by Claire Redinger, reporter
OMAHA – Political cartoons have existed for hundreds of years. But Jeffrey Koterba, a UNO alumnus and the former Omaha World-Herald cartoonist of 31 years, said creating editorial cartoons requires more than art skills.
“You do have to have a discerning mind and really think through something,” he said. “Go to original sources for the material. Read, read, read, read. Study, study. Be thoughtful. Listen to people. Talk to people. And hopefully through that you can kind of discern, hopefully, what the truth is.”
Koterba said he considers himself an “equal opportunity satirist,” meaning he pokes fun at any hypocrisy he sees in politics – regardless of political affiliation.
“…Maybe looking at a particular issue not just from the left or the right, or red versus blue, but what is the third way of looking at an issue?” he said. “What is the fourth way? What is a way that no one has thought about?”
Jody Neathery-Castro, Ph.D., the political science department chair at UNO, said the historical endurance of editorial cartoons points to their wide audience appeal.
“That kind of commentary [satire], is so succinct and so elegant that I think it appeals to everybody – from the low reader, the nonreader, to the most sophisticated news consumer,” she said.
Koterba’s position as a full-time cartoonist at the World-Herald was eliminated this year. He said this is a true loss for the Omaha community because cartoonists provide localized, unique commentary that cannot be replaced.
“A specific piece of art, like with a cartoonist – someone who knows the community, reflects the community, reflects the sensibilities of the community – is so important,” he said.
