The Parents Television Council (PTC) are calling for Microsoft to pull all advertising during Family Guy broadcasts due to what they call the shows inappropriate sexual and violent content as well as its use of profanity, sexism, racism, etc..
Earlier this month Microsoft pulled its sponsorship of the Seth and Alex special as they felt that “the content was not a fit with the Windows brand”.
“In addition to explicit sexual humor and profanity,” Gavin McKiernan of the PTC said, “Family Guy promotes disrespect and violence toward women. In a typical episode from March 15 of this year, the Stewie character made comments such as, ‘I’m going to slit your throat in your sleep,’ as well as, ‘I was wondering if you could give me some advice on how to murder a woman and get away with it.’ A fist fight breaks out and doesn’t end until innocent bystander Lois, Stewie’s mother, is socked in the face. Microsoft also sponsored this episode.”
“Family Guy seems to treat the abuse and even murder of women as a joke,” McKiernan continued, “and because it is a cartoon, airing on Sunday evening, it is seen by millions of children every week.”
The PTC are no stranger’s to Family Guy having campaigned against the hit Fox show for years.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer responded by stating that such sponsorship decisions incorporate many discussions and that the PTC should e-mail them.
Rob on Monday November 23, 2009 at 04:34:36 PM said:
Once more the PTC are campaigning to shift the responsibility of the parents onto the free media! Perhaps they should teach there members about the use of the remote control.
Buckimion on Monday November 23, 2009 at 04:54:28 PM said:
I still believe the whole Microsoft pull-out was a publicity stunt. Last night’s Microsoft commercials and the Macintosh ‘pinwheel of death’ gag are pretty much a thumbing of the nose to the PTC.
Cameron on Tuesday November 24, 2009 at 05:38:21 PM said:
err i hate this PTC. What rite to they have to stop companies to stop advertising on certain shows. They really need to stop worrying about what other children are watching on TV and get something better to do in there time !
jasmine on Friday November 27, 2009 at 03:31:10 AM said:
I think parents should just use their heads and not have their kids watch it if it gets cancelled it’ll ruin it for all of us!
Lynn on Tuesday December 1, 2009 at 01:47:50 PM said:
First of all, anyone who misconstrues the subject matter of Family Guy as anything but dark, twisted HUMOR has far bigger challenges in life to worry about than Microsoft sponsorship. The subject matter is sarcasm bordering on absurd. That’s what makes it hilarious.
Secondly, I do not have children of my own. The children I am closest to, my niece and nephew, are not allowed to watch Family Guy because my sister and brother in law have previewed it, and deemed it inappropriate for child viewing. So we record it and watch it after the kids go to bed. It’s pretty simple really. When people actually take responsiblity for parenting their children – and there are a number of parental control technologies available through cable/satellite boxes now to help out – it’s quite remarkable how inapppropriate programming is quite minimized in the lives of said children. I wish the PTC would put their time and energies into helping parents parent their children instead of trying to manipulate the environment to make it easier for certain people to continue to avoid doing so. Instead of setting your kid in front of a TV set, how about reading them a bedtime story? (steps off soap box)