South Park - just the facts 2

South Park - just the facts Written May 2007.

Continued from part 1 of this article
The Return of Chef
Isaac Hayes, who played Chef, the longstanding confidant of the boys on the show, quit unexpectedly days before the spoof on Scientology was to re-air. A Scientologist himself, his reasons for leaving were intolerance, stating, "There is a place in this world for satire, but there is a time when satire ends & intolerance & bigotry towards religious beliefs of others begins...Religious beliefs are sacred to people, & at all times should be respected & honored." However, some have suggested that Hayes may have been pressured into quitting by leaders within his faith, since less than a week before quitting he had stated in an interview on the Opie & Anthony radio show that he was fine with the Scientology episode, that Matt & Trey were "equal opportunity offenders", (That is a dreadful thing to be surely thats like saying almost you have no views or morals, aybe I am wrong, but such moral relativism, is too extreme, only bad people should be delibrtaetely ofended. Though satire of the powerful is needed at times, though not really of the weak, unless they are offending, my view is more complicated than that but stands up if allowed enough time, and is correct, but this article can not fit all this in see out jokes index page to find the Lonympics view on Comedy,) & that "people who cannot take a joke need to take themselves less seriously".

In response to Hayes' departure, Stone commented "He has no problem - & he's cashed plenty of checks - with our show making fun of Christians." Parker & Stone evidently decided to kill off Chef's character instead of revoice, & used South Park's 10th season premiere, "The Return of Chef", as a chance to lambast Scientology again. At the end of the episode, Kyle gives a heartfelt eulogy & mentions that he'll always remember Chef as he was, & that they shouldn't be mad at him; they should be mad at "the fruity little club that scrambled his brains."

Arguably, the first time the show satirized Scientology was in the short "The Gauntlet", which aired during the 2000 MTV Movie Awards. Though the short was primarily a Gladiator parody, with the characters fighting Russell Crowe in the Roman Colosseum, it included "John Travolta & the Church of Scientology" arriving in a spaceship to defeat Crowe & attempt to recruit the boys into Scientology. Travolta, along with his fellow Scientologists, was depicted as he appeared in the infamous Battlefield Earth.

Catholicism

The pope depicted in Bloody MaryIn December 2005, the Catholic League for Religious & Civil Rights protested the season finale episode, "Bloody Mary", for its depiction of a statue of the Virgin Mary bleeding from her rectum. The group claimed a victory when Comedy Central voluntarily canceled a scheduled airing of the episode which coincided with the Christian holiday season. In early 2006, Comedy Central denied that they were honoring the group's request to pull the episode from future repeats & DVD releases. In New Zealand, C4 pushed the airing date for the episode forward after much publicity from Catholic bishops who urged a boycott of the station & its advertisers. The protest backfired as viewer numbers increased by 600% during the episode. The episode was later referred to the Broadcasting Standards Authority where they ruled, "The material in the cartoon was of such a farcical, absurd & unrealistic nature that it did not breach standards of good taste & decency in the context in which it was offered". It has since been rebroadcast on Comedy Central. SBS in Australia has "deferred" the episode possibly due to their recent problems with the "Trapped in the Closet" episode. The episode has aired in Australia on the Pay TV channel, The Comedy Channel.

In February 2006 in the Philippines, authorities threatened to ban the showing of South Park on television as it offends the sensibilities of the predominantly Roman Catholic country. South Park is still shown in the Philippines with 1-hour double episodes, though doing so has become a politicized issue, & its future in the Philippines is unknown.

In 2001, South Park was shown on public television between 9pm-10pm slot at the now closed Channel V Philippines (formerly Citynet UHF Channel 27 handled by GMA Network). Because most of the programs in the Philippines are highly viewed in primetime slots, it is rated as PG (Parental Guidance) with all of profanity & such, censored.

On August 2, 2006, Comedy Central reran the episode at 10:00 PM EST. It was also rerun on March 28, 2007 at 9:30 PM EST.

Islam

"Most recently South Park has indirectly attacked the rising censorship in its April 2006 two-part episode, "Cartoon Wars Part I" & "Cartoon Wars Part II". The creators challenged Comedy Central by ending Part I with the disclaimer that the second part of the two-parter episode, will only be shown if Comedy Central does not "puss out".

