Search icon

News

12th Sep 2018

Paper defends Serena Williams cartoon with ‘Welcome to PC world’ front page

The Herald Sun has republished the cartoon on its front page

Oli Dugmore

The Herald Sun has republished the cartoon on its front page

An Australian newspaper has defended its cartoon of Serena Williams by republishing it on its front page under the headline “Welcome to PC world.”

The Herald Sun responded to critics accusing it of racism and sexism after publishing the drawing, writing: “If the self-appointed censors of Mark Knight get their way on his Serena Williams cartoon, our new politically correct life will be very dull indeed.”

Serena Williams cartoon front page of the herald sun

During the US Open final Williams, the greatest female tennis player of all time, descended into fury, accusing umpire Carlos Ramos of treating men less harshly for their on court conduct.

The 23-time Grand Slam winner demanded an apology from the umpire after she received a coaching violation.

Instead, Williams was penalised by Ramos for three code violations during her 6-2, 6-4 loss to Japan’s Naomi Osaka on Saturday: one for getting coaching signals; one for breaking her racket, which cost her a point; and one for calling the chair umpire a thief, which cost her a game.

[caption id="attachment_199187" align="alignnone" width="3308"]NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 08: Serena Williams of the United States throws her racket to the ground in frustration in the Women's Singles finals match against Naomi Osaka of Japan on Day Thirteen of the 2018 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 8, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images) Williams was docked a point for smashing her racket (Credit: Julian Finney)

“I’ve seen other men call other umpires several things,” Williams said in the post-match press conference. “I’m here fighting for women’s rights and for women’s equality and for all kinds of stuff. For me to say ‘thief,’ and for him to take a game, it made me feel like it was a sexist remark. He’s never taken a game from a man because they said ‘thief’.

“For me, it blows my mind, but I’m going to continue to fight for women.”

Williams was fined $17,000 for her reaction to the penalties.

In the cartoon, the umpire asks Osaka: “Can you just let her win?”

Mark Knight has since deleted his social media accounts

JK Rowling is among those who criticised the drawing by Mark Knight but the paper has doubled-down.

Damon Johnston, the Herald Sun editor, said the cartoon “rightly mocks poor behaviour by a tennis legend” and that “Mr Knight has the full support of everyone [at the paper].”

Knight told the Herald Sun: “The cartoon was just about Serena on the day having a tantrum.

“A few days beforehand I had actually drawn a cartoon of Australian Nick Kyrgios and his bad behaviour at the US Open, so I’m not targeting [Williams]. Serena is a champion.”