The Muppets came out swinging with a long-awaited response to Fox Business News' accusation that their new film is anti-oil, anti-corporate propaganda meant to influence children.

"It's a funny thing, they were concerned about us having some prejudice against oil companies, and I can tell you, that's categorically not true," Kermit the Frog said late last week in a press conference in England, when asked about Fox anchor Eric Bolling's assertion in December that the puppets were part of liberal Hollywood's vendetta against oil companies.

Miss Piggy was more combative and political; the puppet added that the charge was "almost as laughable as accusing Fox News of being news."

("Boy that's going to be all over the internet," Kermit remarked.)

In December, the film's director, James Bobin, also fended off the criticism, telling The Hollywood Reporter that, "Cable news is 24 hours long so you have to fill it up with something. No, the Muppets are not communist. And the character of Tex Richman is not an allegory for capitalism in any way. The character is called Tex Richman."

The Muppets were created in the 1950s by Jim Henson and are now owned by The Walt Disney Company. Kermit is voiced by Steve Whitmire and Miss Piggy by Eric Jacobson but it is not clear how much of what the characters say at publicity events is scripted and how much is ad-libbed.

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