On October 18, Fox broadcasted the 20th episode of “The Simpsons” Halloween special. One of the three stories, “Don’t Have a Cow, Mankind,” was about people in Springfield becoming zombies after eating hamburgers infected with tainted meat.
After 28 days, Bart (the son) tries one of the infected hamburgers, but proves immune to the virus. He becomes the “Chosen One” and the Simpsons go off to find the safe zone where the rest of the uninfected people have gathered. When they get there a guard says, “Welcome, son. To survive, all we must do is eat your flesh.” Marge (Bart’s mother) responds by saying, “What kind of civilized people eat the body and blood of their savior?”
The day after the program aired, we issued a news release. The following is what Bill Donohue said to the media:
“What kind of uncivilized people work at Fox? Last year, when they poked some gentle fun at the Apostle’s Creed on the Halloween episode, we said nothing. That’s because it didn’t cross the line. This year is different: mocking the heart of any religion always crosses the line, and mocking the Eucharist does it for Catholics. They know this at Fox, which is precisely why they did it.”
Contact Peter Rice, Chairman of Entertainment, Fox Broadcasting: peter.rice@fox.com