The following episode, "Cartoon Wars Part II", that aired April 12, 2006, replaced the scene of Muhammad on Family Guy with a title card stating that Comedy Central had refused to show a depiction of Muhammad on their network. With the episode, the South Park boys make an impassioned, anti-censorship plea to a network exec named Doug, a reference to Comedy Central president Doug Herzog. This comes months after the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy in Denmark, in which an editorial cartoon depicted Muhammad also in a satirical way. However, he can in fact be seen in the season 10 opening credits from the episode "Smug Alert!" onwards & was featured in the "Super Best Friends" episode, which aired on July 4, 2001, though at the time there was no pre-existing controversy.

It has come out via AP television writer David Bauder that Comedy Central did in fact, citing safety concerns, opt to censor the image of Muhammad, a situation that was satirized in "Cartoon Wars Part II". Furthermore, while the channel refused to broadcast an image of Muhammad, Comedy Central opted not to censor images of Christ, the president & the American flag being defecated upon. Stone & Parker's choice has drawn fire from frequent South Park critic William A. Donohue of the anti-defamation group Catholic League. Donohue has called on Parker & Stone to resign out of principle, & was quoted as saying, "The ultimate hypocrite is not Comedy Central — that's their decision not to show the image of Muhammad or not — it's Parker & Stone". It should be noted though, that Stone & Parker made the choice to mock Christ to illustrate the hypocrisy in censoring the mockery of one religion & not another, echoing their similar stance on Scientology. Additionally, the images were shown in the context of an Islamic leader's humorously anti-climactic response to the portrayal of Muhammad (and were thus not very graphic). The humor of this situation came from the fact that this was labeled as "al-Qaeda's reaction," which was expected to be violence.

In "Snuke" Cartman thinks a new kid, Bahir Hassam Abdul Hakeem, wants to bomb the Hilary Clinton convention that was coming to South Park. Although Cartman's racist assumption ends up to be false, the Muslim family moves out of South Park, after being totally humiliated by Cartman.

Judaism & Mormonism
In addition to the above examples, South Park has repeatedly featured both Judaism & Mormonism (the latter principally through an episode explicitly titled "All About Mormons" & the former in almost every episode, including one main character). Neither community has had representatives publicly speak out about the satire in any large public forum.

Political issues
Stone & Parker spend a great amount of time on current events & issues of the day. Although many critics find the show's commentary politically incorrect, the stance that the show takes reflects the beliefs of the creators. Both creators have at one time or another described themselves as libertarians. Politically-active celebrities have been ridiculed on the series, as well as liberal & conservative ideas, stereotypes & actions. Bill Clinton was ridiculed on the show, appearing twice, as was George W. Bush who appears or is thematically referenced eight times. (He was shown as a tool of Satan in one episode, & in the 9/11 conspiracy episode of 2006 he is portrayed as the mastermind behind a conspiracy within the 9/11 conspiracies, he also appears in "A Ladder to Heaven", where he says what really happened with Saddam Hussein after his death). Liberals are portrayed as being snobby intellectuals, arrogant hippies or anxious yuppies, & conservatives as bible thumpers, angry rednecks & greedy businessmen, hence the characters "Aging Hippie Liberal Douche" or "stoner" & "Pissed Off White Trash Redneck Conservative" or "racist". Both sides are portrayed as imposing their views on others & generally having a malignant influence.

The episode that aired the week following the 2000 presidential election used a school election to poke fun at Florida's inability to certify a winner & Al Gore's contesting of the results. The episode included an angry Rosie O'Donnell coming to the defense of the loser & finally getting gruesomely killed, in another example of how the show is highly critical of celebrity activism.

