Fox's 'Family Guy' goes too far; file a complaint with the FCC

[baylee]

Actually, whatevergirl, the show DOES mock other groups equally if not more than they mock Christians. No one is safe from Family Guy! I loved their episode when Peter joined the Patriots–oh, my heavens, that end-zone dance was soooooo funny! And the Y2K episode still stands as my favorite–the very idea of living in a Twinkie factory (the only food that survived the nuclear disaster brought on by Y2K!) and eating twinkies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (“Twinkie Casserole”)!

I’ve watched pretty much every episode from the beginning, and I can honestly say that Christians don’t get jabbed by this show any more than any other group.

I personally think that the shows that mock Christianity are the shows that are “acceptable” to many people and very subtle in their mockery. By showing real people, likeable people, committing blatant serious sin (e.g., sleeping with someone they’re not married to), THIS is a mockery of Christianity. It subtly and graduallly helps create a culture in which sin becomes acceptable and those people who insist on calling it sin (we Christians!) become the “extremist nut jobs.”

One thing about Family Guy–it is very obvious that it is satire. There is NO attempt to be subtle! It’s kind of like those “poopy jokes” that your toddlers love–not very sophisticated, but so funny when a two-year old tells you one! To me, Family Guy is “grown up” poopy jokes, and I make no apologies for the child in me that thinks that poopy jokes are really funny!

Ditto…100%. I love your analogy to “poopy” jokes…

 

[stringbeanduck]

Actually, whatevergirl, the show DOES mock other groups equally if not more than they mock Christians. No one is safe from Family Guy! I loved their episode when Peter joined the Patriots–oh, my heavens, that end-zone dance was soooooo funny! And the Y2K episode still stands as my favorite–the very idea of living in a Twinkie factory (the only food that survived the nuclear disaster brought on by Y2K!) and eating twinkies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (“Twinkie Casserole”)!

I’ve watched pretty much every episode from the beginning, and I can honestly say that Christians don’t get jabbed by this show any more than any other group.

I personally think that the shows that mock Christianity are the shows that are “acceptable” to many people and very subtle in their mockery. By showing real people, likeable people, committing blatant serious sin (e.g., sleeping with someone they’re not married to), THIS is a mockery of Christianity. It subtly and graduallly helps create a culture in which sin becomes acceptable and those people who insist on calling it sin (we Christians!) become the “extremist nut jobs.”

One thing about Family Guy–it is very obvious that it is satire. There is NO attempt to be subtle! It’s kind of like those “poopy jokes” that your toddlers love–not very sophisticated, but so funny when a two-year old tells you one! To me, Family Guy is “grown up” poopy jokes, and I make no apologies for the child in me that thinks that poopy jokes are really funny!

I really wish they would’ve stayed on the older jokes. However I sure they decided that adding more profanity would cater to the younger crowd.

 

[Cat]

“some people may want to watch”? “we chose not to”?

Dad to child: Now Timmy. You just have to accept that there are sick, twisted, morally perverted TV programs out there, but we can’t keep other people from not watching them if we choose not to. We have to respect their freedom… of choice… because they enjoy thinking perverted thoughts and may even enjoy doing perverted things. And even though TV programs like Family Guy may encourage them and even make them feel better about actually engaging in perverted acts, we should respect their right to be perverts or at least to be entertained by perversion.

Child: Dad? Will you be teaching me about right and wrong or is everything going to be vague and relativistic?

Peace,
Ed

But…but…you missed the whole point of the episode! It didn’t make people feel better about engaging in perverted acts. Just the opposite!

The “gay gene” episode put out the message that homosexual sex is gross and disgusting, and that homosexuals are effeminate, silly, self-centered, and promiscuous.

The episode was very anti-homosexual! Even the song that I mentioned would make most people go, “EUUUGHH! Yuck!”

I think that the episode actually HELPED people to take off the blinders when it comes to homosexuals.

For many years, my daughter was a staunch supporter of homosexual lifestyles, and argued with us about how beautiful these relationships were.

THEN–one of her gay friends took her to a gay nightclub.

She came home a changed woman. It was shortly after this that she began investigating the Catholic Church, and is today a whole-hearted supporter of everything that the Catholic Church teaches about homosexuality. She still has many gay friends, but she is no longer naive or blind about how they live their lives.

