• Login
  • Register
The Daily Sceptic
No Result
View All Result
  • Articles
  • About
  • Archive
    • ARCHIVE
    • NEWS ROUND-UPS
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Premium
  • Donate
  • Log In
The Daily Sceptic
No Result
View All Result

Australian Cartoonist Sacked after Linking Mandatory Vaccination to Tiananmen Square

by Luke Perry
25 October 2021 11:42 AM

After releasing a cartoon on Instagram attacking the Australian Government’s push for mandatory vaccination, cartoonist Michael Leunig (pictured above) was later informed by the Age daily newspaper that he would no longer be working for them in his capacity as a Political Cartoonist. The cartoon was rejected for publication before Leunig released the material on social media, causing a backlash from pro-mandate accounts, while prompting the newspaper’s editor to inform Leunig that he was disconnected from the audience. RT has the story.

Speaking to The Australian on Monday, Leunig said that while the editorial team has censored about a dozen of his works this year, the last straw appeared to be an anti-mandate cartoon which was a play on the iconic ‘tank man’ photo. Leunig’s cartoon shows a man staring down a tank, with its main gun being replaced by a syringe.

The original photo depicts a lone Chinese protester standing before a line of tanks during the 1989 pro-democracy protests at Tiananmen Square.

While his cartoon was rejected by The Age, Leunig published the drawing on Instagram, triggering backlash from the proponents of vaccine mandates.

Shortly after the controversy erupted, Leunig, who worked at the newspaper for over 20 years, was told that his services as a Political Cartoonist were no longer needed. Gay Alcorn, Editor of The Daily Age, reportedly told the artist that he was “out of touch” with readers before notifying him of his dismissal. While Alcorn praised Leunig as “brilliant” in a comment to The Australian, he confirmed that his works would no longer appear on the editorial page. The newspaper still plans to commission lifestyle cartoons from Leunig, however.

Leunig accused the newspaper of “wokeism and humorlessness“, defending the cartoon as an accurate reflection of the times.

Worth reading in full.

Tags: AustraliaThe mediaVaccine Passports

Donate

We depend on your donations to keep this site going. Please give what you can.

Donate Today

Comment on this Article

You’ll need to set up an account to comment if you don’t already have one. We ask for a minimum donation of £5 if you'd like to make a comment or post in our Forums.

Sign Up
Previous Post

Rishi Sunak to Announce £6 Billion Spending Package to Fight Growing NHS Backlog

Next Post

China to Begin Vaccinating Three Year-Olds

Subscribe
Login
Notify of
Please log in to comment

To join in with the discussion please make a donation to The Daily Sceptic.

Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.

96 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

NEWSLETTER

View today’s newsletter

To receive our latest news in the form of a daily email, enter your details here:

DONATE

PODCAST

In Episode 35 of the Sceptic: Andrew Doyle on Labour’s Grooming Gang Shame, Andrew Orlowski on the India-UK Trade Deal and Canada’s Ignored Covid Vaccine Injuries

by Richard Eldred
9 May 2025
4

LISTED ARTICLES

  • Most Read
  • Most Commented
  • Editor’s Picks

Free Speech Union Helping 71 Year-Old ‘Thought Criminal’ Arrested by Kent Police and Held in Cell For Eight Hours

11 May 2025
by Toby Young

News Round-Up

11 May 2025
by Will Jones

Hugely Influential Covid Vaccine Study Claiming the Jabs Saved Millions of Lives Torn to Shreds in Medical Journal

10 May 2025
by Dr Raphael Lataster

Britain Faces Months-Long Blackouts Because of Net Zero

11 May 2025
by Richard Eldred

The Backlash to the War Against Boys

11 May 2025
by Noah Carl

Miliband Plots Surge in Wind Farm Subsidies to Rescue Net Zero

29

News Round-Up

29

Free Speech Union Helping 71 Year-Old ‘Thought Criminal’ Arrested by Kent Police and Held in Cell For Eight Hours

18

The Backlash to the War Against Boys

18

Britain Faces Months-Long Blackouts Because of Net Zero

14

Declined: Chapter 18: The Unthinkable

11 May 2025
by Molly Kingsley

The Backlash to the War Against Boys

11 May 2025
by Noah Carl

Hugely Influential Covid Vaccine Study Claiming the Jabs Saved Millions of Lives Torn to Shreds in Medical Journal

10 May 2025
by Dr Raphael Lataster

Reflections on Empire, Papacy and States

10 May 2025
by James Alexander

Ed Miliband’s Housing Energy Plan Will Decimate the Rental Market and Send Rents Spiralling

10 May 2025
by Ben Pile

POSTS BY DATE

October 2021
M T W T F S S
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
« Sep   Nov »

SOCIAL LINKS

Free Speech Union
  • Home
  • About us
  • Donate
  • Privacy Policy

Facebook

  • X

Instagram

RSS

Subscribe to our newsletter

© Skeptics Ltd.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Articles
  • About
  • Archive
    • ARCHIVE
    • NEWS ROUND-UPS
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Premium
  • Donate
  • Log In

© Skeptics Ltd.

wpDiscuz
You are going to send email to

Move Comment
Perfecty
Do you wish to receive notifications of new articles?
Notifications preferences