23 May 2004

by Anai Rhoads

E-mail this article

AnaiRhoads.org - The creator of the well-known comic strip, Doonesbury, released a statement in which he apologised for a recently published cartoon that depicts a severed head on a platter.

Many wrote in saying that they found Sunday's cartoon offensive and insensitive in light of the recent events surrounding the slaying of the American, Nicholas Berg, who was beheaded in Iraq. A video of Berg's decapitation later surfaced on the Islamic-based Muntada al-Ansar Islamis website.

"Most Sunday sections are prepared five to six weeks in advance, and today's strip was unfortunately overtaken by events," Doonesbury creator Gary Trudeau said in his statement to the public Sunday.

"I regret the poor timing, and apologise to anyone who was offended by an image that is now clearly inappropriate."

The Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist's work is featured in over 1,400 newspapers. The Washington Post and the New York Daily News were among several major newspapers that displayed Trudeau's public statement.

©2004 AnaiRhoads.org Reproduction must be authorised in writing only, and altering the material and this copyright is prohibited and protected by international law.