Mark Knight’s Serena Williams cartoon cleared by press watchdog
A controversial Mark Knight cartoon depicting Serena Williams on a tennis court with a broken tennis racquet and pacifier has been cleared by the press watchdog.
The Herald Sun’s cartoon from September 10, which referred to an incident during a tennis match between Williams and Naomi Osaka, received international coverage and scrutiny by outlets and celebrities including author J K Rowling.
The cartoon did not breach Press Council guidlines
How embarrassing for all of us. Even the watch dogs are rascist. As a culture we’re so rascist we can’t even see it.
Maybe learn how to spell the word before you start accusing a load of strangers of being that thing?
I’m an indigenous Australian. It helps nobody when you take a caricature comment about the appalling behaviour of a sporting personality and call it racism on my behalf. How else have you tried to help my people overcome racists Australia and our underprivileged communities in rural Australia? Stop defending us by muddying what’s really important.
I care greatly about showing respect to all people and diversity for all as much as the next person. We are also in a bit of diversity-oversteer at times and going too far the other way. I actually wondered if the people that made the biggest fuss about this cartoon were actually perpetuating racial prejudice in fact?
I think this is a good ruling in this instance. The ugliness in the character in that moment is only a reflection of actual behaviour that is ugly, not about Serena representing a race. Does anyone say that our white, male politicians being equally caricatured is being racist or racially prejudiced? No. What about Trump being ridiculed for his signature hair? No. This is the true indication of people being racist I think. This is a perfect example where even those with the best intentions need to be more careful they themselves are not perpetuating racial bias and hate.
Good comment, Anne. I wish more people shared your constructive reasoning on here!