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Family Guy cartoon banned in Venezuela
I think we'd all agree that there are some bad TV re-runs out there that deserve to be taken off the air. But I'm not sure that Family Guy is one of them. Venezuelan authorities have banned the cartoon from future broadcast. Any TV station that doesn't drop the show will be fined.
What prompted this reaction? The recent episode in which Brian, the talking dog, started a campaign to legalize marijuana.
Watch out future cartoons, so you don't offend the Venezuelan government! It has happened before, and it will surely happen again. The Simpsons was banned there last year because of its "messages that go against the whole education of boys, girl, and adolescents."
Televen was one station threatened with a fine for showing The Simpsons in the morning hours. What did they do to avoid the fine? They were forced to show public service films as an apology. And they replaced The Simpsons with Baywatch.
Really, now. Baywatch is better?
It seems as though the government and TV in Venezuela are closely linked. President Hugo Chavez hosts his own talk show. And if new regulations go into effect, cable stations would be forced to broadcast all of Chavez's speeches.
Filed under: Arts and Culture, South America, Venezuela, News
Reader Comments (Page 4 of 5)
gobluespartyon Oct 1st 2009 3:35PM
I think your wrong not letting your 10 or 13 not watch TV that is being extreme prude that is out of touch.
Dw. Dunphy Sep 28th 2009 6:07PM
In all fairness, Hugo Chavez's show is MUCH funnier than Family Guy as of late.
Betty Sep 28th 2009 6:18PM
Guess they are smarter than Americans. they think that crappy show is funny!
shows how intelligent we are as a whole. I never watched the stupid program and it amazes me that people still watch it and it is still on Tv lineup.
Bernadette Sep 28th 2009 6:25PM
Everyone needs to chill. This show is hysterical, truly the only show where I really do laugh out loud. With cable available, if it's not your type of show CHANGE THE CHANNEL! There are many cable shows that offend many different types of people, and they just CHANGE THE CHANNEL! I love this show and I think that Seth Mac Farland is a genious, and this is America where we the people get to choose. Lighten up and CHANGE THE CHANNEL!
bsmith Sep 28th 2009 6:28PM
Theres been a strong movement in TV broadcasting to push a gay agenda down the throat of the American public. I for one am fed up with it. It takes a foreign govt to call this the crap that it is and get it off the air. When no one wants to maintain any cultural standards, then there arent any. That other idiot cartoon about the two gay boys should be banned too.
Lex Sep 28th 2009 11:47PM
Wow, I already posted my opinion, but after reading more of the comments on here, in particular yours, I just had to post again. Gay agenda? Even as a heterosexual, I am pretty offended by that. So, I take it you don't believe in homosexuals having just as many rights as heterosexuals, which I find to be absolutely ridiculous. And what does Family Guy have to do with any sort of "gay agenda"? I'm sorry, I rarely ever do this....but you are an absolute idiot.
Dorothy Sep 28th 2009 6:30PM
Sorry, but Family Guy lost me when they made fun of a cancer patient. I thought it was pretty mindless before, but now I believe it is nothing more than mean spirited crap.
amy Sep 28th 2009 7:10PM
Family guy is a work of a genius.
steve Sep 28th 2009 7:39PM
i dont like phedophile priests so lets ban christianity
Cathy0007 Sep 28th 2009 7:49PM
For the people who let their kids watch this show and others like it, pick up a newspaper and read it. Look at the hideous crimes being committed against children alone. Everytime I read the news, another little girl or boy has gone missing! In today's society a lot of parents can't be bothered to teach their children morals anymore. They don't care what their kids watch on tv or monitor the video games they play. It makes it hard for the caring parents to teach their kids values in today's society. Forty years ago television viewing was so much more wholesome for our children, and back then our children had respect for adults. I don't know what happened to people today. A lot of parents don't even realize what their kids are doing on the computer. It's a darn shame how we have evolved into this kind of society. But it's up to us to teach our kids right from wrong, and grow up to be decent human beings. If our kids don't have us to look up to, then who will teach them? After all our children are the future.
