LOS ANGELES
(September 20, 2011) – Following
the premiere of NBC’s “The Playboy Club,” the
Parents Television Council® is
calling on its members and other concerned citizens to hold
Unilever and Chrysler/Dodge publicly accountable for supporting the
broadcast. Unilever brands that were advertised during the show
include Hellmann’s Mayonnaise and
P.F. Chang’s Home
Menu. Members are being asked to
call, send letters and, in the case of Chrysler/Dodge, make personal
visits to dealerships.
While members are contacting those companies, the Parents Television
Council is reaching out to every company that helped underwrite the
show. Prior to the premiere, PTC issued a preemptive letter to
potential advertisers asking them not to support the glorification
of the Playboy brand and the objectification of women.
“The ratings for ‘The Playboy Club’ speak
for themselves. Clearly, Americans aren’t interested in tuning in to
a show that amounts to little more than a chauvinistic advertisement
for the Playboy brand. Advertisers should take a cue from viewers
and find something else to support,” said PTC President Tim
Winter.
“Every single company that sponsored the premiere episode of
‘The Playboy Club’ is complicit in the act of mainstreaming
pornography. With Playboy spelled out blatantly in the show title,
no advertiser can claim to be surprised.
“PTC is contacting each advertiser to
ask them to state for the record whether they plan to continue to
underwrite this content with their advertising dollars. Unilever and
Chrysler/Dodge dealerships can expect to hear directly from PTC
members and other concerned citizens. There is no reason for any
advertiser to associate its brand with a program that exploits and
degrades women.
“Each advertiser is helping to make adults-only
material available in virtually every living room in the country.
Even worse, this show is putting a sickening, glamorous sheen on an
adult entertainment industry that destroys countless marriages and
families. All brands appearing on future episodes of the show,
regardless of how cheap the ad spots get, can rest assured they will
hear from PTC about their decision to sponsor the program,”
concluded Winter.
To speak
with a representative from
the Parents Television
Council, please contact
Megan Franko at (703)
859-5054 or Liz Krieger at
(703) 683-5004 ext. 120.
