dennis.ca

Despite the fact that this topic has probably been bludgeoned to death already, tonight I watched the new Fox 'reality' show Who's Your Daddy?

The show, not surprisingly, has created something of a furor among sensitive television viewers. At least one Fox affiliate has even refused to broadcast it.

While I personally believe the production to be tasteless and a blatant capitalization of the ineffable, the fact remains that people will continue to watch. Regrettably, on this night that group included me. Since Fox generally caters to a lowest common denominator audience, we can't easily blame people for tuning in -- nor would I suggest that such shows should be censored in any way.

Instead, I thought it might be enlightening to see which advertisers are paying for the air-time to bring us such entertainment.

The list below represents all companies and organizations that advertised during the show tonight on Fox 2 Detroit WJBK. Your mileage may vary. Neither commercials for Fox television series/news events nor ads for movies/DVDs related to Fox studios (of which there were plenty) are included:

1. Lysol (Reckitt Benckiser)
2. Men's Warehouse
3. Wallside Windows
4. Rolaids (Pfizer)
5. SBC/Yahoo DSL
6. Progressive
7. NyQuil (Vicks)
8. Overstock.com
9. First Response (Church and Dwight Company)
10. GM Certified Used Vehicles (General Motors)
11. Crest (Procter and Gamble)
12. thetruth.com (American Legacy Foundation)
13. The Ad Council

I'm not advocating a boycott of any particular group of organizations for buying ad time during a show that I find unsavoury. I may personally keep them mind, however, if I feel the need to exert a small squeak of dissatisfaction in the future.