Satire in the age of sensitivity: Are political cartoons too hot to handle?

The career-ending cartoon of Benjamin Netanyahu by my old cartoonist Steve Bell, writes former Guardian editor Alan Rusbridger, begs many questions: was it antisemitic? Was it simply satirical? Was it too close to the bone? And the big one: has the right not to be offended now trumped the right to offend?

‘Can I Lend a Hand?’ Daily Mirror, 3 January 1942 by Philip Zec (Mirrorpix/Getty)

Imagine having a job which involves deliberately causing offence. Imagine going to work to ridicule, belittle, savage and generally humiliate others. We would shun such bitter and twisted people, right?

Not if they were cartoonists. Unless we were unlucky enough to be in their crosshairs, we might well laugh with them. We might enjoy the discomfort they cause. They might even succeed in reframing how we see a person or issue.

On the other hand, we might be offended. We might think the joke fell flat, or that they had gone too far. We might consider a particular drawing tasteless in the extreme. The mockery might even conceivably push us to an extreme – even murderous – response.