Libraries | The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund has responded to the recent removal of a copy of Gilbert Herandez's Palomar from a high school library in New Mexico following complaints from a parent, who called the acclaimed graphic novel "pornographic." Taking a local television station to task for its "biased reporting," the organization notes the removal of the book by Rio Rancho Public Schools officials appears to violate the district's own challenge policy. [Comic Book Legal Defense Fund]
Manga | Here's an interesting insight into the Japanese publishing industry: Deb Aoki, in Tokyo as a judge for the Manga Translation Battle, collects a series of her tweets and the responses of others (including a number of pros) to the symposium that followed the awards reception. The juxtaposition of two charts is startling: Manga sales are sharply down in Japan but rising in the United States, although of course the orders of magnitude are different. In keeping with the theme, she also discusses what makes a "good" translation, with actual manga translators weighing in with their opinions. [Storify]
Creators | Mark Waid talks about Marvel's new Star Wars: Princess Leia series: "The timing couldn't be better to be able to come out with a story of a bad-ass princess who is her own hero and doesn't rely on others." [USA Today]
Creators | In a video interview, Andrew Aydin talks about co-writing March with Rep. John Lewis. [USA Today]
Creators | Cartoonist Vishavjit Singh, a practicing Sikh, fights prejudice not only through his cartoons but also by making appearances in a Captain America costume, underscoring the point that his beard and turban are just as American as Captain America himself. [The Clarion-Ledger]
Comics | And, as if to prove his point, here's a chat with Eileen Alden and Supreet Singh Manchada, the creators of Deep Singh, the first Sikh superhero. [CBS San Francisco]
Comics | Paul Tassi contrasts the experience of reading The Walking Dead comics with watching the television series. [Forbes]
Manga | Shiro Amano will bring Kingdom Hearts II to an end in the June issue of Shonen Gangan magazine; the series will run to 10 volumes altogether. The manga is one of four series based on the Square Enix game, which uses Disney characters; all four series have been licensed for English-language readers by Yen Press. [Anime News Network]
Conventions | Jaime and Gilbert Hernandez will be guests at Chicago's alternative comics festival, CAKE, in June. [DNAInfo Chicago]