| Clay Bennett | |
|---|---|
 Clay Bennett self-portrait | |
| Born | January 20, 1958 Clinton, South Carolina, U.S.A. |
| Nationality | American |
| Area(s) | Editorial cartoonist |
| Awards | Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning, 2002 |
Clay Bennett (born January 20, 1958, in Clinton, South Carolina) is an American editorial cartoonist. His cartoons typically present liberal viewpoints. Currently drawing for the Chattanooga Times Free Press,[1] Bennett is the recipient of the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning.
Graduating from the University of North Alabama in 1980, Bennett briefly served as a staff artist at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Fayetteville Times (NC). He worked as an editorial cartoonist at the St. Petersburg Times for 13 years (1981–1994) but was fired in 1994. While Bennett's editor Phil Gailey denied the firing was politically motivated, some 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."[2] He later worked for The Christian Science Monitor (1997–2007) and now draws five cartoons a week for the Chattanooga Times Free Press, having joined its staff in 2007.
A nominated finalist for The Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning seven times, Bennett won the Prize in 2002. He's also the recipient of the Sigma Delta Chi Award, the National Journalism Award, the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award, the John Fischetti Award, the National Headliner Award, the Thomas Nast Award from the Overseas Press Club, the Berryman Award from the National Press Foundation, the Ranan Lurie/United Nations Political Cartoon Award[3] and the National Cartoonists Society's Award for Editorial Cartoons.[4]
A past president of the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists, Bennett lives in Chattanooga with his wife, artist Cindy Procious.[5] His work is syndicated internationally by Counterpoint Licensing and Syndication.[6]