The term "South Park Republican" was coined after Parker & Stone claimed to be Republicans whilst receiving an award from the liberal advocacy group, People For the American Way (PFAW) in 2001. At the same time they declared TV producer Norman Lear, the founder of PFAW, to be one of their heroes, & Lear subsequently worked on South Park. More recently, a small movement has sprung up of youngish, South Park Conservatives who hold ideas from extreme ends of the political spectrum. In an interview in the March 13, 2006 Time magazine, the two stated that the only reason people might peg them for conservatives is that they are willing to mock anti-smoking laws & hippies. They also stated that the show could just as easily be pegged as a show supporting liberal ideologies. The interview ended with Parker quipping, "We still believe that all people are born bad & are made good by society, rather than the opposite", & Stone adding, "Actually, I think that's where we're conservative". In an interview with Rolling Stone, they stated that the "South Park Republican" tag was a "dumb notion."[8]

Parker & Stone are apparently critical of political correctness & satirize it by contrasting the child & adult's public personae. Whenever a sensitive issue is explored or a crisis occurs, it is expected that all the adults in South Park will overreact, whilst the children will act calm & collected about it. Examples of this can be seen in episodes such as Child Abduction Is Not Funny, Smug Alert! & Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow.

Gay rights
The show has supported gay rights through satirizing the opposing side with the normal over-the-top South Park style. In the episode "Follow That Egg!", gay marriage is deemed "too offensive" to people with religious values who suggest that it should be re-designated as something else. (Ironically, the person responsible for igniting the debate about gay marriage in this episode is Mrs. Garrison, a post-op transsexual). At the end of the episode however, gays are shown as capable of raising children, & gay marriage is made legal in Colorado once the Governor was shown that the egg raised by Stan & Kyle survived. In "Cripple Fight", the creators take the position that the Boy Scouts of America should not have been forced to allow homosexuals to be Scoutmasters, while at the same time mocking the Boy Scouts for trying to exclude homosexuals from the organization. They use the example of a married heterosexual child abuser to suggest sexuality is unrelated to child abuse. Furthermore, in an earlier episode "Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride", homophobia is portrayed sarcastically when Mr. Garrison says to Stan when he asks what a homosexual is, "Gay people, well, gay people are EVIL, evil right down to their cold black hearts which pump not blood like yours or mine, but rather a thick, vomitous oil that oozes through their rotten veins & clots in their pea-sized brains which becomes the cause of their Nazi-esque patterns of violent behavior. Do you understand?" The episode also features Stan Marsh stating that it is okay to be gay, & was nominated for an award by GLAAD. At this point in the series, Mr. Garrison hadn't yet come to terms with his sexuality.

Transsexual rights
"Mr. Garrison's Fancy New Vagina" touches upon transsexual sex-reassignment surgery, & plastic surgery ethics on a whole (Kyle & his father become a tall black boy & a dolphin respectively). Mr. Garrison gets reassigned because he still cannot come to grips with being gay, so figures he must be a woman trapped in a man's body, therefore making it perfectly normal to like men. He subsequently becomes extremely homophobic much like the earlier years of the show. Upon discovering he cannot menstruate or get pregnant, he concludes that he is "just a guy with a mutilated penis" & wishes to switch back. In the end of the episode, everyone is back to normal except for him, his testicles having been destroyed when Kyle, unknowingly, jumps & upon landing causes his testicles (which are used to support Kyle's knees) to explode. Another transsexual reference is in the season eleven episode "D-Yikes" 1106, Mrs. Garrison, a transsexual goes to a woman only gym. There she meets a lesbian & falls in love with her. Later in the episode, the character Mr. Xerxes is also a transvestite & joins the lesbians at their bar, "Les Bos".

Child abuse & neglect
Child abuse & child neglect are recurring thematic elements in South Park. For example, emotional, verbal, & physical abuse is usually inflicted upon Butters in episodes in which he appears. Cartman is shown several times as a target of actual or attempted sexual abuse, such as when he unknowingly gets involved with NAMBLA. There is other evidence where he has been sexually abused in the episode "Simpsons Already Did It" where after getting semen ("sea-men") from a sperm bank, he is filling up a fish tank for his "sea people" & tells his friends that he got the rest of the semen from a guy in an alley who told him to close his eyes & suck it out of a hose. This scene is partially censored on some local networks. In the episode "Fun with Veal" Cartman cries "No, uncle Jesse! No!" while sleeping, but this is most likely a reference to a popular character on either Full House or The Dukes of Hazzard. Matt Stone & Trey Parker are very good friends with John Stamos, the actor that played Uncle Jesse on Full House, further supporting this being a reference to the character on the former show. The episode Fat Butt & Pancake Head depicts a sexual encounter between Ben Affleck & Cartman. The ongoing controversy concerning the sexual abuse of altar boys by Catholic Priests is dealt with in "Red Hot Catholic Love", & also referenced by the various depictions of Catholic Priests with naked young boys on leashes in "Hell on Earth 2006".