In that nightclub, she saw first-hand, up-close and disgustingly personal, exactly how gay men live out their homosexuality. No “romance.” No “tenderness.” No “love.” No monogamy. Quite a different portrayal than a lot of the “pro-gay” shows want us to see and believe. They want us to believe that homosexuals are just like hetereosexuals–monogamous loving couples who want desperately to commit themselves to each other through marriage.

Yes, some gays are monogamous. But many men really do have sex with a parade of men through “glory holes,” just like Peter Griffin sang about on the show.

IMO, this episode of Family Guy brought REAL homosexuality RIGHT INTO OUR LIVING ROOMS and anyone who wanted to believe that gays are just like straights had to face it–no, they’re not!!!

They may not all be effeminate sops, but they definitely don’t live monogamously and they have sex in degrading and impersonal animal-like ways.

Family Guy made this perfectly clear and in my opinion, did the entire country a service. I’m so tired of all the lies surrounding homosexuality.

I still say that children shouldn’t have to know this stuff and I think the show probably went too far because now children will be Googling “glory hole” and they will find more than just glassmaking.

But I see nothing wrong with adults being confronted with this stuff and being forced to re-think their sweet and totally incorrect stereotype about gay men. Perhaps it will knock some sense into some adults who have been lulled by the homosexual agenda into thinking that homosexual sex is “just beautiful.”

 

[whatevergirl]

It doesn’t surprise me that you all missed the point that you are acting as those who took issue with Him eating with sinners…those that thought they were morally superior to Him for doing what they thought was reprehensible.

I thought we were supposed to help one another in our walks with Christ? Christ ate with sinners…we are all sinners, but He told us that we should help one another to get to heaven.

No one is morally superior to anyone. We are all in need of help here. I find people use this passage when justifying all kinds of things. There’s much more to the story, it doesn’t end at Jesus ate with sinners. He also helped people to see where they were sinning.

Now, is watching SP or FG, sinful? I doubt it. And I never said it was sinful. But, it’s not helpful to our walks with Christ. If you say it is, we just will have to agree to disagree.

And yes, everything we do, watch, think about, spend our money and time on…SHOULD be edifying in some way to our walks with Christ. Are we seriously debating THAT? And some of the things we buy at the store, etc…might have ties to something immoral…if we don’t know, that’s one thing, when we do find that out, we should not support it.

I am not telling anyone what to watch, merely pointing out, that a daily diet of such junk, is not healthy to our walks with Christ. It really is simple. I think we like to complicate things.

 

[Cat]

And I would just add that people who watch that show do it KNOWING that the characters are ridiculous and do ridiculous things. People laugh because they are so ridiculous. They aren’t sitting around and saying, “Wow, that Peter Griffin…he’s a smart guy…what he says is gospel” or “Wow, that Quagmire is a man’s man…what a respectable kind of guy”.

Kind of like All In The Family. Most people recognized that Archie Bunker and George Jefferson were both bigoted blowhards. Most people recognized that the two grown children were naive liberals. Most people recognized that Edith Bunker and Louise Jefferson were the ones with any sense!

The difference on* Family Guy *is that NO ONE has any sense, except maybe Meg ??, who everyone hates. Could this be an analogy to real life culture, in which the normal, moderate, good, hard-working people are despised and mocked by the fanatics, the flaming liberals, and the ultra-conservatives?

There is a lot more to Family Guy than you see with just a cursory viewing. No way should children watch it because they won’t understand all this. But I think that the show can provide a wonderful conversation-starter with teens and adults.

 

[Becks]

I just wanted to restate my position, which I feel has gotten somewhat lost over the last seven pages of comments. Don’t invite the government in to dictate morality to us.

I don’t mind you guys telling me that I shouldn’t watch Family Guy, and I enjoy the debate about the merits of the show. When I come on a Catholic forum I expect to hear other Catholics tell me their opinions. As a matter of fact, that’s why I’m here.

I do mind the government dictating my actions (such as what show I should watch) based on government imposed standards of morality. Please let’s don’t forget (how could we) that the government is far from Catholic. Every time we support their power to dictate morals that are right, we decrease our ability to complain when they dictate morals that are wrong.