Dee Sep 28th 2009 7:58PM
Family Guy is crap. It's sad how easily we are amused in this country.
sue Sep 28th 2009 8:09PM
Mark Lloyd , one of the new czars of the FCC loves Hugo Chavez takeover of the TV and radio stations and wants to do it here. He says freedom of speech is overrated. It used to be called the Fairness Doctrine. It now is called "diversity over the airwaves"The FCC is now run by this guy who thinks that the revolution that went on in Venezuela that nationalized a lot of things is magical and would like it to happen here and will unless the sheep wake up and protest. I do not think that people want their internet and TV to be managed by the government. So far we have freedom of speech, freedom to pretty much do what we want, watch what we want,eat what we want, and the Govt. is working on regulating all of that. WAKE UP SHEEPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
mesaman Sep 28th 2009 9:13PM
It really ticks me off to find that Venezuelans are smarter than we are. The very fact that Family Guy hasn't been chucked into the sewer leaves me uncertain about the mentality of the average American viewer. Can you count to two, Bubba? Duh, duh. Excellent.
The River Rat Sep 28th 2009 9:42PM
This is a not very funny show that shows the level of depravity that this country has sunk into. Bad taste, however, is not a crime, at least not in this country but this show should be on LATE at night when most children should be in bed. Just because I think that this piece of crap show is below decent moral standards doesn't mean that the depraved should be deprived of their injection of cartoon depravity. A show that has encouraged child sexual abuse, beastiality, spousal abuse and other somewhat distasteful subjects sounds like it is right down some of the posters lifestyles.
Mike Sep 28th 2009 9:52PM
I quit watching Family Guy after hearing Brian and Peter put down the South.
Seth MacFarlane can go to hell. I don't think a TV show should be banned anywhere. I just won't watch it if I don't like it. Same thing with Jimmy Kimmel saying the old TV series Dukes of Hazzard sucked; I loved that show when I was a kid--over the top, but pretty true to life. Fast cars, slutty girls, and booze, just like the town where I did most of my growing up; if the Dukes had been into hard rock and drugs, would have been even more realistic. The Dukes had good hearts. Seth MacFarlane and Jimmy Kimmel make a living mocking people. There are a lot of good people in the South. If the North doesn't like us, I wish they'd leave us alone.
Waycross48 Sep 28th 2009 10:20PM
Family Guy is a crude, nasty show that promotes disrespect to parents and authority. It's just nasty and does not deserve to be in ANY country. I don't allow it in my home and would never allow my family to watch it. And, NO!, I'm not some old stick in the mud!! I just happen to have MORALS and don't allow something this blantantly crude to be watched in my home. Everyone has a right to their opinion, but I applaud Venezuela for banning this show. It has absolutely NO inherent value - as a comedy or anything else.
Pat Sep 28th 2009 10:37PM
I think that stupid cartoon should be taken off the air. I TRYED to watch it once and it was soo stupid I just couldn't waste my time any more, so I switched the channel, never to allow that cartoon to visit me in my livingroom any more.
Garry Sep 29th 2009 4:23PM
It's a cartoon that's not intended for children to begin with!
I wish all of you who keep saying things about "we need to protect our children" would actually think before you speak (type).
If you TRULY want to protect your children ... BE A BETTER PARENT. Stop plopping your kids in front of the television and letting it "baby sit" your children for you and then complain when they see something "inappropriate." You want the networks to conform to you just because you are too lazy to watch your own kids!?
THAT'S what's wrong with this country. NOT the programming on television.
Here's a unique way of actually preventing the so called "filth" from adversely affecting you or your precious children .... ready?
1. Pick up remote (or walk to television)
2. Change the channel (or turn off television)
**PHEW**
Crisis averted. That evil show will never bother you or your family again.
cjbill Sep 28th 2009 10:55PM
We could do with less "family guy" humor. Our kids really need to have someone protecting them from all the rude, crude, stupidly vulgar, and violence that pervades their world.
Every form of entertainment and communication is filled with overly sexualized references, violence and lack of human compassion. While I support 'free speech' but not intentionally offensive material, that does not contribute to make one a better person - just an obnoxious one.
Lex Sep 28th 2009 11:36PM
The fact that this is actually a debate is somewhat depressing. If you don't like the show, don't watch it, but don't tell anyone else what they can or cannot watch simply because you don't like it. I happen to LOVE the show, but..then again, I also have a sense of humor and can appreciate things meant in good fun. They've made jokes about things on the show that I personally didn't agree with, but that doesn't mean I think the show as a whole is bad. I get over it. So what? There was a joke in there I didn't agree with....ooooohh no. Better go cry about it. I just brushed it off, as everyone should learn to do. That's part of the problem with people today. Everyone is so sensitive about every little thing, that everything turns into this huge debate. GET OVER IT. Toughen up. And watch something else if you don't like it.