Wall St was down 94 overnight, its biggest fall in a month, while the local market is down 66.
Trujillo latest victim of News Corp’s racist toons
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Earlier this week, Rupert Murdoch and the New York Post were forced to apologise for a cartoon many saw as racist for its apparent depiction of President Barack Obama as a chimpanzee shot dead by police. It’s astounding, then, to see that the Post ’s stablemate the Herald Sun has published a racist cartoon of its own today. The topic is yesterday’s announcement of the departure of Sol Trujillo as CEO of Telstra. Prominent in the op-ed section of the paper, cartoonist Mark Knight has drawn Trujillo as a sleepy-eyed, sombrero-wearing cliched Mexican, riding off from a Wild West hick town (with one of the buildings bearing a Telstra logo) on a donkey laden with moneybags, as loose notes flutter about in the desert air. He is dressed in a mariachi band outfit with spurs on his boots.
And on page two of the paper, a largely positive review by Terry McCrann of Trujillo’s achievements while at the helm of Telstra was not-so-subtly undermined by the headline (presumably the work of a sub-editor) “Si senor”. Regardless of what you think of the job Trujillo has done at Telstra or of his bonuses and golden parachute arrangements, the use of racist imagery to depict anyone should be just as unacceptable in Australia as it is in the US. As I wrote in 2006, portraying Trujillo in terms of Mexican racial stereotypes — either as some kind of poncho-wearing, siesta-taking buffoon or as a moustachioed, pistol-toting “bandido” — is intentionally demeaning and not even based on fact. Trujillo was born in Cheyenne, Wyoming, is a US citizen, was educated in the US, and has never lived or worked in Mexico. Why should we consider these images of Trujillo as any less racist than depicting an African-American as an ape? Imagine the uproar if a Murdoch paper ran a cartoon of Lebanese-born ex-NAB executive and now Rudd Bank head Ahmed Fahour wearing a tea-towel on his head or riding a camel, which would be directly analogous to what they’ve done to Trujillo. There was, of course, no mention of Fahour’s ethnicity or place of birth in how The Australian reported his appointment. Nor should there be in reporting about Trujillo. |
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12 Comments
Look folks, there’s a simple test here. Would Trujillo be depicted as a thieving bandido in a sombrero if his name was Malcolm Turnbull? Unequivocally NO! The cartoon depiction is based solely on his (popularly perceived) race and national origin and stereotypes that go along with it.
Would the headline on Terry McCrann’s piece say “Si senor” if Trujillo had an Anglo name? Again, uneqivocally NO!
These depictions of Trujillo are demeaning. For many consumers, they undermine perceptions of Trujillo and Telstra by appealing to cartoon and movie depictions of Mexicans as snoozy, lazy, stupid and untrustworthy.
But did cartoons or headlines about Ford’s performance when Jac Nasser was CEO make jokes about his ethnic background? NO! And Ahmed Fahour’s performance at NAB? NO! You won’t find a single so-called news item about Nasser or Fahour that mentions falafel or hummous but there have been many about Trujillo that reference chili peppers and tacos.
So why does everyone think ethnic stereotypes are acceptable when it comes to Trujillo and Mexicans but not for others? And John Smith, when you say “besides”, are you seriously suggesting that it’s OK to be racist as long as it’s not about the president?
That’s a good idea. I will run it by my Hispanic friends. I was going to say, yeah you are right it’s got stereotypes in there, so let’s just say directly he’s a prick and good riddance. Maybe they should have shown him carrying a bag of money in one hand and a gas canister in the other (NCFOM) and offering to sell the harbour bridge to the hostie.
Since when is being a Mexican on a donkey a bad thing, It wories me that a marketing expert with a PHD thinks so! As for saying the SOL cartoon can be compared to the one depicting President Obama, you may as well compare apples and oranges. And besides SOL is no President.
Crass, objectionable, unimaginative…yep.
Racist…hardly.
‘Mexican, Australian, French etc.’ denotes a national origin, ‘Black, Caucasian etc.’ denotes a race. Whilst there is a parochialism implicit in all forms of discrimination based on place of origin, the lampooning of national characteristics has benign attributes. Racism, on the other hand, has no redeeming features.
I can’t elieve te dialogue here. What is it that people don’t inderstand about the corrosiveness of racist stereotypes? It’s not the same as presenting Malcolm Turnbull as a toff - there’s a vilifying component based purely on perceptions of of the suject’s ethnc background which denigrate him as Stephen commented above. A similar portrayal would be to present Barack Obama as a watermelon slurping sambo - as black people were commonly portrayed in the 20th century. Whites thought such portrayals were harmless fun as well.
” There was, of course, no mention of Fahour’s ethnicity or place of birth in how The Australian reported his appointment.
Nor should there be in reporting about Trujillo. “
That’s right Stephen - his US origins were rightly ignored in his appointment, and played no role in the wonderful job he’s done of seriously worsening Testra’s share price and public image, or the obscene amounts of “remuneration” handed over for it.
Incidentally, Mexican is not a race - and nor is ape.
so how would you depict someone you wanted to suggest was a “thieving bandido”, given they were of Mexican extraction?
[and how does doing so as in the picture suggest “snoozy, lazy, stupid and untrustworthy” exactly?]
Another looking diligently for this to take offense at. I bet Sol is not in the least hurt or insulted. Incidentally haven’t you ever seen the average Aussie caricatured.
A sense of humor is a gift, pity that Stephen Downes was behind the door when it was being handed out.
Stephen Downes still doesn’t get it I am afraid. The whole purpose of cartoons is to caricature the the subject. To take the piss in other words. There is a lot of difference between cartoons and writing racist drivel.
Again Downes take a look for instance at the caricatures you find about Aussies as yobs in Jackie Howe singlets and stubbies - racist surely not. Humorous yes.
The skill of the cartoonist is providing a modicum of perceived truth in the cartoon.
Grow up mate, and stop looking for things to take offense at.
In a sombrero and on a donkey! The Horror, the horror…
I once saw Garreth Evans depicted as biggles, he himself had never flown a fighter plane, I agree this practice of Cartoonists using anything other than a literal representation of the facts for the so-called purposes of ‘humour’ must be stamped out!
Seriously mate, get a life.
Pro-tip: Mexican is not a race.
You are kidding surely? How is this not racist? Have you heard of an ethnic grouping known as Hispanic? You know, the pool boys and wet backs and lazy, cowardly sombrero wearing drug dealing dupes south of the US border? We are so racist in this country we can’t even see it. Is it more racist than depicting Turnbull in a top hat? Of course it is. Back to stereotyping 101 for you. You want to whinge about political correctness? Oh that’s right, people do mean drawings of white people so its ok for us to do mean drawings stereotypical of niggers and spics and wops. Choptsicks and watermelons and teatowels. Get an understanding of context. Soon. Run the cartoon past your hispanic friends. Don’t have any? Find some online. If there is a problem with this article it is that Mr Downes was too kind. How about some funny drawings of stupid aborigines spending their hard earned centrelink payments on grog, would that be racist? Of course not. Or funny muslims drowning in a boat on their way to darwin. Mr Knight’s cartoon is funny BECAUSE SOMBREROS AND DONKEYS ARE FUNNY MEXICAN STEREOTYPES! It might not be shooting a chimp, but drawing this in the US would get you a big slapdown. Not in this country though. You holier than thou ignorami. The worst thing is you dont even know it.
C’mon Downes. Are you serious? Is it any more ‘racist’ than depicting Malcolm Turnball in a top-hat and tales. Anti-anglo maybe? Or Alexander Downer in fishnets. Anti-transgender maybe?
For god’s sake.