NBC wants VeggieTales stripped of spiritual nutrients

Big Idea, creators of the children’s animated series VeggieTales, and NBC have teamed up to add the show to the list of Saturday morning cartoons. Now, much to the chagrin of Big Idea and Veggie fans, NBC wants God left on the cutting-room floor.

Since its inception in 1993, Larry the Cucumber and Bob the Tomato have hosted the Bible-based tales about character and family values. A Scripture verse punctuates each video to further illuminate the show’s foundation.

The original agreement with NBC requested that Big Idea leave off the Scripture verse at the end — just in case it might bother a few viewers. Not surprised, Big Idea agreed and began preparing for the network premier Sept. 9.

But two weeks prior to its debut, NBC made a further request — VeggieTales needed to be free of references to God and the Bible altogether.

According to Brent Bozell, founder and president of the Media Research Center, that’s like Gunsmoke without the guns or Monday Night Football without the football.

“Think about this corporate mind-set,” he said. “NBC is the network that hired a squad of lawyers to argue that dropping the f-bomb on the Golden Globes Awards isn’t indecent for children, but invoking God is wholly unacceptable.”

Phil Vischer, producer of VeggieTales, shared on his blog that he wasn’t happy with NBC’s decision to edit God out.

“I considered dropping out when I found out just how much would need to be removed,” he said.

“I decided to continue primarily as a favor to Classic Media and my friends at Big Idea, who would have been in a major pickle if I had abandoned the project just a few weeks before the first air date.”

In light of NBC announcing this week that it would air a November special showing pop singer Madonna on a mirror-covered cross while wearing a sparkly crown of thorns — Vischer is confused.

“I know the audience and time of day is completely different,” he wrote, “but it is a bit ironic that telling kids God loves them is ‘not OK,’ but singing a song while mocking the crucifixion is fine and dandy.” (EP)