The treatment of this theme ranges from realistic to cartoonish. For example, the character Butters Stotch clearly has some psychological issues as a result of the treatment he suffers at the hands of his parents; he is incontinent (in "AWESOM-O", Cartman has to put a suppository in his rectum), has low self-esteem, & wrings his hands (although, strangely, Butters is also an unfailingly optimistic character & is one of the few genuinely nice people in the whole town, which often makes him a constant target for ridicule & abuse). However, his parents' emotional manipulation of him is shown as extreme. At one point, they try to sell Butters to Paris Hilton. Butters reveals that he has received anilingus from his uncle when detectives are questioning the children whether Chef has molested them, & in "Butters' Very Own Episode" his mother tries to kill him when she goes temporarily insane after learning of her husband's gay bathhouse proclivities. Butters, of course, survived with no knowledge of what was going on, until his parents publicly admitted what had happened (thus, yet again, crushing Butters' hopes for a functional family).

While Cartman & Butters have more overt personal experiences with their families, to the point of farce at times, Kenny, Stan & Kyle have also been shown to be neglected on a more subtle level.

Kenny comes from a poor family & , as a result, he & his siblings are shown to be malnourished due to his family's poverty. His father is an unemployed, barely functioning drunk who, while not abusive towards Kenny, is usually shown verbally arguing with his wife or being berated by her.

Stan suffers from a subtler type of neglect. His father, Randy Marsh, often goes to extremes as the result of whatever instigating incident or conflict is seen in a given episode. In one episode, after he & Sharon separate, he ends up at a party for much younger people at Cartman's "clubhouse". In another, he decides, when told that alcoholism is a disease that he has no control over, that he should abandon all responsibility with the substance because it's not his fault. Often getting swept up in whatever is happening, Randy often puts common sense second - sending Stan out into the world alone to avoid abducting him, forcing the family to convert to atheism or Mormonism, leading the pack on global warming hysteria, etc. Stan's 12-year-old older sister Shelley regularly physically & verbally abuses Stan & considers him to be subhuman. His relationship with his mom is less strained & Sharon seems typical, despite rare outbursts between herself & Randy, though in one episode admits that she considers Stan's happiness secondary to her own (clubhouses). She & Randy are completely blind to Shelley's abuse of Stan.

Kyle suffers at the hand of Cartman's continual anti-Semitic slurs. Kyle's mother is over-protecting, attempting to censor the world that her son & the rest of the children experience, but in the process bulldozing Kyle - often dismissing his opinions, thoughts & feelings, & destroying his reputation & general wellbeing. Her belief in her own moral compass & hatred of the toilet humor of Terrance & Phillip has led her, in the episode "Death", to lead South Park residents to New York to commit mass suicide to force "Cartoon Central" to cancel the animated "Terrance & Phillip" show. In South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, she convinces the American government to start a war with Canada over the Terrance & Phillip movie, Asses of Fire.

Religion
Multiple episodes have tackled the shaky logical foundations of cults, religious leaders who exploit worshipers for money, & the problems that have occurred with following some religions too literally. Perhaps most indicative of what the writers perceive to be a blasé notion towards over-fervent worship, the show's depiction of God in physical form is a strange hybrid of many animals. Further deepening the satire is God's claim to be a Buddhist. The show suggested at one point, in a joking matter, that heaven is full of Mormons who spend eternity cheerfully singing songs & making craft projects (explicitly stating that this is because that is the one "correct" religion). The South Park movie indicated that Heaven, or at least Kenny's vision of it, was filled with beautiful naked women. In the episode "All About Mormons" the show implies that Mormonism is a complete hoax made up by Joseph Smith Jr., while at the same time saying that this is irrelevant if Mormons are happier for following that faith. Other episodes discuss anti-Semitism & Jewish jokes. The family of Jewish character Kyle exhibits common Jewish stereotypes, like his strict demanding mother is a conservative activist & his father is a lawyer dressed in Modern Orthodox Jewish garb.

