Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

'South Park' creators issue mock apology to China after reportedly being censored

'South Park' creators issue mock apology to China after reportedly being censored

The episode pokes fun at China's censorship laws and ridicules Hollywood for shaping its entertainment to please the Chinese government.

On Monday, Beijing reportedly responded by deleting all clips, episodes and online discussions of the long-running comedy program.

Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of “South Park,” issued an “official apology to China” via Twitter.

The creators of “South Park” have jokingly apologized to China after an episode of the U.S. TV comedy cartoon was reportedly made largely unavailable in the country.

The episode, called “Band in China,” pokes fun at China’s strict censorship laws and ridicules Hollywood for shaping its entertainment to please the Chinese government.

On Monday, Beijing reportedly responded by deleting all clips, episodes and online discussions of the long-running comedy program.

Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the creators of “South Park,” issued an “official apology to China” via Twitter.

“Like the NBA (National Basketball Association), we welcome the Chinese censors into our homes and our hearts,” the statement said, referring to an escalating dispute between the NBA and Chinese TV.

“We too love money more than freedom and democracy. Xi doesn’t look like Winnie the Pooh at all.”

The statement continued: “Long live the Great Communist Party of China! May this autumn’s sorghum harvest be bountiful! We good now China?”


What happens in the episode?


Aired last week in the U.S., “Band in China” includes a plot line in which the character Randy Marsh is caught selling drugs in China. As punishment, he is subjected to forced labor and Communist Party re-education.

This appears to be a direct reference to the mass internment camps in Xinjiang — home to China’s Uighur minority.

The territory has made headlines for its detention and “reeducation” camps that hold an estimated 1.5 million Muslims, many of them for violating what Amnesty International describes as a “highly restrictive and discriminatory” law that China says is designed to combat extremism.

In one scene, a prison guard is seen giving Marsh an electric shock.

“I am a proud member of the Communist Party,” Marsh then says, reading aloud from a card handed to him by the same guard. “The party is more important than the individual.”

Marsh is also depicted in an overcrowded prison cell, before engaging in conversation with Winnie the Pooh and Piglet.

In 2017, A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh character was scrubbed from Chinese social media because people compared him to Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“Some people said Pooh looked like the Chinese president, so we’re illegal in China now,” Piglet says in the episode.

“What kind of madhouse is this?” Marsh replies.


How has China responded?


China’s government has sought to wipe almost every episode of the show and clamped down on any mention of “South Park” online, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Search results of “South Park” have been taken down on Chinese search engine Baidu, with a video trailer from 2017 now the most recent video available.

China’s internet, sometimes referred to as the Great Firewall, heavily restricts news and information. Google, as well as social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, are blocked online in the world’s second-largest economy.

A statement from the Wikimedia foundation in mid-May said the online encyclopedia site Wikipedia had been blocked in mainland China since April.

Chinese newspapers and TV are under Communist Party control, with keywords and phrases often censored on social media.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
×