For those of you who don't know, the past two weeks of South Park had a two-part story about free speech. The first part (aired 4/14) featured a censored bar whenever the character of Muhammad was on screen (remember, Muslims think it's a terrible affront to depict Muhammad). This prompted a militant Muslim group (based in New York City) to send the folks at Comedy Central a "friendly reminder" that such parodies could result in the deaths of South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone.
Comedy Central decided to censor the second part (aired 4/21) by not only having the censored bar over a physical depiction of Muhammad-- but also bleeping every instance where a character said the name "Muhammad". They further censored the "moral of the story" at the end of the episode in its entirety-- even instances where "Muhammad" was never uttered. It made for a terribly confusing episode-- especially for a story about free speech. If you didn't see the first part (when Muhammad was mentioned), the second would make no sense at all.
Now, I'm on the side that Comedy Central was just protecting its creators from physical harm. I think the network has proven time and again that they feel parody is perfectly fine under free speech. I don't think there were any financial motives behind censoring Parker and Stone's work.
"Proof" of my belief is the fact that the network aired this segment of Comedy Central's The Daily Show With Jon Stewart from the next night, where Jon reacts to the death threats. I found it to be one of the most insightful and brilliant ten minutes of television I've seen in quite a while.
I couldn't embed it, but here's a link to the video.
Anyway, I applaud Stewart for that. We are in America, and the free speech that allows radical factions to spout their hatred is the same free speech that should protect our satirists from harm. South Park is not perfect, but it can be one of the smartest and most thought-provoking shows on the air when it doesn't revolve around pubic hair or gerbils in anuses.
I'd also like to second what Jon said. But I also want to take it a step further. I try not to get political or religious here because I just don't think it accomplishes much. There are too many "values" websites out there already. Besides, I don't write or research enough to back up my opinions. But when it comes to hatred and intolerance, it's easy to back it up.
Because it's wrong.
For those who can't stand having their religion criticized without going into a tizzy: go fuck yourself.
For those who preach and teach hatred against people of a different color or sexual preference: go fuck yourself.
For those who believe their youngest members don't deserve protection from its molesters in leadership positions: go fuck yourself.
For any group-- religious, political, social, whatever-- who preaches intolerance or hatred for someone because of their skin color, or sex, or ethnicity, or sexual identity. For those who rally the unthinking lemmings who blindly follow your hatred. For those who harbor criminals-- and can't even issue an apology for obvious wrongdoings. For those who hide their racial prejudice behind complaints about taxes...
Go
Fuck
Yourself!
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