In addition Jesus has been shown multiple times, living in South Park & hosting a public access call-in talk show (Jesus & Pals). In one episode he fights Satan in a boxing match & is depicted as being hopelessly outclassed. (Within the world of South Park, Jesus died in 2002, saving Santa Claus from Iraqis; Santa said that, from now on, Christmas should be a celebration of Jesus. Jesus has since returned, however, only to be killed by Kyle Broflovski at Jesus' request & to resurrect again. It remains to be seen whether he will be reinstated as a recurring character). In a third season episode, "Jewbilee", at a Jew Scouts camp, Moses appears in the form of the Master Control Program from Tron & tells the assembled children in an ominous voice, "I desire... macaroni pictures". He also appears this way in "Super Best Friends" & with VCR capabilities to boot.

The criticism of anti-religion is also apparent in South Park. In "All About Mormons" Stan ridicules the Mormons for believing a story that offers no proof. However, at the very end, a Mormon named Gary whom Stan had been hanging out with for most of the episode delivers his side of the story:

Gary: "Okay, so maybe us Mormons do believe in stories that make no sense, & maybe Joseph Smith did make it all up. But I have a great life & a great family, & I have the Book of Mormon to thank for that. The truth is, I don't care if he made it up, because I follow what the church teaches now, such as love my family, be nice, & help people; & even though a lot of people in this town may think that's stupid, I still choose to believe it. All I ever did was try to be your friend, Stan, but you're so high & mighty you couldn't look past my religion & just be my friend back. You've got a lot of growing up to do, buddy. Suck my balls." (Gary walks off, leaving Stan & his friends stunned)
Cartman: (after a pause) "Damn, that kid is cool, huh?"
South Park often hints that its creators believe religious people may be illogical & that antitheists can be overly arrogant. In "Red Hot Catholic Love", Stone & Parker depict the recently converted anti-theist townsfolk as literally spewing crap from their mouths, coughing out actual feces as they discuss their dislike for religion & how exposure to religion could harm their kids (Cartman had recently found a way to eat by shoving food up the rectum & defecating out the mouth).

Similarly non-religious cults of personality which cross over into a religious-like structure are caricatured, such as the episode where a cult of "Blaintologists" (named for charismatic illusionist David Blaine) forms, & progresses to ritualistic mass cult suicide unless they obtain their tax-exempt status. According to the show's creators, it is a reference to Scientology.

The show has come under fire from conservative religious groups for its portrayal of Satan, who appears occasionally. After his first appearance, Satan's depiction changed to that of a generally nice, easygoing guy, though plagued by codependency. He hosts luaus in Hell, & is also presented as a homosexual, shown in committed relationships with some of Hell's denizens, including a now-defunct one with Saddam Hussein, who was abusive & dominant in the relationship, leading to the relationship's demise. Satan's follow-up relationship with sensitive '90s guy Chris ended when he realized (after visiting Heaven & asking advice from God) that Chris is "a pussy" to whom he was not sexually attracted. "Hell on Earth 2006" featured Satan throwing a Halloween party that everyone wants to be a part of & many of the Christian clergy have little boys wearing nothing but leashes.

In the tenth season episode "Go God Go", Ms. Garrison begins to date famous biologist Richard Dawkins after he convinces her that there is no god. They make a plan to convert the whole world to atheism, & eventually do. This is shown when Cartman freezes himself because he "can't wait for Nintendo Wii" & is awoken 500 years in the future where the whole world is atheistic. Ironically, this all-atheist world is home to several warring atheist factions in a dispute over what name to use for their organization, satirizing the often heard atheist notion that there would be no more war in the world if religion was done away with.

In the episode criticizing Scientology ("Trapped in the Closet"), South Park is adamant in assuring viewers of the factual content in their description of its beliefs by flashing the phrase "THIS IS WHAT SCIENTOLOGISTS ACTUALLY BELIEVE". Similarly, it asserted the accuracy of its descriptions of Mormon beliefs in "All About Mormons" (though, in fact, the episode contained several inaccuracies). However, in the episode "Go God Go", South Park misrepresents some Catholics as opposing evolution, by showing a Catholic father removing his daughter from school in protest, although the Roman Catholic Church declared its acceptance of evolution as plausible in 1950.

Environment
South Park has produced several episodes critical of the environmentalism movement. Which is a disgrace.