 

[whatevergirl]

I will also add…I used to watch all kinds of junk…NEXT on MTV, why I have no idea, it’s a terrible show. I used to watch The Bachelor, another show exploiting women and making dating and marriage look like a test-drive type of experience, Sex & The City (don’t bother chastising me, I confessed it one day, and the priest told me to just stop watching it, it’s terribly 'un’edifying to the dignity of women, etc)

And there are more I could name. I could sit here and say…well, they’re just shows. And they are. The plots are not ‘real,’ just like the plots on the shows being discussed here.

But, while you might find Sex & The City terribly offensive, I would tell you, you’re right. I look back, and just liked watching the fashions, but the plot was deplorable. Insulting to women…insulting to men…insulting to sexuality. I can’t defend it.

SP and FG have really no quality to them. But because they are cartoons, we give them more slack. So, all I say is, I’m far from in judgement over any of you, oh my gosh, I’m far from that type of person.

My ‘goal’ here is to say that when we lower our tv watching standards to this stuff, it opens the door for further lowering of our standards.

Carry on…I’m off my soapbox now.

 

[Cat]

I thought we were supposed to help one another in our walks with Christ? Christ ate with sinners…we are all sinners, but He told us that we should help one another to get to heaven.

No one is morally superior to anyone. We are all in need of help here. I find people use this passage when justifying all kinds of things. There’s much more to the story, it doesn’t end at Jesus ate with sinners. He also helped people to see where they were sinning.

Now, is watching SP or FG, sinful? I doubt it. And I never said it was sinful. But, it’s not helpful to our walks with Christ. If you say it is, we just will have to agree to disagree.

And yes, everything we do, watch, think about, spend our money and time on…SHOULD be edifying in some way to our walks with Christ. Are we seriously debating THAT? And some of the things we buy at the store, etc…might have ties to something immoral…if we don’t know, that’s one thing, when we do find that out, we should not support it.

I am not telling anyone what to watch, merely pointing out, that a daily diet of such junk, is not healthy to our walks with Christ. It really is simple. I think we like to complicate things.

And Family Guy is only on once a week, not daily.

And yes, I think it is edifying because it keeps me aware of the society that I live in. Just like Jesus ate with sinners, so do I. And knowing what they face helps me to love them more and try to help them find their way to the light, not wallow in the darkness. No fortress of solitude for me.

 

[whatevergirl]

And Family Guy is only on once a week, not daily.

And yes, I think it is edifying because it keeps me aware of the society that I live in. Just like Jesus ate with sinners, so do I. And knowing what they face helps me to love them more and try to help them find their way to the light, not wallow in the darkness. No fortress of solitude for me.

So, FG helps you to stay informed on societal matters? What does Jesus eating with sinners, have to do with you feeling FG keeps you informed on societal matters? I’m not seeing the correlation.

 

[Cat]

I just wanted to restate my position, which I feel has gotten somewhat lost over the last seven pages of comments. Don’t invite the government in to dictate morality to us.

I don’t mind you guys telling me that I shouldn’t watch Family Guy, and I enjoy the debate about the merits of the show. When I come on a Catholic forum I expect to hear other Catholics tell me their opinions. As a matter of fact, that’s why I’m here.

I do mind the government dictating my actions (such as what show I should watch) based on government imposed standards of morality. Please let’s don’t forget (how could we) that the government is far from Catholic. Every time we support their power to dictate morals that are right, we decrease our ability to complain when they dictate morals that are wrong.

I certainly see the point of this. If the government can tell us that Family Guy is off the air, the government can also ban the showing of Christian programming.

However, I think that a little restraint of lewdness or quasi-porn is not the same as outright censorship, and that it’s appropriate for decent people to ask that lewdness, foul language, and nudity not be shown on network TV. That’s not the same as censorship, because it does not prevent the telling of the story or the presentation of the idea.

For many years, television did just fine without songs about gloryholes, and without using the “A” word constantly. Couples still appeared quite romantic in bedroom scenes without showing stark nudity and blatant sex (ooh, Mr. and Mrs. Brady were so sexy!). Characters expressed angry emotions without resorting to four-letter sailor’s words.

I think that TV writers are just very lazy. It’s easy to write an “F” word. It’s a lot harder to write dialogue that expresses a tough character’s anger without using the “F” word.

