South Park controversies

Since its debut, *South Park* has sparked global debate, outrage, and criticism across 28 seasons for its frequent use of taboo subjects, crude humor, and religious satire. Creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who also write the show, typically respond by calling themselves "equal opportunity offenders." They reject political correctness and insist no topic or group is exempt from mockery, for the sake of fairness to anyone previously ridiculed.

In the United States, the show mainly carries a TV-MA rating. Some syndicated episodes have been reclassified as TV-14. Starting in 2017, uncut airings on Comedy Central for the first 20 seasons received a TV-14-DLSV rating. Episodes from season 22 onward, along with particularly offensive ones like "Bloody Mary" and "Trapped in the Closet," still hold a TV-MA rating.

In Australia, the first three seasons and some season 4 episodes were rated M (unrestricted, moderate impact, similar to the U.S. TV-14). Later seasons are rated MA15+ (restricted to those 15 and older unless accompanied by an adult, strong impact). The season 3 DVD was the first to get an MA15+ rating. Consumer advice typically notes adult themes, coarse language, sexual references, and animated violence, prefaced by "moderate" or "strong" depending on the rating. The video game *South Park: The Stick of Truth* was initially banned in Australia, but after backlash, a censored version was released with an R18+ rating, matching other games based on the series. One interactive scene—featuring the child protagonists being probed by aliens with a penis-shaped anal probe—was classified as "child sexual abuse" and banned twice. A minigame instructing players to perform an abortion on Randy Marsh was also banned. South Australia, the last state to decriminalize abortion, did so on January 1, 2021.

In the United Kingdom, the show is generally rated 15, though season 7 received an 18 rating for its audio commentaries (the episodes themselves are rated 15). Some early episodes, like "Cartman Gets an Anal Probe," have a 12 rating. The season 3 DVD was originally rated 18 in the UK, Canada, and Ireland due to child molestation references in the final episode, "World Wide Recorder Concert." It was re-rated 15 in the UK in 2008, but remains 18 in Ireland, along with several later-season episodes.