Radio Canada reports:
An appeal from the Catholic Church for New Zealanders to boycott an episode of South Park has resulted in a record audience there for the controversial cartoon.
The "Bloody Mary" episode of South Park drew more than six times the normal audience, New Zealand broadcaster TV Works announced Thursday.
While the program was being broadcast, about 350 people protested outside the TV studio in Auckland.
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The protest centred on a statue of the Virgin Mary, with participants -- clutching Bibles and religious icons -- singing hymns, reciting the rosary and offering other prayers.
A Catholic priest who led the protesters in prayer asked God to enlighten those responsible for the cartoon "and strengthen them to see how much harm they can do."
Last weekend, New Zealand's Roman Catholic bishops issued a letter urging parishioners to boycott the channel and its sponsors. The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand also protested the episode and said it was deeply offensive.
Radio Canada describes the content of the cartoon program:
The South Park episode revolves around a nearby town's discovery that a statue of the Virgin Mary has begun bleeding. The event is dubbed a miracle and the people flock to see the statue, including Pope Benedict XVI, who ultimately pronounces that the statue is menstruating.
When the cartoon first aired in the U.S., it was condemned by the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights.