"Golan" Down to "Hall of Shame" Sponsors

If there were ever a TV Sponsorship Hall of Shame, the four companies most deserving of recognition would have to be Gap, Red Bull, YUM Brands, T-Mobile. If there’s a program that other advertisers won’t go near, you can bet one or more of those “Hall of Shame” advertisers is on it. Such is the case with Fox’s “Golan the Insatiable,” an animated program about a morbid, brooding young girl who summons a demonic war lord from another dimension. Episodes already have included references to drugs, orgies, masturbation, and even an apparent reference to necrophilia. The series airs as early as 8:30 p.m. in half the country – at a time when millions of children are in the audience and during a specific programming block that is favored by young viewers, many of whom are under the age of 14. In fact nearly 25% of the audience for the premiere episode was 17 or younger. Since that premiere, Golan has shed both advertisers and ratings points. This weekend, Fox delivered what is speculated to be its lowest-rated Sunday night ever, and Golan’s contribution to that feat was a meager 0.8 ratings points. On the sponsor front, there were few to boast of beyond KFC and Taco Bell (both owned by YUM! Brands), Old Navy (a GAP brand), Red Bull and T-Mobile. These “Hall of Shame” sponsors are usually the last to remain on controversial programs, after every other company has pulled its ad dollars. Over the years, the PTC has made repeated efforts to communicate to them our concerns about their sponsorship behavior, and they continue to underwrite bottom-of-the-barrel programming that other companies won’t touch. It’s time those advertisers heard from you.

Yum Brands Mr. Greg Creed, CEO 1441 Gardiner Lane Louisville, KY 40213 (502) 874-8300 https://www.facebook.com/yumbrands Twitter: @yumbrands http://www.yum.com T-Mobile US [Deutsche Telekom] Mr. John Legere, President & CEO 12920 SE 38th St Bellevue, WA 98006 425-378-4000 https://www.facebook.com/tmobile Twitter: @TMobile http://www.t-mobile.com/ Gap Inc. Mr. Glenn K. Murphy, Chairman & CEO 2 Folsom St. San Francisco, CA 94105 650-952-4400 https://www.facebook.com/pages/gap-inc/143767352335568 Twitter: @GapInc http://www.gapinc.com/ Red Bull North America, Inc. Mr. Selim Chidiac, CEO 1740 Stewart St. Santa Monica, CA 90404 310-460-5356https://www.facebook.com/redbull Twitter: @redbull www.redbullusa.com