MSM's South Park Hypocrisy

The story of the censored South Park episode has hit the mainstream media, after, of course, being exposed on blogs first. Wednesday's episode was supposed to contain a scene of the Muslim prophet Mohammed, in reference to the famous Danish Mohammed cartoons that caused Islamic zealots to indulge in rioting, arson, and murder throughout the Islamic world.

From ABC News:

By DAVID BAUDER AP Television Writer
NEW YORK Apr 13, 2006 (AP)— Banned by Comedy Central from showing an image of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, the creators of "South Park" skewered their own network for hypocrisy in the cartoon's most recent episode.

The comedy in an episode aired during Holy Week for Christians instead featured an image of Jesus Christ defecating on President Bush and the American flag.

In an elaborately constructed two-part episode of their Peabody Award-winning cartoon, "South Park" creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker intended to comment on the controversy created by a Danish newspaper's publishing of caricatures of Muhammad. Muslims consider any physical representation of their prophet to be blasphemous.

The mainstream could hardly ignore the South Park scandal after creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone went public to confirm that they were, indeed, censored by Comedy Central. But the Associated Press account published by ABC goes on to say this:

When the cartoons were reprinted in newspapers worldwide in January and February, it sparked a wave of protests primarily in Islamic countries.

Now I'm calling shenanigans. It's inaccurate to say that the Mohammed cartoons were published "worldwide", unless "worldwide" has been redefined to exclude the United States. Even a French magazine ran them (though the editor was later fired by the mag's Egyptian owner). So the American mainstream press is more cowardly than the French. Now there's an accomplishment.

And it's hard to blame Comedy Central for refusing to run the Mohammed scenes when virtually every mainstream media outlet in America has been too gutless to show the Danish cartoons. Now it's come down to two goofy cartoonists defending the US Constitution from the barbarians while the Fourth Estate quivers in fear. I'm sure Edward R. Murrow is pleased.



Also posted at The Jawa Report and Vince Aut Morire.