Same for sex. It’s easy to present a sex scene. It’s a lot harder to “convey” that a couple has sex without actually showing the sex.

Writers need to work harder, and directors need to stop taking the easy way on television. And actors need to act with their whole bodies and faces, and stop counting on graphic dialogue to express their character’s feelings.

Interesting that the show The Unit, a show that I have praised many times on this forum, is the story of Army Special Forces. Now you KNOW that in real life, these guys do not walk around saying, “Oh, darn it!” when their grenade misses the target or when one of their own men is tortured by the enemy. BUT–somehow Shawn Ryan and David Mamet manage to write a show that does NOT use vulgar languge, at least most of the time. The Colonel uses the A-word once in while. That’s about it, and his character is kind of rough, so it’s understandable.

It’s amazing what good writers can do, and how good actors can express rage without resorting to a string of cussing, or romance without resorting to a bedroom nekkid scene.

Did you all know that for the last few weeks, naked butts are showing up on Saturday Night Live? Pretty soon it will be naked chests (female), and soon, we’ll see complete nudity. The line should be drawn NOW, and SNL should be informed that even though the men are wearing thongs, they still cannot show their butt-cheeks and crack on network television. SNL has been funny for over 20 years without showing nudity–let’s not allow them to get lazy now! They need to write good jokes and skits, not just show a butt and wait for the laugh. Yes, naked butts are funny, but good skits like the “Bass-o-Matic” skit or the Wayne’s World skits are much funnier!

 

[Nicollle]

I think there’s nothing wrong with thinking the show funny, but why are some of you vehemently defending this program???

lol

It’s not something worth defending, that’s for sure. If you think there are more important things for some of us to ‘concern’ ourselves with, there are many more things out there to defend, than these programs. Maybe there should be a bumper sticker or something…like save the whales…Catholics for South Park.

I personally think South Park serves a very important role. It’s one of the few shows willing to go where the MSM won’t. They are willing to defend free speech and expose the hypocrisy of the idea that traditional values and Christianity can be mocked while liberal causes and protected groups such as Muslims are off limits. I think we need more people like Trey Parker and Matt Stone to stick up for basic American values the way they do.

 

[Cracker_Mom]

Right on - no customers means no market for this cr*p.

Yup, & in Hollywood it’s all about money. You have to hurt them where it counts.They care about advertisers’ dollars.
Write FOX and the companies who buy advertising minutes.
Re. South Park, they try to offend everyone. Not just liberals. I don’t like the show but at least it’s even handed in offensiveness.

 

[Lil_Cat]

Yup, & in Hollywood it’s all about money. You have to hurt them where it counts.They care about advertisers’ dollars.
Write FOX and the companies who buy advertising minutes.
Re. South Park, they try to offend everyone. Not just liberals. I don’t like the show but at least it’s even handed in offensiveness.

But like I said earlier on this thread you have to watch the show to know who that advertisers are. So aren’t you still watching it?

 

[edwest2]

I don’t know about others, but I am not necessarily defending the show…I am annoyed that others seem to think they have a right to tell me what I should or shouldn’t watch…that they are morally superior to those that watch the show.

My watching that show has not made me morally depraved or changed my views on Catholic teaching. In fact, I would suggest that watching the show that many Americans watch is a good thing. It’s a good thing to go where others go…it helps us to evangelize when necessary. Others will be more likely to listen to us if they see us as one of them…not giving the impression that we’re better than them.

If I remember, Jesus ate with sinners…and some scoffed at Him for doing so.

As Catholics, we have a duty to encourage our fellow Catholics to do the right thing. I’ve seen too many Catholics start imitating their neighbors and doing sinful things. This is wrong. We need to be imitating Christ, not the secular world.

Evangelize by finding out what perversions our neighbors engage in? Christ came to call sinners to repentence, not share a laugh over Family Guy. He offered them life, not perversion. He offered them life. He didn’t force it on them. I did street evangelizing. I can only be a witness for Christ. I understand that it is up to the person I’m talking to to decide to listen. Most of the time they do, sometimes not.

Do you or anyone here believe they are superior if they just go along with what everybody else is doing? You’ll get a lot of approval from the people around you if you just act the way they do. Go to the same bars. Go to the same strip clubs. Tell the same dirty jokes. And where does Christ fit into that?

