Who is Clay Bennett?

Answer 1

Clay Bennett

This article is about the cartoonist; for the businessman, see Clayton Bennett.

Clay Bennett (born January 20, 1958) is an American editorial cartoonist. Currently editorial cartoonist for The Christian Science Monitor, Bennett is the winner of the 2002 Pulitzer Prize in Editorial Cartooning.

Born in Clinton, South Carolina, Bennett graduated from the University of North Alabama in 1980. Bennett went on to work for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Fayetteville Times.

Bennett was the editorial cartoonist for the St. Petersburg Times from 1981 to 1994, when he was suddenly fired after thirteen years. While Bennett's editor denied the firing was politically motivated, many observers saw it as part of the traditionally liberal newspaper's trend towards becoming more conservative. Bennett said "Many saw the termination as political because I was out there on the far left. Obviously expressing your point of view can cost you your job." [1]

Bennett began working for the Monitor in 1997. He was a Pulitzer finalist for five consecutive years, from 1999 to 2003. He received the National Cartoonist Society Editorial Cartoon Award for 2002. In 2005, he was elected president of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists. [2] He currently lives in Boston.