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| Comedy Central Response, Re: "Freak Show"
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Note: ADL received the following letter in response to concerns it raised regarding the season finale of the 2006 animated comedy series “Freak Show” on Comedy Central.
| To: |
Abraham H. Foxman
National Director
Anti-Defamation League
New York, NY |
Dear Mr. Foxman:
We appreciate your getting in touch with us and expressing your concerns regarding the season finale of “Freak Show.”
As a comedy network, it is our foremost intention to entertain and not to offend. We take your concerns very seriously and have asked the creators of the show, David Cross and H. Jon Benjamin, to offer their views on this matter. David and Jon are both of Jewish descent and were raised as Jews, but are generally skeptical of religious fundamentalism in any form. When they first read about the ritual alluded to in these episodes, both felt that although it was an obscure rite, it was the kind of thing that cast all of Judaism in a negative light and reinforced negative stereotypes among the “uninitiated,” to borrow a term from your letter. To illustrate this, they decided to use the ritual as a jumping off point to make fun of ridiculous stereotypes about Jews.
COMEDY CENTRAL prides itself on being balanced in its satire and not singling out any particular group. We’d like to point out that although the first of the two episodes focuses predominantly on Judaism, both episodes also poke fun at Mormonism, Scientology, Islam, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Catholicism and, to a large degree, evangelism.
You stated in your letter that depictions of Jewish religious practices in this episode could have unintended consequences for those unfamiliar with Judaism. Please know that our audience is generally well-educated and watch COMEDY CENTRAL for the humor and satire we present in such programming as “South Park,” “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and “The Colbert Report.” We do not feel that the fear of increased anti-Semitism among the already-ignorant is a valid reason for stifling satire.
Thank you again for making us aware of your concerns and we are always open to hearing the views of our audience.
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Sincerely,
Tony Fox
Executive Vice President
Corporate Communications
COMEDY CENTRAL |
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| Related Material |
Media Watch
ADL Letter to Comedy Central |
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