Peace,
Ed

 

[Cracker_Mom]

But like I said earlier on this thread you have to watch the show to know who that advertisers are. So aren’t you still watching it?

I’ve never seen the show but if I wanted to get it off the air I would become aware of who the advertisers were & what the offensive material was.

 

[Thunderbird]

As Catholics, we have a duty to encourage our fellow Catholics to do the right thing. I’ve seen too many Catholics start imitating their neighbors and doing sinful things. This is wrong. We need to be imitating Christ, not the secular world.

Evangelize by finding out what perversions our neighbors engage in? Christ came to call sinners to repentence, not share a laugh over Family Guy. He offered them life, not perversion. He offered them life. He didn’t force it on them. I did street evangelizing. I can only be a witness for Christ. I understand that it is up to the person I’m talking to to decide to listen. Most of the time they do, sometimes not.

Do you or anyone here believe they are superior if they just go along with what everybody else is doing? You’ll get a lot of approval from the people around you if you just act the way they do. Go to the same bars. Go to the same strip clubs. Tell the same dirty jokes. And where does Christ fit into that?

Peace,
Ed

I believe that while Jesus wouldn’t have told a dirty joke, He would have used stories that the people best relate to. Jesus’ parables throughout the New Testament described situations that His audience - The Jews of that time period - could relate to.

Also, I doubt He would condemn the watchers of Family Guy…because He comes to save and not condemn. He probably would have a conversation with Seth McFarlane, I imagine.

In my opinion, I don’t think God wants us to wall ourselves off from the perverse world. Guard our heart? Yes. Wear our Armor? Of course. Avoid everyone and everything that so much as even looks morally depraved? Doubtful.

 

[baylee]

Kind of like All In The Family. Most people recognized that Archie Bunker and George Jefferson were both bigoted blowhards. Most people recognized that the two grown children were naive liberals. Most people recognized that Edith Bunker and Louise Jefferson were the ones with any sense!

The difference on* Family Guy *is that NO ONE has any sense, except maybe Meg ??, who everyone hates. Could this be an analogy to real life culture, in which the normal, moderate, good, hard-working people are despised and mocked by the fanatics, the flaming liberals, and the ultra-conservatives?

There is a lot more to Family Guy than you see with just a cursory viewing. No way should children watch it because they won’t understand all this. But I think that the show can provide a wonderful conversation-starter with teens and adults.

Exactly. I think that this show is actually trying to do the exact opposite of what posters are accusing it of doing. It uses a bunch of idiots to espouse immoral actions and less than intelligent thinking…and by doing so is actually presenting what is wrong with society. It is not saying…hey, these guys are intellectuals and what our society should be like. It is saying this is what ignorance and stupidity does. I think, in reality, Seth MacFarlane is an absolute genius.

I’m wondering whether the same posters would have accused Catholics of doing the wrong thing and promoting bigotry if they watched All in the Family (and Archie was Catholic wasn’t he?). I wonder whether they would have tried to get that off the air as well…

 

[whatevergirl]

I believe that while Jesus wouldn’t have told a dirty joke, He would have used stories that the people best relate to. Jesus’ parables throughout the New Testament described situations that His audience - The Jews of that time period - could relate to.

Also, I doubt He would condemn the watchers of Family Guy…because He comes to save and not condemn. He probably would have a conversation with Seth McFarlane, I imagine.

In my opinion, I don’t think God wants us to wall ourselves off from the perverse world. Guard our heart? Yes. Wear our Armor? Of course. Avoid everyone and everything that so much as even looks morally depraved? Doubtful.

That’s true, but we use our wills when we choose to fill our minds with stupid stuff that doesn’t bring anything to the table, relating to Christ. Jesus ate with sinners, and we are ALL sinners, and are called to mirror Him, but Jesus didn’t partake in the sin WITH the sinners. He doesn’t want us condemning sinners, but He doesn’t want us getting involved with stuff that is just not something that is going to move us closer to the goal. I think that FG and SP are not the worst shows out there…but, *seeking out *shows that don’t bring any value to our lives (let’s be real here lol) is not the same as not keeping ourselves from learning about the real world. We live in the real world, and I agree, we shouldn’t wall ourselves off from reality, we should be helpers to those who are fallen, just like we need a hand to get up, when we fall. But, walling ourselves off, and choosing to expose ourselves to potentially immoral stuff are two different things.

