Atrocious and ill timed: Episode spoofs Irwin's death

The U.S. cartoon series "South Park" has courted controversy, yet again. It’s latest episode called Hell on Earth 2006, depicts Irwin's character in a bloodstained shirt, with a stingray barb still attached to his chest.

The episode was shown on Comedy Central in the US this week. Mr. Irwin is at a Halloween party hosted by the devil. Other guests include Hitler and Diana, Princess of Wales, but Irwin is thrown out because he is not in fancy dress.

Tony Fox of Comedy Central admitted, “We recognise that the South Park creators do a lot of provocative things - is this one of them, probably yes. They are largely free to do what they like in terms of creativity and kinds of subject matter, and this is perhaps just another example of that."

The 44-year-old naturalist also known as the Crocodile Hunter was killed eight weeks ago when a stingray barb pierced his heart while filming a segment for his daughter Bindi's upcoming children's documentary. The documentary was being filmed on Queensland's Great Barrier Reef.

South Park has lampooned Irwin in the past also, showing him terrorizing animals in a 1999 episode. In fact the show holds the record for the most swear words spoken in one program, and regularly takes pot-shots at celebrities and makes fun of politics and religion.

Some earlier but tamer examples of controversial episodes aired on the show include George Clooney, mocked for his politically motivated Oscar acceptance speech, Tom Cruise and John Travolta lampooned for their belief in Scientology. The series also came under fire for its controversial content with an episode showing the Virgin Mary menstruating.

As expected "South Park" defended the episode. A spokesperson for the company said: "It has offended people in the past and probably will again. Regular watchers would not be shocked."

However, for many, the entire depiction of Irwin is egregious. It comes at a time when his family and fans are still mouring his death. John Beyer of UK TV watchdog Mediawatch aptly remarked, "To lampoon somebody's death like that is unacceptable and so soon after the event is grossly insensitive.''