Nickelodeon kids' cartoon 'Loud House' to feature married gay couple – right after 'SpongeBob SquarePants'

LOS ANGELES (Christian Examiner) – A Nickelodeon animated show will for the first time feature a married same-sex couple, and it will air in the afternoon, right after SpongeBob SquarePants.

The two dads will be part of Wednesday's episode of The Loud House, which airs at 5 p.m. ET and spotlights a comical large family with 10 girls and one boy. Although they have a mom and a dad, during Wednesday's episode a same-sex couple will be introduced into the plot, dropping off their son at a slumber party.

One Million Moms, a pro-family watchdog, sent out an email alert Tuesday blasting Nickelodeon.

"Unfortunately, children are now being exposed to same-sex marriage on a network that is designed for kids," Monica Cole, director of One Million Moms, wrote in the email. "Just because something may be legal or because some are choosing a lifestyle doesn't make it morally correct. Nickelodeon should stick to entertaining instead of pushing an agenda. Nickelodeon has decided to be politically correct instead of providing family-friendly programming."

Families, Cole wrote, will naively tune into Nickelodeon Wednesday to "watch a children's network" and instead "may encounter a premature discussion on sexual orientation that is completely uncalled for."

"Conservative families need to urge Nickelodeon to avoid controversial topics that children are far too young to comprehend," Cole wrote. "This is the last place a parent would expect their children to be confronted with topics that are too difficult for them to understand. Mature issues of this nature are being introduced too early and too soon, and it is extremely unnecessary."