Considering how 'South Park' has recently made an enemy of the government of China, it seems being a well-known personality and liking a tweet pertaining to the TV show is enough to get you banned from the country.
That's what German DJ Zedd is claiming in a recent Instagram post. Zedd - real name Anton Zaslavski - believes that he's been permanently banned from China after he liked the tweet below.
Not because of any tweet or statement he made himself, mind. He simply liked an innocuous tweet about the 300th episode of 'South Park' and nothing else.
🎉 It's our 300th episode tonight! Which is your favorite episode and why? #southpark300 pic.twitter.com/OH25s1qAFr
— South Park (@SouthPark) October 9, 2019
China recently removed all references to 'South Park' from their walled-off internet, after a recent episode of the long-running animated series went in hard on China's excessive censorship and how American media companies - such as Disney and the NBA - are bowing to their demands.
The episode featured Randy Marsh being detained in a Chinese work camp, while Butters, Cartman and some of the other characters formed a metal band that became coopted in order to play to the Chinese market. Not only that, the next episode had Randy Marsh - after being released by the Chinese government - shouting "f*ck the Chinese government!" at Towelie.
Meanwhile, Zedd's representatives told CNBC that some kind of governmental action in China has taken place against them, and that Zedd has been banned from the country. That said, CNBC reports that Zedd's music - such as his recent track with Ariana Grande - are still available on Chinese music streaming platforms.