South Park and the Fifth Estate

“Matt and Trey are acting as the new type of teachers in today’s media world, using their satiric program to educate, inform, and entertain…”

This is one of the first quotes I see that you need to keep in mind while watching South Park. The character in Satire’s Brew proves that South Park is not just some comedy show that drops the f-bomb every few minutes but it’s something much more, something we know as the fifth estate. South Park is a prime example of using satirical means to educate its viewers about the reality of the world. Just like The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, they used their show as not only a form of entertainment but a form of education.

“Matt and Trey’s primary goal is to understand humanity and the people they represent. Once they do that, they can establish a connection with their audience.”

I have to agree with the character’s opinion on South Park now that I’ve read through Satire’s Brew and have a better understanding of what the creator’s intent is. I always thought South Park used to be a silly show just poking fun and very controversial topics and I just didn’t like it all. One of the very first episodes I ever watched growing up was this episode of a bunch of cancer patients on a hockey team getting beat up a big league team. This immediately turned me away from the show since I was too young to understand and I didn’t like the idea of poking fun at something so serious. While I still don’t like the show because I don’t like its sense of humor, I do understand what the character in Satire’s Brew is trying to say.

The first episode I was able to watch is “Night of the Living Homeless” from Season 11. South Park was becoming overrun by hundreds of homeless people asking for change. Throughout the entire episode we see the citizens of South Park not liking the homeless very much because all they ask for is “Change.” In fact throughout the entire show “Change” is being drilled into our minds. The four boys end up attacking the problem head on by visiting the committee of homeless. As expected, we find out that humans don’t consider the homeless as one of them. The boys end up in another town and find out that town sent the homeless to South Park in a means to get rid of them.

“That’s not solving the issue, you’re just moving the issue!” is a line we hear from Kyle. This is where we see the creators tackle an issue head on. Many places have an issue of homeless looking for change; they can’t afford to support themselves. But this problem can’t be solved on its own and it can’t be moved either. This episode wasn’t offensive at all, but its bringing light to an issue every part of the world can understand.

This is where I found the creators were using satirical comedy to show how we treat the homeless and that there is a better way to solve the issue than just by moving it somewhere else. This is how the creators represent the way society acts when it comes to certain issues. But this may not be the case in all of their episodes. After all, South Park is show filled with curses, dark humor, perverted jokes and stereotype jokes. Maybe not every episode has a deep underlying meaning that the creators want the audience to understand.

The second episode I came across is “Cock Magic.” The boys end up in an underground, illegal cock-fighting arena. The only difference with this cock-fight, is that the roosters are playing “MAGIC the Gathering” than actually fighting. I didn’t know what I was watching at all, and I couldn’t really think of anything that they were trying to express or reveal to the audience throughout this episode. Not only did we have roosters playing a card game, but we have Randy who is performing magic with his penis. Now I really don’t know what I’m watching.

The only relative theme I can find within this episode is that people prefer supporting something illegal rather than supporting their own school’s volleyball team. Is that it? Is Matt and Trey trying to point out our priorities in America? I’m not too sure, maybe this South Park episode isn’t just trying to educate the audience but maybe it’s actually just the creators having fun and taking a break from all that.

While I’m still not fan of South Park, I will definitely agree with the character of Satire’s Brew that the creators are trying to educate the world in their own sick and twisted way. South Park is a prime example of the fifth estate, a trustworthy and credible source that people can rely to shed some light on current controversies in the world. In fact because of that, I will end my blog the same way South Park ends their episodes;

“You know, I learned something today.”