Snoop Dogg's "brief" cameo appearance in the made-for-television film It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie has been cut from the program to air on NBC in December, producers at the Jim Henson Company announced Friday (September 27). The reason why the footage was cut is in question.

According to the Jim Henson Company press release, "production reasons" prompted Snoop's cut, as well as "several scenes originally planned for the movie which did not advance its storyline" to be edited from the film.

However, recent protests from national civil rights group Project Islamic Hope are believed to have played a role in the decision. The organization does not feel that Snoop, who has appeared in porno videos and whose lyrics promote gang violence and drug use, should be associated with a movie marketed to children.

Najee Ali, Project Islamic Hope director, told LAUNCH, "I'm not hating on Snoop, but as a Muslim, as a religious leader and activist, we can't support anyone who is involved in those types of sexually explicit projects and materials."

Ali said he notified NBC Monday (September 23) of the civil rights organization's plans to boycott Snoop before making the announcement on the nationally syndicated Larry Elder Show later on that day.

Ali said he spoke with an executive affiliated with the Muppets special Monday (September 30) and was informed that Snoop would be "edited out" of the program, a decision Ali said his organization helped prompt.

"I'm sure it's a direct result of many people who probably complained about Snoop Dogg's being on the Muppets," Ali told LAUNCH, "but I'm glad to say that we were the catalyst who have once again tried to be a voice of morality, a voice to protect children."

A spokesperson for NBC declined to discuss the matter, and directed LAUNCH to the Jim Henson Company for comment.

A spokesperson for the Jim Henson Company denied that Snoop's controversial image or complaints from Project Islamic Hope or the public caused the decision to remove the popular rap star from the film, adding "the press release speaks for itself."

The press release expresses regret for cutting Snoop from the film. "Unfortunately, one of the scenes we have had to cut was a brief appearance by the talented artist Snoop Dogg," the statement read.

Bill O'Reilly slammed NBC Friday (September 27) on Fox's The O'Reilly Factor for its plan to feature Snoop in the Muppets program. According to a Jim Henson Company spokesperson, O'Reilly received a copy of their statement prior to his show.

Project Islamic Hope staged a protest Monday (September 30) at 11 a.m. at Masjid Al-Taqwa on south Western Ave. in Chicago that drew some 100 participants, including parents outraged by the notion that Snoop would be featured in a family holiday special. The organization is also asking supporters not to patronize Snoop's clothing line that is being distributed by Macy's.

A spokesperson for Snoop did not respond to LAUNCH by press time.

Project Islamic Hope successfully fought to have Snoop Dogg's radio show on Los Angeles's KKBT taken off the air in 2001 when the rapper released his first pornographic video, Doggystyle. Snoop Dogg released Girls Gone Wild Doggy Style in September, and is set to issue Snoop Dogg's Hustlaz: Diary Of A Pimp on October 22.

In September, Snoop also announced that he had stopped smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol.

Snoop's next album, Paid The Cost To Be Tha Boss, is due out on November 26.

courtesy of Launch.com

Looks like Bill O'Reilly is about to put a foot up the butt of another rapper this time it's Snoop Dogg. Seems like O'Reilly has a problem with Snoop getting down with the Muppets and an upcoming X-Mas Special which is scheduled to run on NBC. O 'Reilly brings up the fact that Snoop has served time, used to smoke weed, has made porno films and the whole nine. Not only that, O'Reilly is going after Macy's which is scheduled to carry Snoop's line of clothing.

O'Reilly acknowledges that Snoop has gone on record about changing his ways and his lifestyles. For those who don't know, Snoop said he was going to quit smoking pot and start living a clean life. O'Reilly says he doesn't care about all that because Snoop has already corrupted millions of kids. He feels like Snoop is being rewarded for terrible behavior and therefore should not be allowed to enter the mainstream

He also dismissed the fact that the Muppets once had controversial rock star Alice Cooper on a TV Special where he was trying to convince the Muppets to sell their souls. O'Reilly says Cooper was a character in clown make up while Snoop is much worse.

The other thing that he did was rebuff any criticism about not understanding the 'ghetto' O'Reilly pulled out his ghetto credentials by running down a list of all the ghettos he has been in. He named off Soweto, South Africa, some places in Haiti, the back streets of Saigon, Liberty City in Miami, Cabrini Green in Chicago and Roxbury in Boston. He said as a result of his visits he knows whats goes on in these areas.

In typical O'Reilly fashion he says he doing it for the kids and to better America, but its all about ratings. I listened to his show this morning and peeped how he teased his attack on Snoop all morning long. He kept encouraging listeners to stay tuned because he was gonna bash Snoop. He noted that his remarks would bring lots of controversy and notoriety as was the case when he levied his remarks against Ludacris and Pepsi. He was definitely milking this for all its worth.

I'm not gonna get too much into all this but it looks like homeboy is going out of his way to try and regulate on cats. At this point in time it's gonna be up to Snoop, Ludacris and company to use their talents to step up and represent themselves in this matter. This is especially true for Ludacris who O'Reilly accuses of backing out of a scheduled on air debate on ABC or one of the networks at the last minute.

On a side note I couldn't help thinking about last week when Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton who have been regular targets for Bill O'Reilly were up in arms because of the 'Barbershop' movie. The whole saga caused a national debate which got covered by CNN and everyone else in between. I kept thinking about the fact while Jackson and Sharpton do war with Ice Cube and company [Hip Hop], O'Reilly disses them all. He has in the past accused Jesse and Sharpton of being slimey. He's accused Snoop, Ludacris and other rappers of being slimey. From Jackson to Ludacris from Reparations to Gangsta Rap it's all comes under fire by this one cat who is on both radio and TV damn near 7 days a week. Is there a pattern here? In the meantime cats who are actually out and about trying to make a difference are never mentioned. Of course we know controversy sells so why should we be surprised.

Hopefully cats get the hint and start re-evaluating who they wish to do battle with. It's not enough that O'Reilly is voicing his opinion, but he's using his reach to economically knock people down even when they try to change.