In the 1999 episode "Rainforest Schmainforest" an environmental activist, voiced by Jennifer Aniston, makes a harrowing trip to the rain forest of Costa Rica with the children, an experience that leads her to conclude that the rain forest "sucks ass", which may be directed as a criticism of the lack of in-depth knowledge some activists have about the causes they support, & the way in which they appear to "jump on a bandwagon".

The 2001 episode "Terrance & Phillip: Behind the Blow" is about the South Park Earth Day "Brainwashing Festival" where a group of conservationists staging Earth Day in South Park try to brainwash the crowd into caring about the environment. They eventually start mutilating Kenny as punishment for the boys not keeping their promise of Terrence & Philip appearing at the festival.

The 2005 episode "Two Days Before the Day After Tomorrow" mocks the connections between recent hurricanes & global warming. The title & several plot elements are a play on the film The Day After Tomorrow.

The 2006 episode "Smug Alert!" mocked the self-satisfaction & "smugness" of some who drive hybrid vehicles (which causes a suffocating form of pollution called "smug" instead of "smog") & featured George Clooney's Academy award acceptance speech as a major contributor to the dangers of "smug". The importance of hybrid cars & the underlying good that they do for the environment is highlighted at the end of the episode, indicating that it is the self-righteousness of some who drive them that is being satirized rather than the cars. Another 2006 episode, "ManBearPig" mocked Al Gore's outspokenness about the danger of global warming, ending with Al Gore going on to "...make a movie... a movie starring me!..." in what is presumably a jab at the film An Inconvenient Truth. In the episode Lice Capades, several allusions are made to global warming when the head lice are concerned about the impact they are having on their environment.

Racism

Randy Marsh mistakenly solves this Wheel of Fortune puzzle as "niggers", though the correct solution is "naggers".The 2007 episode "With Apologies to Jesse Jackson" was inspired by the Michael Richards Laugh Factory incident. It was also likely influenced by a recent New York City Council resolution, which symbolically banned the word nigger. They say the word 42 times in the episode. This puts a satirical twist on the original issue of racism & how it has been taken out of context to the point that it is now reversed. In the episode, "Fat Butt & Pancake Head", Cartman imitated Jennifer Lopez & made it look like she couldn't pronounce English & kept repeating "tacos & burritos". Also, Cartman is an antisemite, shown by his constant harassment of Kyle, as well as through more drastic measures, such as trying to have the town's Jews exterminated in The Passion of the Jew. Also, in the episode "Cartman's Silly Hate Crime 2000", characters that played police officers declared cartman was a racist when he described Token as "...Some black kid that goes to our school."

Censorship is arguably the most persistent & clear theme in the series, as multiple episodes have drawn (negative) attention over the years to its impact. The first episode to do so was “Death” from season 1, wherein Kyle’s mother begins a protest group whose goal is to have Terrance & Phillip (whose characters were first conceived of for this episode, & who seem to be caricatures of Parker & Stone) taken off the air. The group is portrayed in obviously negative terms, as they eventually resort to committing mass suicide as a means of protesting the TV show. The episode was the last of the original six episodes which were picked up by Comedy Central to air, & Parker & Stone have said that they did not believe the show would be renewed for more due to the protests against it, meaning that “Death” would be the show’s very last episode.

The second instance in which censorship was criticized on South Park was in the feature film “South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut,” which again featured Kyle’s mother & a group of parents resorting to extreme measures to stop Terrance & Phillip, this time actually beginning a war with Canada over the show. It is stated at two points in the movie - first by Wendy, & later by Stan - that the injustice of the war is about censorship, i.e., “this is about freedom of speech! About censorship!” Kyle’s mother also says at one point, in a particularly satirical moment in a crucial scene: “Men, when you're out there in the battlefield [...] & people are dying all around you, just remember what the MPAA says: ‘Horrific, deplorable violence is okay, as long as people don't say any naughty words.’ That is what this war is all about!” In fact, the title of the movie itself refers to censorship, as it states that the movie (unlike the show) is “uncut,” & highlights this as a positive characteristic. The movie flaunted this lack of censorship by including a huge number of swear words, perhaps most notably in the songs "Kyle's Mom's A Bitch" & "Uncle Fucka." Parker & Stone have said that at the time the movie was made, they felt that the show was “dying” & that the movie would be “the last thing we ever did” & that the show would not continue past its third season.

