After receiving 16,000 complaints about BBC’s airing of “Jerry Springer: The Opera” — half of which were lodged before the melodrama even aired — Britain’s FCC-equivalent, Ofcom, has determined that the broadcast was not obscene.

Religious groups protested the musical’s Springer-esque poor taste, including a depiction of Jesus in a diaper.

In its ruling, Ofcom said it “appreciated that the representation of religious figures was offensive to some people”.

But it said: “The show’s effect was to satirise modern fame and the culture of celebrity. The images that caused the most offence were part of a ‘dream’ sequence serving as a metaphor for the fictional Jerry Springer and his chat show.

“In Ofcom’s view, these were not meant to be faithful or accurate depictions of religious figures, but a product of the lead character’s imagination.

From the Guardian.