Gill is here to talk about a few times that folks have tried to get television shows banned for strange reasons. Surprisingly, one of them actually makes sense.
Throughout the history of TV, there have been episodes of shows that have made someone uncomfortable enough to try to get an episode or entire show banned from somewhere. Here are a few.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhz8S4o-R4k
Ukraine – Spongebob Squarepants is beloved by young children and drunken college students everywhere, unless you live in the Eastern European nation of The Ukraine. A few years ago, the government suggested banning the show due to the perception that it promotes a homosexual agenda.- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRV38aLGb2E
Brazil – An episode of the long running cartoon The Simpsons called Blame it on Lisa where the family headed to Brazil to meet Lisa’s pen pal made people in Brazil uncomfortable. The problems, among others, were the idea of pick pocket children, kidnapping for ransoms, and brightly colored rat infested slums.
Australia – Peppa Pig, a British children’s show, drew the ire of Australian viewers because of the episode Mr. Skinny Legs which attempted to convince children that spiders weren’t so bad. This would not be a problem accept for the fact that Australia is home to some of the deadliest spiders in the world.Question
Has an episode of one of your favorite shows been banned, and what was the reason for it?
All I can think of is “Come to Australia. You might accidentally get killed.”
A fine ditty, one I think I first heard on television, funnily enough.