Pro-police comic book censored on social media
Mike Baron, author of the comic 'Thin Blue Line,' said monitors of a subreddit immediately removed his comic and claimed it violated rules on racism and hate speech.
Mike Baron, an award-winning graphic novelist, says his latest comic was censored on social media. On "Fox & Friends" Monday, Baron said his pro-police comic book was unwelcome on Facebook ads and was removed from a subreddit for alleged racism and hate speech, but he maintains the book didn’t violate those guidelines.
The comic book, titled "Thin Blue Line," has police officers cast as the heroes. Baron characterized it as a good drama and a straight crime story.
This is the second time Baron’s comic books have been flagged and removed by subreddit monitors. The first was a story about a biker who went to prison and found God.
"Twenty years ago, a story like this wouldn’t have raised an eyebrow," he told Fox News’ Lawrence Jones.
Cover illustration for 'World's Finest Comics,' with Superman, Batman and Robin selling US War Bonds to sink the 'Japanazis' in World War II, 1940s. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
"But in today’s hyper-politicized environment, many people find support for the police objectionable."
He said he made the comic for the numerous police officers he knows who strive to be positive forces in their communities.
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A Reddit spokesperson provided this statement to Fox News in response to the removal of Baron’s comic book: "Reddit did not remove the content in question. The content was removed by the subreddit’s volunteer moderators, who can set and enforce rules that are specific and unique to their individual subreddits."
Fox also reached out to Facebook for comment but did not hear back.
Baron responded to Reddit’s statement by calling it "gobbledygook."
"I get the impression that it’s someone who is probably young and hasn’t been exposed to a lot of different points of view," he said.
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"The education system these days skews one way, and I don’t think kids are taught critical thinking."
Baron noted that things like comic books and professional sports used to be places that were off-limits to politics but that a "small minority of loud voices" is now inserting politics into entertainment.
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"It was a place you went to enjoy yourself and relax. The purpose of those forums is entertainment, and I think that today a number of publishers have lost sight of that fact."
Meantime, a reboot of DC Comics' "Superman" series – featuring "woke" storylines – hasn't exactly showed strength in its sales numbers, according to a report. Sales of "Superman: Son of Kal-El" reportedly didn't crack the Top 50 for units sold, only five issues into its new run.