrosen_nyu Here you go. “It’s OK to be white” has been a 4chan trolling campaign for years. I’m surprised that a polling company would not know that. There’s a Wikipedia article, ffs.

https://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/lifestyle/questions/january_2023/questions_okay_to_be_white_february_13_15_2023

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_okay_to_be_white

Questions - Okay To Be White - February 13-15, 2023 - Rasmussen Reports®

Show threadCharles J Gervasi ⚡🛡️🥥Mar 1, 2023
@peterbutler
I had not heard of this, but any reasonable person who knew about would answer no to and "okay to be white" questions if they thought it referred to this racist crap on 4chan.
It does sound like a move aimed at starting a bigot grifter tour.
@PennyG @jayrosen_nyu
Show threadPeter ButlerFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Totally seemed like a PR move aimed at a TV commentator spot or right-wing grifter tour.
Show threadRob “leveling seats” PratherMar 1, 2023
@peterbutler @jayrosen_nyu it looks like you’re right, but.he’s already rich. I can’t imagine that the right wing grift actually pays that well.
Show threadGreetings From Out Of the BlueFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu he’ll be a Fox News host next week
Show threadFunk_FunkyFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Career Suicide By Cancel?
Show threadPer FunkeFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu
he's created >15000 strips. I bet he's sick and tired of it. It's clearly lost it edge lately.
Show threadmudsharkbytesFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Anybody whose livelihood depends on entertaining the public is an idiot for stepping into politics or social issues. All they’re going to do is lose about half their audience right off the bat. In Adams case he’s totally killed his career.
He tried to promote the notion he was a master of persuasion, what an egomaniac.
I guess all that’s left is for him anymore is stroking his ego with the handful of bigots that tune in his podcast. Lol!
Show threaddaniel s.Feb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu @anildash funny, that’s what ben garrison also said https://kibitz.cloud/@selfagency/109944347502506960
daniel sieradski (@[email protected])

Far-right cartoonist Ben Garrsion says Scott Adams is trying to cash-in by getting canceled: “Scott knows newspapers are dying, and being canceled by them improves his brand by making him a victim of cancel culture.” https://grrrgraphics.com/how-to-win-bigly-with-scott-adams/

Kibitz Cloud
Show threadeevee 🦊Feb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu he's surely been planning for this for a decade.
Show threadCool XenuFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu I'm sure his alt-right army will continue funding him.
Show threadDancingwiththebelovedFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu well, he could have just put down his pencil... 🤯
Show threadSusan A. KitchensFeb 28, 2023

@jayrosen_nyu Interesting. I've not seen the vids; have seen the uproar.

At some point early-mid 90s Adams put his aol email addy in his strip. Riding the then-tide.

Your descript’n of deliberate retirement via “cancel” controversy could be another riding of tide.

It's common wisdom/oft discussed that social media engagement is strongest with angry/ragey emotions, so Adams provoked outrage as method to bring his comic career to a close.

Show threadMister ShadeFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu What I find both disappointing and curious is that Adams seemingly believes it is more important that he be racist, than have a career.
Show threadiN8sWoRLdMar 1, 2023
@Maxanadu_MX02 @jayrosen_nyu Unlike many 65 year olds, Adams has a net worth north of $75M so he has the option to be "career minded" or not. On the flip side, entrepreneurial people rarely just "stop". They may get bored and move on, but they always figure out a way to "springboard" success into their next gig. I'm not convinced, after reading everything he said recently that Adams is any more overtly racist than he's ever been, but I don't think we've heard the last of him.
Show threadMatt JordanFeb 28, 2023

@jayrosen_nyu

It's quite possible he will make more money as a culture war circuit speaker, selling old and new collections of his work to rubes.

Show threadJake MillerFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu Then we may see some other moves on his part. Wonder if some RW publisher wanted to offer him a better deal on some sort of work. It’s definitely on-brand for him, but it got him out of his contracts.
Show threadwubbo ✨💫Feb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu yes, it seemed like very calculated victimhood in a giant vat or racism
Show threadBen KlausFeb 28, 2023
@jayrosen_nyu in GOPspeak it means “he’s running”