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September 19, 2003

Uncle Chip Wants You -- 3 Cartoonists Look to Recreate the Bureau of Cartoons

By Chip Beck
As I prepared an announcement about the "Bureau of Cartoons (BOC)" concept that Steve Artley, Paul Fell, and I are developing for the Pentagon, I could not help but believe that the role cartoonists and artists can play in these troubled times are historically important. They could rival those played by our predecessors in World Wars I and II and parts of the Cold War.
In 1918, a Bureau of Cartoons was created by the War Department to use the power of civilian art and cartoons to increase security awareness and patriotism during the Great War. James Montgomery Flagg’s "I Want You" poster of Uncle Sam was a product of those times and projects.
In WWII, the "Office of War Information" was organized to undertake the same missions, and counter Nazi propaganda with positive messages of courage and determination.
In both these wars, highly creative foreign artists were at work producing war art and posters for the enemy side. In the U.S., cartoonists and artists became essential in the war effort. Many rose to prominence or achieved new professional heights as a result.
The cartoonists were respected. They commanded leading roles in the defense of freedom and America. Publishers even paid their cartoonists to produce the work and printed copies en masse for free.
Compare that teamwork of the last century with today’s environment. Editors, and publishers routinely have diminished the role of editorial cartooning when it comes to commenting on the political dialogues of our times.
In the new war on terrorism, regardless of one’s particular viewpoint, the editorial cartooning profession should not miss an opportunity permitting it to engage in the battle of ideas that is swirling around the world.
In World War I, the War Department communicated with artists via a weekly printed pamphlet called the "Cartoonists Bulletin." It suggested themes that editors, publishers, and artists might consider in their local newspapers.
In today’s setting, such suggestions would be viewed as "press manipulation." The concept that Paul, Steve, and I are advocating within interagency discussions in Washington will avoid that pitfall simply by showcasing cartoons already created and published by AAEC members or works offered by artists based on their own creative inclinations.
We are recommending to the Defense Department that a new "Bureau of Cartoons" be established so that we can enlist the voluntary help of cartoonists to build bridges to other societies and help with exchanges of ideas.
The BOC will seek to establish relationships with foreign cartoonists and artists, starting with those who joined their American colleagues in contributing works of art for an exhibit titled "Cartoons Against Terrorism."
On this point, when I called for cartoons against terrorism in early 2002, about 700 cartoons poured in from all across the U.S. and around the world. Yet that was only a fraction of what our profession was creating. Cartoonists, who are usually a better barometer of public sentiment than editorial writers and politicians, were united in their condemnation of terrorism.
As proposed, the BOC (which as of this writing has not been formally approved) will be a clearinghouse for cartoons from around the world and seek to expand the audiences beyond their normal circulation bases. To obtain cartoons, we hope to use various professional networks (CWS, OSU, CRN, AAEC, Internet, etc) to reach out to cartoonists.
Once cartoons begin to come in regularly, we propose to piggy-back on Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs programs at the State Department, USAID, Defense Department and foreign institutions to exhibit or present these viewpoints (cartoons) to global audiences.
We envision setting up workshops and seminars, via journalism programs and people-to-people programs (that have ignored cartoonists) for our overseas cartooning colleagues so that we get a better understanding of their working conditions, restrictions, viewpoints, and objectives.
In 1998, I helped Search for Common Ground set up a series of two seminars for Israeli and Arab cartoonists (12 countries represented) in Malta. KAL and Jerry Robinson took lead roles in the second set of workshops. In 1999, I led an AAEC/NCS group to Cuba, where we had more informal sessions with our counterparts there.
Regardless of the politics surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or Cuba, the professional contacts with cartoonists in those regions created new channels of communication and understanding. We hope the same can happen with this program.
The BOC will seek opportunities for AAEC cartoonists and fine artists to visit a variety of "fronts," conflict zones, or overseas regions to gain firsthand insights (just like the imbedded print journalists). We will encourage them to record impressions on canvas and to engage indigenous artists in the process.
Engaging indigenous artists and cartoonists in joint programs will be an important outreach objective of the BOC.
This will be a long-term effort. One key to starting up the Bureau and providing a platform for cartoonists to play a wider role is getting print-oriented bureaucrats to understand the power and influence of cartoons. That’s the job Steve Artley and I are engaged in at the moment.
The goal in these efforts is not to just promulgate an "American viewpoint" (although that will be one aspect), but to arrive at mutual understandings reaching across cultural boundaries, uniting disparate societies rather than dividing them.
Chip Beck can be reached at the Pentagon at 703-697-4001. His email is cbeck@ mail.policy.osd.mil or beckchip@aol.com.