In the two-part episode, “Cartoon Wars”, which aired in season 10, the controversy surrounding censorship of images of the Islamic prophet Muhammad was addressed, & the message given was that Muhammad should be allowed to be shown. Parker & Stone themselves wanted to show Muhammad in the episode (having already shown him once before, in the episode “Super Best Friends” five years before the controversy), but were turned down, to their consternation. At the climactic moment of the episode, Kyle gives the following speech: “Pulling an episode because someone is offended starts a chain reaction. You'll have to pull more & more episodes until the show goes off the air completely. It's what happened to “Laverne & Shirley” [...] Sir, just think about what you're doing to free speech! [...] Do the right thing here. [...] If you censor out Mohammad, then soon you'll have to censor out more. [...] If you don't show Mohammad, then you’ve made a distinction between what is okay to poke fun at, & what isn't. Either it's all okay, or none of it is. [...] Do the right thing. Show Mohammad. Do. The right. Thing.” Parker & Stone may well have feared that South Park itself would suffer the fate of “Laverne & Shirley” & be cancelled, due to the recent upsurge of the amount of protest against the show (much as they feared protests would stop the show in its first season). Recently, Catholic groups (for “Bloody Mary”) & Scientologists (for “Trapped in the Closet”) had protested against & /or boycotted the show; additionally, Comedy Central’s ban of images of Muhammad from the network made Parker & Stone fear, as reiterated in Kyle’s speech, that the censorship would lead to even more censorship, in a kind of slippery slope. As is noted elsewhere, they wrote the story-arc to protest Comedy Central's censorship of Muhammad, & included elements of their own struggles with the network in the episode.

Given the above examples, it might be thought that Parker & Stone return to the theme of censorship whenever they feel that the show is threatened or is about to end, indicating the strength of their feelings on the topic. That the theme has been used in so many episodes (including a two-part episode devoted almost solely to it) & in the movie too, indicates this as well.

Additionally, censorship (and people’s exaggerated response to a lack of it) is mocked in the episode "It Hits the Fan", wherein the word shit is said uncensored 162 times in a blatant dig at the censorship the show is normally subjected to. Subsequently, the episode With Apologies to Jesse Jackson did something similar on a smaller scale, saying the word nigger unbleeped a total of 42 times. Near the end of the episode, the word “nigger-guy” (invented for the episode) is banned in South Park, not for any reasons that could be perceived of as reasonable but because the white senators fear that the term may soon be applied to all of them. A reporter standing near the courthouse comments, "For the first time in American history, a word has been officially banned from use. [...] Tom, it appears that the nigger-guy epidemic is ov - Oh dammit I said it, didn’t I?", at which point he is arrested & taken away by the police.

South Park has been nominated for the Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program six times (1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, & 2006). So far the show has only won once, for the 2005 episode Best Friends Forever.
On April 5, 2006, it was announced that the show had won a Peabody Award. This is the third Comedy Central show to win, following two awarded to The Daily Show for its 2000 & 2004 presidential election coverage & one given to Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1994.
South Park was nominated for important awards such as the 1998 Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Primetime or Late Night Television Program. It was also nominated for the 1998 GLAAD Award for Outstanding TV - Individual Episode for Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride. It also received an Image Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series (Isaac Hayes) in 1999.
South Park was nominated for a 2006 Teen Choice Award for "Best Animated Show", but was defeated by the show Family Guy.
South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut was nominated for an Oscar for "Best Music, Original Song" for the song "Blame Canada". They lost to Phil Collins & made fun of him in two consecutive episodes in season 4 (Cartman's Silly Hate Crime 2000 & Timmy 2000). They were fully expecting to lose, just not to him. It was performed by Robin Williams during the televised award show, which was the first to carry a TV-14 parental advisory, in part because of the performance of that song, which contains some adult language. Some in nowadays try to download south park from the computer but this is frowned on by it's makers.
As of 2007, South Park is the last actively-running television series that has won a CableACE Award. It won the award for Best Animated Series in 1997, the last year the awards were given out. Some see even the south park song styles as too right wing never mind the episodes. We need more left wingism in it.

The Lonympics great Music selection, great music

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