CORRECTION APPENDED

Walking through the Harvard Coop, famed editorial cartoonist and Crimson editor Kevin P. Kallaugher ’77—better known as “KAL”—reminisces about browsing through the store’s large music selection. Of course, the Coop has stopped selling records—no doubt due to the competition of the Internet.

He draws a parallel between that change and changes in his profession, journalism. “Today, there is a colossal shift in where people get their information,” he says. “Cartoonists need to change as well: That’s why I’m moving towards 3-D animation.”

In an era where people look to Comedy Central for their news, political cartoonists are seen by many publications as irrelevant. In response, newspapers are downsizing their staff and people like Kallaugher are often the first to go.

Conservative cartoonist Michael Ramirez of the L.A. Times was fired recently, for example. Kallaugher, who has been with the Baltimore Sun since 1988, accepted a buyout offer from the Sun’s parent company, The Tribune Company, and will leave the paper this January.

But Kallaugher’s not wasting his new free time. He’ll remain with The Economist (where he was the first editorial cartoonist hired by the British magazine, back in 1978) and will take up a post as Artist-in-Residence at University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

Having worked for The Economist for nearly 30 years, Kallaugher has developed a great affinity for the magazine. “I’ve been given a huge amount of freedom,” he says. Furthermore, Kallaugher believes the magazine brings an independent perspective desperately needed in America’s politically polarized culture.

On Oct. 15, he was in town for a book-signing and talk at the Harvard Coop and his old Harvard residence Kirkland House, as part of a multi-city tour promoting his new book, “Kallaugher Draws Criticism.”
[Correction appended. See below.]

The book is a collection of recent cartoons, released in conjunction with a retrospective of his work at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore this past summer. “[The retrospective] included the first cartoon I did back in first grade,” Kallaugher says with a smile.

Kallaugher exudes an aura of mischief, but it’s not all jokes and humor for him.

“I regard my cartoons as editorials—it’s not to make you laugh but to make you think,” says Kallaugher, “It’s a fine line, being provocative but not inflammatory.”

He has no tolerance for those who damage the credibility of his profession. In discussing the recent controversy over the Danish newspapers that published a series of cartoons featuring caricatures of the prophet Muhammad, he says, “The whole incident was littered with irresponsibility, from the cartoonists to the editors to the European press. The cartoonists were at best naïve and at worst stupid.”

Despite the recent missteps by his international colleagues, Kallaugher remains optimistic about editorial cartooning. He believes that the political cartoon can often be more effective than a 1000-word column. “It can be consumed in 15 seconds,” he says.

But he notes that “satirists do not lead. We’re like sheepdogs. We bite them in the behind. Tough love is what we are supplying.”

Kallaugher learned the power he wielded with the pen when he was a student at Harvard, where he was a Visual and Environmental Studies concentrator. As a cartoonist for both The Crimson and the Harvard Independent, he drew his first cartoon depicting the lack of student space with a caricature of then-University President (and now Interim President) Derek C. Bok shoving students into a telephone booth.

“Derek Bok was not pleased,” recalls Kallaugher. “The caricature is the most potent tool for a cartoonist. It goes straight to the vanity of the politicians with their face.”

An enthusiastic crowd gathered at the Coop to watch Kallaugher demonstrate his caricature techniques. He first drew a singing nun he had as a teacher in grade school, followed by former Vice President Al Gore ’69, John Kerry, and George H.W. Bush.

By the end of his lecture, he had the entire audience—Sharpie markers and pads in hand—drawing George W. Bush caricatures.

So, what’s next for the cartoonist? A weekly 3-D political cartoon project, interestingly enough.

Whenever he mentions his latest endeavor, a giddy excitement overcomes him. “We’ve talked to the Daily Show and the Tonight Show. Everyone is really excited to see the pilot,” Kallaugher said.

So, don’t be surprised if you see Kallaugher’s latest 3-D rendition of Dubya on your favorite fake news show sometime soon.

Correction: The Oct. 26 Arts article, "Alum Sketches Future of Political Toon," misstated the title of a new book by political cartoonist Kevin P.
Kallaugher '77. It is called "Kal Draws Criticism."