I don’t seek out to watch Sex and the City anymore…I remember the Bishop back in PA when my son was confirmed explicitly talking about this show, as an example of our depravity as a culture. I stopped watching, because as a Catholic, what good was the show doing me? If I say I’m Catholic, the image I project will be judged harsher by those who are looking in at me. Not right for others to judge, but THAT is real life. If I live with a man out of wedlock, people will wonder, but she says she’s Catholic. We’re not perfect, but we should strive for perfection, no? Didn’t God say that, in the Bible?

I could say…well, it’s just a show, afterall, it IS just a show, like FG and SP. But, what we take away from the show, is what matters.

That’s all. So, if we’re going to use the passage about Jesus eating with sinners, we should finish the story, He didn’t partake of their sins alongside them. (I’m not saying this is a sin, to watch FG or SP, just saying, I don’t believe Jesus sought out inappropriate forms of entertainment, so He could evangelize. )

 

[whatevergirl]

My replies are more geared towards SP…I saw the homeless person episode, and the clip of Chris Hansen, ha, that was funny…but, I just don’t think it’s worth spending anymore time on…this is just my thoughts.

Re: FG, my thoughts are more geared to SP. I probably shouldn’t have even chimed in here.

But, it’s good to discuss such things…

 

[whatevergirl]

I certainly see the point of this. If the government can tell us that Family Guy is off the air, the government can also ban the showing of Christian programming.

However, I think that a little restraint of lewdness or quasi-porn is not the same as outright censorship, and that it’s appropriate for decent people to ask that lewdness, foul language, and nudity not be shown on network TV. That’s not the same as censorship, because it does not prevent the telling of the story or the presentation of the idea.

For many years, television did just fine without songs about gloryholes, and without using the “A” word constantly. Couples still appeared quite romantic in bedroom scenes without showing stark nudity and blatant sex (ooh, Mr. and Mrs. Brady were so sexy!). Characters expressed angry emotions without resorting to four-letter sailor’s words.

I think that TV writers are just very lazy. It’s easy to write an “F” word. It’s a lot harder to write dialogue that expresses a tough character’s anger without using the “F” word.

Same for sex. It’s easy to present a sex scene. It’s a lot harder to “convey” that a couple has sex without actually showing the sex.

Writers need to work harder, and directors need to stop taking the easy way on television. And actors need to act with their whole bodies and faces, and stop counting on graphic dialogue to express their character’s feelings.

Interesting that the show The Unit, a show that I have praised many times on this forum, is the story of Army Special Forces. Now you KNOW that in real life, these guys do not walk around saying, “Oh, darn it!” when their grenade misses the target or when one of their own men is tortured by the enemy. BUT–somehow Shawn Ryan and David Mamet manage to write a show that does NOT use vulgar languge, at least most of the time. The Colonel uses the A-word once in while. That’s about it, and his character is kind of rough, so it’s understandable.

It’s amazing what good writers can do, and how good actors can express rage without resorting to a string of cussing, or romance without resorting to a bedroom nekkid scene.

Did you all know that for the last few weeks, naked butts are showing up on Saturday Night Live? Pretty soon it will be naked chests (female), and soon, we’ll see complete nudity. The line should be drawn NOW, and SNL should be informed that even though the men are wearing thongs, they still cannot show their butt-cheeks and crack on network television. SNL has been funny for over 20 years without showing nudity–let’s not allow them to get lazy now! They need to write good jokes and skits, not just show a butt and wait for the laugh. Yes, naked butts are funny, but good skits like the “Bass-o-Matic” skit or the Wayne’s World skits are much funnier!

I don’t watch SNL anymore. I know, I’m such a bore, I guess. lol

I watch a lot of weird documentaries…operations, and such. Gross things, perhaps. My husband thinks I have gone crazy… Oh, and I watch The Real Housewives. lol Sorry, what can I say.

But part of why I stopped watching SNL, is the boring humor. How many times can people mock Bush? Gosh, that is old. It was never even that funny. I think that nudity will eventually be on prime time viewing hour…on regular channels like cbs, abc, etc…it’s just a matter of time. Complacency only needs time to work best.