Watchdog targets advertisers who haven't ditched MTV's 'Skins'

A watchdog group is pressuring companies who advertise during the racy MTV show "Skins," using an effective tool to call them out: Mom and Dad.

The Parent Television Council (PTC) is encouraging its members, many of them parents and grandparents, to walk over to their local Subway to tell the manager how they feel about the provocative high school drama. 

"For maximum impact, print off this e-mail and take it to the manager of your local Subway!" read a recent PTC alert blasted off to many of its 1.3 million members. 

The parental offensive has produced quick results: late last week, Taco Bell pulled its advertising after members were encouraged to confront the managers in their towns. H&R Block, Wrigley, and General Motors have also pulled out. 

For the remaining companies and brands—Subway, Schick, L'Oreal, and Foot Locker—the pressure remains to ditch the show, which depicts teen sex and drug use sometimes portrayed by underaged actors. 

How is the watchdog getting parents so riled up about the program? The show's script has been one of its best tools. 

A major tactic is to simply distribute lines of dialogue from the program. From a recent PTC e-mail alert:

Stanley: "It's totally normal for a kid of 16 not to have had sex."

Tony: "It's embarrassing, Stan. So we go to a party and get some girl racopiously spliffed up, in a confused state, and she comes to believe, however momentarily of course, that you're attractive, and she bangs your brains out."

Stanley: "Michelle said tonight at the party..."

Katie: "You're going to dope me into outer space and then bang my brains out. … Later we'll get bumping."

Stanley: "At the party."

Katie: "At the party with a pile of drugs."

Stanley: "You got it."

Katie: "Oh, and Stanley, I only like really great narcotics, you understand?"

For its part, MTV holds that the show is within legal bounds and the company's responsibility to its audience. 

Some fans say the show is simply realistic, while others argue viewers are smart enough to understand the difference between the MTV version of high school and real life.