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Rio - Milt Priggee, Feb. 9, 2016

Milt Priggee made this cartoon in light of the Zika virus outbreak in Brazil and the
plans for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Brazil. The large animal is a depiction of a
mosquito and his head is labeled, ZIKA. He is carrying the five olympic rings that
represent the olympics in Rio in 2016. This represents the idea that the spectators in the
Olympics in Rio will have to deal with the harmful virus that can be transmitted by
mosquitos or the contact of infected bodily fluids. The cartoonist is conveying the
timidness people are feeling about going to the Olympics in Brazil and he wants to play
on this fear. Milt Priggees style is relatively simple. The olympics are blatantly
represented by the logo, the virus is represented by a scary-looking, mosquito-like bug,

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there is no background, and the symbols are clearly labeled. This style helps the reader
to get a clear understanding of the topic at hand.

Zika Wall Signe Wilkinson, Feb. 1, 2016

Signe Wilkinson created this cartoon to criticize the focus of the United States.
The American flag in the background shows that one side is America. The cacti on the
other side of the wall represent Mexico. The giant wall with the barbed wire and the
spikes along the US-Mexico border. A mosquito is shown flying over the border and the
lines that represent his flight path spell out Z-I-K-A. Wilkinson is critiquing how the US
focuses so much on border control while a harmful virus infiltrates the nation.
Something the author couldve cleared up is the label on the wall. The side that
represents Mexico is labeled THEM, but the side that represents America is labeled
US. This labeling could either say, us or U.S.. If it said, us it would be clear that
the author had the perspective of an American, and the cartoon would be less critical.

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However, if it said, U.S. the opposite would be true, the cartoon would be much more
critical. The author believes the US should focus less on border control and more on
protecting themselves from the Zika Virus.

Zika Vaccine Search John Cole, The Scranton Times-Tribune, Feb. 5, 2016
John Cole was inspired by the search for a vaccine for the Zika virus. The
character on the left is shown wearing a white lab coat with the globe in place of a head.
This character represents the scientists in the world. He is depicted in a fencing stance,
saying, en garde, and holding a syringe labeled, vaccine search. The insect on the
right is a mosquito labeled as the Zika virus. The cartoon shows how the world

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scientists are fighting the virus by searching for a vaccine. Interestingly, Cole did not use
caricatures to exaggerate features of either the world or the virus. I believe accentuating
the size of the mosquito, representing the urgency of the issue wouldve helped the
cartoon to have a more powerful effect.

Olympic Threat Steve Sack, The Minneapolis Star Tribune, Feb. 4, 2016
The cartoon labeled, Olympic Threat, by Steve Sack, was drawn to showcase the
danger of the presence of the Zika Virus in Rio, Brazil, especially in light of the Olympics
which start in less than 6 months. The figure on the right is the torch carrier representing
the start of the 2016 Summer Olympics, he is being chased by a mosquito which

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represents the Zika virus. The title, along with the scared expression on the runners
face lead us to believe the virus is an eminent threat in the olympics this year. The
cartoon would be more clear if the mosquito had been labeled, Zika, but if the reader
was familiar with current events the message would be obvious. The cartoonist wants to
portray the danger of hosting the Olympics so soon after the outbreak in Brazil.

Zika Virus Mike Keefe, Feb. 2, 2016

Mike Keefe was very critical in his depiction of the US response to the Zika virus.
The men standing at a security station are labeled, HOMELAND SECURITY,
BORDER PATROL, and TSA. There are extensive security measures including dogs,
a stop sign, guns, a metal detector, and surveillance equipment. The metal detector is
labeled, USA. Keefe is depicting the US border and how the government has spent so

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many resources in protecting our borders, but none of the security measures shown in
the cartoon can stop the infiltration of the Zika virus, carried by the mosquito. A dot is
shown saying, Zika one to flight leader - im in. There have already been at least two
reported Zika infections in the United States. Keefe criticizes the US focus on
immigration, while paying little to no attention on protecting the country from the virus.

Zika Virus Patrick Chappatte, Feb. 1, 2016

In Patrick Chappattes representation of the 2016 Olympics in Rio, the two
people on the left are representatives for the Olympics and one is saying, Thats not
how I imagined olympics fever while she looks at two blatantly sick people on the left
holding a sign that reads, Zika virus. The artist shows the two representatives as

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dressed up people with a sash that has the Brazilian flag on it. The sick people are
drawn with green faces, sweating, and thermometers in their mouths. Chappatte uses
irony to add humor to his message. Olympics fever usually means excitement for the
upcoming olympics, but in this case its an actual fever, brought on by the Zika virus.
The cartoonist believes the Zika virus will infect all the visitors of the olympics, putting a
damper on the events.

Winged Carriers Dave Granlund, Feb. 1, 2016

Dave Granlund draws a ingenious cartoon portraying the Zika virus harmful
effect on babies. On the left is a stork that is carrying a white blanket. This widely

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accepted old wives tale represents birth, and is also labeled. The stork looks worried as
it look behind it to see a menacing mosquito with blood dripping from its proboscis and
is labeled, Zika, and under it is the word, defect. The title, Winged Carriers, adds that
the stork carries babies, and the mosquito carries birth defects. Granlund purposely
capitalizes Birth and not defect because they are meant to be read, Birth defect. When
the virus infects pregnant women, it causes the babies to be born with small heads
which can lead to neurological damage or miscarriages.

Zika - Chan Lowe, Tribune Content Agency, Jan. 29, 2016

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Chan Lowe draws a cartoon which depicts a man scared of terrorism events
being covered in the newspaper including ISIS, but a terrifying creature stands behind
him. Lowe draws the creature behind him with terrifying features saying, Hi there...my
name is Zika. The cartoon is titled, Speaking of Terror. Lower is criticizing the publics
response to the virus. It seems to Lowe as though people have overlooked the virus and
instead focused on the recent terror events. Lowe believes people should focus more
on the dangerous virus. Additionally, he exaggerates the appearance of the virus to
make it seem more scary, which supports his argument. The cartoon would be more
effective if it was informative about the less familiar, Zika virus.
Summary and Reflection
The collection of Zika virus cartoons shows a spectrum of themes and points of
view. As a whole the collection is balanced, there are just as many critical cartoons as
there are noncritical cartoons. When one only analyzes the critical cartoons, it is
blatantly clear that the criticism falls on either the United States, or Brazil. However,
when the cartoons are noncritical the cartoonist does not single out one region. This
leads me to believe that, in total, the current political opinion cannot commend the
response by the United States, nor by Brazil. The critical cartoons messages vary
greatly. They criticize the publics lack of attention of the virus, Americas focus on
border control while the virus infiltrates the country, and the hosting of the 2016 Summer
Olympics in Rio, Brazil. The non critical cartoons are either neutral, and do not take a
stance at all, or depict the world, as a whole, fighting against the virus. Before I saw
these cartoons I did not realize the gravity of the issue in Brazil, and I believe that

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changing the location of the 2016 Summer Olympics is a good idea. The collection
represents the majority opinion in the area of the world, but in other parts, the virus is
not as big a deal. In the eight cartoons, only one of them showed the world fighting the
virus as a whole. The fact that it affects the Summer Olympics is the only reason this
issue is talked about in other parts of the world. I found it interesting that, not only in the
cartoons in the above collection, but in all the cartoons on the issue, the style was
strangely similar. There were no abstract cartoons, or caricatures, except for
augmenting the size of the mosquitos, and they were all very simple, no double
meanings, or complicated messages of any kind.