The Parents Television Council is pressuring candy company Mars (M&M's, Skittles and Twix, among many others) to pull its advertising from Fox's The Mick.
PTC says the show's sexually-loaded dialogue and putting kids in sexual situations makes it a bad fit for a company "whose product is consumed by children."
PTC has taken some credit for VH1's recent pulling of Dating Naked, whose content it has been complaining about, and said that lack of ad support can "break" a show, citing that and unnamed "cable news programming"—Bill O'Reilly's Fox show has been cancelled amid sexual misconduct allegations but also reported advertiser defections in the wake of those.
PTC also takes issue with The Mick's content rating, which it says suggests it is appropriate for minors when it is not.
“Mars should follow in the footsteps of other advertisers we’ve reached out to and refuse to sponsor any further episodes of The Mick,” said PTC.
Common Sense Media, which rates TV shows for kid-appropriateness, tags it as suitable for 15-plus, calling it fun and irreverent. "It features some strong content and questionable messages that, though offered in a humorous context, makes it a less-than-ideal viewing option for kids,” says Common Sense’s online review. “Risky behaviors include unprotected teen sex (although responsible behavior is discussed), using medications to secretly subdue a minor, and, in one episode, a child consuming quantities of birth control pills."
A Fox spokesperson was not available for comment at presstime, but the network has consistently declined to respond to PTC pushes for ad defections or indecency complaints.
