There is too much ado about Muhammad

If you watched the 201st episode of “South Park” last Wednesday, you might have thought the excessive beeping and censoring was intentional. In some ways, it made the episode funnier (Stan’s standard “I learned something today” was bleeped for almost two minutes).

The episode was a parody of the series’ history with being censored, most noticeably during the infamous “Cartoon Wars” episodes in which the “Family Guy” writers (a large tank of manatees) are threatened by Muslim extremists after hearing the show will depict Muhammad in a joke. “South Park” followed suit by writing multiple episodes around this same struggle. It’s all gotten very meta. We recommend just watching the episodes and catching up. One episode in Season 5 actually showed Muhammad as apart of the religious squad “The Super Best Friends” but that video has since been pulled.

According to show’s creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the ending “wasn’t just some meta-joke.” There had been threats made against the duo as one group’s website posted the addresses of Comedy Central and the production studio, but the shows’ masterminds seemed completely willing to take these risks to make a point about being able to depict Muhammad.

By all means “South Park” should’ve been able to show Muhammad and say whatever they want. There’s that whole First Amendment thing. We’re not surprised Comedy Central took this action though — a company is likely going to protect their money over making a statement. It doesn’t mean we’re not disappointed.

This isn’t an issue of social responsibility. “South Park” definitely tackles topics with crassness and bluntness, but it’s one of the only shows even addressing the issue. If it’s the only game in town, we can’t be too picky.

Maybe the press that’s been created by these episodes will encourage further discussion. It’s not a topic that threatens our immediate world, but right now, a precedent is being set by the media companies that fear wins out over speaking your mind (even if that entails nothing more than having a cartoon where a religious prophet is inside a giant bear costume).