Abstract:
The animated series "South Park" was created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and has been broadcast on cable television since 1997. Meanwhile, the series has a global distribution and fan base. The article situates "South Park" in the U.S. media landscape and presents the production context, as well as the formal and narrative structure of the series, before focusing on a concrete example and its reception. The impact of the series "Cartoon Wars" Part 1 and Part 2, broadcast in April 2006, is examined in detail and serves as a case study for debates about free speech and censorship, which were first negotiated in the series, but ultimately also led to worldwide news reports, after the "South Park" creators received death threats, because Mohammed appeared in a bear costume in one of the series. Finally, the concept of the grotesque understood as a 'irreconcilability of thinking' is transferred to the production logic of "South Park".