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[Andrew999]

Interesting this book should be reproduced now just when Big Tech and Big Pharma are making what some say is a land grab (silicon grab?) for world domination:

https://www.counterfire.org/articles/book-reviews/21928-how-to-read-donald-duck-imperialist-ideology-in-the-disney-comic-book-review

[Robb_K]

Interesting this book should be reproduced now just when Big Tech and Big Pharma are making what some say is a land grab (silicon grab?) for world domination:

https://www.counterfire.org/articles/book-reviews/21928-how-to-read-donald-duck-imperialist-ideology-in-the-disney-comic-book-review

That book was written by Chileno extreme leftists, while Allende was in power.  It was aimed more at Uncle Scrooge than Donald.  Scrooge was a big businessman, who exploited his workers by paying them starvation wages, and giving them no benefits.  He traveled The World stealing valuable historical artifacts, and the poor countries' resources (oil, gold, silver, etc.), and starting businesses and dominating markets there so greatly, as to have a de facto monopoly.  He represented US economic imperialism.

[The Australian Panther]

That book was written by Chileno extreme leftists, while Allende was in power.  It was aimed more at Uncle Scrooge than Donald.  Scrooge was a big businessman, who exploited his workers by paying them starvation wages, and giving them no benefits.  He traveled The World stealing valuable historical artifacts, and the poor countries' resources (oil, gold, silver, etc.), and starting businesses and dominating markets there so greatly, as to have a de facto monopoly.  He represented US economic imperialism.

That is not a definition of Racism.

  exploited his workers by paying them starvation wages, and giving them no benefits

Well if that means Donald, the Kids and Gladstone, they never acted like they were 'on starvation wages. - always looked well-fed. And I don't know about 'no benefits'

Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence an audience and further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts in order to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded language in order to produce an emotional rather than a rational response to the information that is being presented.[1

Wikipedia

tarting businesses and dominating markets there so greatly, as to have a de facto monopoly.  He represented US economic imperialism.

May describe Disney corporation accurately, but not Barks' work.
 

[paw broon]

"May describe Disney corporation accurately, but not Barks' work."
I think I'd go along with that.  I am not a fan of the big corporations but I have to say, "what did you expect"?
From those times?  The attitudes to women, and to people who didn't conform to "the norms" can be seen in all sort of literature and comics.  Take a look at Frank Richards, some of the Cheery Chinks type of humour in British weeklies, Bulldog Drummond and so many more examples.
The Ducks stories and adventures are among the few humour strips that tickle my funnybone, and I read them as just that, good, well put together adventures and gags.  For me, they rank alongside The Perishers; Bash St. Kids; Jonah, and particularly as another example of stellar, funny, beautifully done comic strips, The Broons.

[Robb_K]

"May describe Disney corporation accurately, but not Barks' work."
I think I'd go along with that.  I am not a fan of the big corporations but I have to say, "what did you expect"?
From those times?  The attitudes to women, and to people who didn't conform to "the norms" can be seen in all sort of literature and comics.  Take a look at Frank Richards, some of the Cheery Chinks type of humour in British weeklies, Bulldog Drummond and so many more examples.
The Ducks stories and adventures are among the few humour strips that tickle my funnybone, and I read them as just that, good, well put together adventures and gags.  For me, they rank alongside The Perishers; Bash St. Kids; Jonah, and particularly as another example of stellar, funny, beautifully done comic strips, The Broons.

I agree 100%.  Those Chileno leftists had an axe to grind with US military, and especially economic imperialism.  They used Scrooge McDuck as a symbol of that.

So, just how was Donald Duck, himself, racist?  I've read ALL the Carl Barks and ALL the US and Dutch Disney Duck stories hundreds of times.  I don;t see ANY evidence of ANY of them being racist.  In the 1930sthrough the 1950s, several artists depicted African and Asian-looking characters in racist ways.  But that was common in all European societies and The US and The British Commonwealth, not just to Disney artists.

So, I cant defend Dorfman's and Mattelart's thesis,which, by the way words racism together with imperialism - implying that the "racism" to which they refer, is inextractably connected with imperialism, meaning that The US is being racist in their imperialistic actions, by having the nerve to think that they have the "right", along with the ability to dominate the 3rd World countries militarily and economically solely because the latter are inferior in culture, knowledge, education, and thus ability to uplift themselves, so their countries' resources are fair game to be exploited, because they are incapable of doing that themselves.  In addition, The US government and large corporations feels they have the right to dominate these "backward, incapable" nations, because they are basically disorganised, unstable, and constantly bickering amongst themselves, leading to little or no progress.

The two authors have some valid points, but their theory as it relates to Disney comics trying to sell US imperialism as palatable to Latin American youth is highly flawed, at best.