Subway sandwich chain pulls advertising US version of Skins

Subway sandwich chain pulls advertising from US version of Skins

Hedonistic exploits of teenagers have not gone down well with US advertisers. Five companies have now pulled advertising

The sandwich chain Subway has become the latest company to distance itself from the US version of Skins, pulling its advertising from the show after a pressure campaign by a parenting group.

The US Skins, based on the British show, premiered on 17 January, but the fictional hedonistic exploits of its teenage cast have not gone down well with US advertisers. Five companies have now pulled their advertising from the programme.

A representative for Subway told The Hollywood Reporter the company would not be running its ads on the second episode of the show because "it is not fit for our brand".

The sandwich giant had been targeted by the Parent Television Council, which urged its 1.3m members to contact Subway via email and letters to the chain's thousands of outlets around the United States.

Fast food chain Taco Bell and chewing gum maker Wrigley had already decided to pull out of the show during the past few days, saying Skins was not a good fit for their brands. General Motors and tax preparation firm H&R Block have also disassociated themselves, saying that their adverts which ran during the first episode of Skins were run by mistake.

The Parents Television Council, which has described Skins as "the most dangerous program ever", last week called for the US government to open a child pornography investigation into the show. Several of the cast are under 18, and the PTC said the content of the show could violate US laws on the sexual exploitation of minors. US child pornography laws forbid the visual depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Skins attracted 3.3 million US viewers on its debut, the vast majority between ages 12 and 34, according to TV ratings figures.

MTV has declined to comment on specific advertisers. But the youth-oriented network said it has "an ongoing dialogue with our advertising partners about the best fit for them on our networks. We know that not every show works for every advertiser.

"That said, we are confident that Skins will continue to connect with the audience it was created for and that advertisers will take advantage of the opportunity to reach them."

News From: www.guardian.co.uk