Posted in: Comics, Current News | Tagged: david baddiel, Ian Hislop, private eye, Private Eye Magazine, Zoom Rockman

Cartoonist Zoom Rockman Quits Private Eye After Receiving Death Threat

Zoom Rockman posted to TwitterX, "After 6 years and 137 cartoons published I’ve quit Private Eye" following a death threat.

Private Eye Magazine is a long-running British political investigating and satirical commentating magazine, publishing more cartoons than any other British publication. The previous magazine's cover, Private Eye #1609, caused considerable disquiet amongst some readers and commentators, filling the current issues' letters pages.

Comments included British comedian and author of Jews Don't Count, David Baddiel who said "The issue here is not what it says, but presenting it as a big pleased-with-it's-own-dangerousness WARNING, suggesting that it will lead to Jews throwing all their toys out of the pram and having massive hissy fits like the touchy privileged whiners they are."

Cartoonist Zoom Rockman, received coverage on Bleeding Cool earlier in the year, for his caricature animation exhibition Jewish Hall of Fame, the first major contemporary art installation at the new venue JW3 in North West London. This included, amongst others, David Baddiel. Zoom Rockman has been a longstanding Private Eye cartoonist since he was sixteen, and his relationship with the magazine has seen him interview its editor Ian Hislop. He posted "Disappointed with the latest cover of @PrivateEyeNews but at least they printed this cartoon of mine on page 28."

Two weeks later, after considerable media comment, including Ian Hislop talking about the cover on the BBC panel show Have I Got News For You, which he has co-hosted for over thirty years, Private Eye published its next edition, #1610, which commented on the reaction.

Well, Zoom Rockman had a more visceral response as a result of the first Private Eye cover it seems. He posted to TwitterX today, saying "After 6 years and 137 cartoons published I've quit @PrivateEyeNews. Following their incendiary cover of issue 1609 I received a death threat which I made them aware of and received no response." He told me that, as well as not replying to him when he sent them a letter instead of the usual cartoon submissions, they didn't publish his letter along with other criticisms, detailing the death threat he had received. So he posted this cartoon instead.

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