John S. Knight Fellowships for Professional Journalists

2000 Knight Lecture: Garry Trudeau

What a Long, Strange Strip It's Been

Garry Trudeau, Doonesbury cartoonist

Doonesbury creator discusses media

By Amy Christeson
The Stanford Daily, Mar 8, 2000

Acclaimed "Doonesbury" creator Garry Trudeau praised satire Monday night in his speech to a large audience in Dinkelspiel auditorium. Satire, "the savage, unregulated sport protected by the United States Constitution" can be "an effective form of social control," he jokingly said.

The Knight Fellows brought Trudeau to Stanford as part of their speaker series.

Trudeau launched "Doonesbury," his political satire cartoon, in 1970. The strip now runs daily in nearly 1,400 newspapers.

Trudeau began by saying that he was grateful to be speaking at Stanford. "It's the only university whose dropout rate is a leading economic indicator," he said.

Trudeau, the first comic strip artist to receive a Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning, said that "Doonesbury" is "the only place on the comics page" with "politics, rock and roll, sex and drugs." He stressed the "generational authenticity" of his strips and related most of his speech to his experiences as a baby boomer.

Trudeau also voiced his opinions on the current presidential campaign, saying, "Bush's is a campaign and presidency that really concerns me."

He also discussed the role of the media in people's lives and the various ways in which politicians and readers react to his satire and sarcasm.

"When people say that they keep up with the news through 'Doonesbury,' it scares me to death," he said.

Trudeau said he believes that part of his job is to "rouse and surprise"-but publishers haven't always agreed. However, since his Pulitzer Prize in 1975, Trudeau has enjoyed more mainstream acceptance. He said he also tries to "make [people] laugh and think at the same time," which is often a challenge.

The question-and-answer session began with an audience member shouting out, "How does it feel to be so loved?"

In response to an inquiry about his inclusion of the women's movement in his strip, Trudeau said it "started as a dating strategy" but led to an "awareness of the rapid change of attitudes."

When asked if he admired any of the public figures he insults, Trudeau responded with a decisive "No." He explained that journalists often become infatuated with a politician, but are invariably let down. "Skepticism is necessary," he said.

Trudeau said he is fascinated by new technology and the way it opens new artistic venues. New technology has allowed for the creation of a 3-D real-time graphic image of Duke, one of his characters. Next month, Duke, who is currently campaigning for president in the strip, will appear on CNN's "Larry King Live."

Trudeau, a New York native, attended Yale University, where he earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in graphic design. In addition to his success with the "Doonesbury" strip, Trudeau has received four ACE award nominations, awards from the Cannes Film Festival and an Emmy for his work in television.