"Editorial cartoons are the best measure of the freedom of a nation"

Apple: You Can Ridicule Obama, but Don’t Bash Tiger Woods, By Daryl Cagle

Should newspaper editorial cartoonists be banned from drawing cartoons about some selected, famous people? Many believe we should not be allowed to draw the Prophet Muhammad – but how about banning us from drawing Tiger Woods? If Apple has its way, iPhone users won’t see cartoonists commenting about Tiger, and other topics that might ridicule selected public figures.

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Newspaper editorial cartoons have an important history in American journalism. Political cartoons are taught as required curriculum in high schools – still, some people, like the editors at Apple, seem to see editorial cartoons as different than other forms of journalism - as a part of the newspaper that is somehow more offensive than words.

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Cartoonists love to chase the top news stories; [snip]. It is the nature of a free and open debate that defines a democratic society.

Editorial cartoons are the best measure of the freedom of a nation.

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As newspaper audiences decline, more readers have moved to the Web and now to mobile devices for news and opinion. The iPhone dominates the audience that consumes news on their phones, and the new iPad is designed to grab even more print readers, perhaps replacing print. Editorial cartoonists, who are moving from print and the web to mobile devices, are finding that Apple’s views of their profession can have a profound impact on what their future audience will be.

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It is chilling to see Apple pick and choose which topics can be discussed in the mediums they control. By positioning itself to control the new methods of delivery for news and opinion, Apple assumes a special responsibility to allow for a full and free debate on all topics and personalities in the news.

I don’t want Apple deciding which public figures I may ridicule.

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One of the comments on the above column:

Comment from Nolan

Time April 24, 2010 at 4:14 pm

As a developer of games, apps, and enterprise software, my opinion on Apple’s recent fascist-style moderation is that we as content distributors need to send a strong message to the company. I and many of my peers have decided to forgo any development on any “iDevice”, and focus our efforts on more open platforms such as Android.

The notion that the consumer is the only voice in this debate is convoluted to the point of mass delusion. Yes, the consumer wants the pretty, simple hardware and software… but what Apple isn’t considering, is that they more often than not also want the freedom to choose whatever content they desire.

I guess my point with this comment is that Apple is NOT the only boat in the ocean, especially now that other platforms are meeting or exceeding the level of sophistication in mobile devices… whether Steve-O likes it or not.

Keep the funny’s comin’