Adams called black Americans a “hate group” and suggested white Americans “get the hell away from black people,” in response to a conservative organisation’s poll purporting to show that many African-Americans do not think it is OK to be white.
He later defended his comments and said that he had been using hyperbole to make a point, adding that he disavowed racists and that media reports had ignored the context of his comments.
US President Donald Trump paid tribute to Adams on Truth Social, following news of his death: “Sadly, the Great Influencer, Scott Adams, has passed away. He was a fantastic guy, who liked and respected me when it wasn’t fashionable to do so.
“He bravely fought a long battle against a terrible disease,” Trump wrote.
A tearful Shelly told listeners at the start of Adams’s latest podcast on Tuesday: “He’s not with us anymore.”
She then read out a posthumous message from Adams, external: “I had an amazing life, I gave it everything I had.
“If I got any benefits from my work, I’m asking that you pay it forward as best as you can. That’s the legacy I want.
“Be useful, and please know I loved you all to the very end.”
In his later career, Adams – also a trained hypnotist – wrote self-help books including How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big, Win Bigly, Loserthink and Reframe Your Brain.