Sparrowhawk
11-16-04, 07:49 PM
When are they going to air, "Desperate House Husbands?"
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ABC sorry for "Desperate Housewives" football plug
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The National Football League has thrown a penalty flag at ABC television, and the network has apologized, for its literal use of locker-room humor to promote the new hit drama "Desperate Housewives."
The network acknowledged receiving numerous viewer complaints after its "Monday Night Football" telecast opened with a segment featuring "Desperate Housewives" star Nicolette Sheridan seducing Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens in a locker room.
In the scene, which parodies her show, Sheridan appears wrapped in a bath towel and beckons the football player to skip his game for her. Although no nudity is shown, it is implied when Sheridan drops the towel to the floor before she and Owens embrace.
The camera then pulls back to show "Desperate Housewives" co-stars Teri Hatcher and Felicity Huffman watching the scene on their television and talking about desperate women.
The segment aired at the top of ABC's "Monday Night Football" broadcast of the Eagles' victory over the Dallas Cowboys, which aired live at 9 p.m. EST and 6 p.m. PST.
"We have heard from many of our viewers about last night's 'MNF' opening segment, and we agree that the placement was inappropriate," ABC Sports said in a statement issued on Tuesday. "We apologize."
CBS ran afoul of government regulators earlier this year for its live telecast of the Super Bowl halftime show in which singer Janet Jackson bared her breast.
The NFL issued its own statement criticizing the "Desperate Housewives" piece as "inappropriate and unsuitable for our 'Monday Night Football' audience."
"While ABC may have gained attention for one of its other shows, the NFL and its fans lost," the league said.
"Desperate Housewives," averaging nearly 22 million viewers a week on Sunday nights, has emerged as the second highest-rated show on U.S. television this season after the CBS detective drama "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation."
While the darkly comic series centers on the personal lives and sexual exploits of a group of female suburbanites, it ranks as the third most-watched show among young men in prime time, and has been promoted by ABC on "Monday Night Football" since the start of the season.
© Copyright Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved. The information contained In this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of Reuters Ltd.
11/16/2004 19:12
RTR
<hr>
ABC sorry for "Desperate Housewives" football plug
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The National Football League has thrown a penalty flag at ABC television, and the network has apologized, for its literal use of locker-room humor to promote the new hit drama "Desperate Housewives."
The network acknowledged receiving numerous viewer complaints after its "Monday Night Football" telecast opened with a segment featuring "Desperate Housewives" star Nicolette Sheridan seducing Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Terrell Owens in a locker room.
In the scene, which parodies her show, Sheridan appears wrapped in a bath towel and beckons the football player to skip his game for her. Although no nudity is shown, it is implied when Sheridan drops the towel to the floor before she and Owens embrace.
The camera then pulls back to show "Desperate Housewives" co-stars Teri Hatcher and Felicity Huffman watching the scene on their television and talking about desperate women.
The segment aired at the top of ABC's "Monday Night Football" broadcast of the Eagles' victory over the Dallas Cowboys, which aired live at 9 p.m. EST and 6 p.m. PST.
"We have heard from many of our viewers about last night's 'MNF' opening segment, and we agree that the placement was inappropriate," ABC Sports said in a statement issued on Tuesday. "We apologize."
CBS ran afoul of government regulators earlier this year for its live telecast of the Super Bowl halftime show in which singer Janet Jackson bared her breast.
The NFL issued its own statement criticizing the "Desperate Housewives" piece as "inappropriate and unsuitable for our 'Monday Night Football' audience."
"While ABC may have gained attention for one of its other shows, the NFL and its fans lost," the league said.
"Desperate Housewives," averaging nearly 22 million viewers a week on Sunday nights, has emerged as the second highest-rated show on U.S. television this season after the CBS detective drama "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation."
While the darkly comic series centers on the personal lives and sexual exploits of a group of female suburbanites, it ranks as the third most-watched show among young men in prime time, and has been promoted by ABC on "Monday Night Football" since the start of the season.
© Copyright Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved. The information contained In this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of Reuters Ltd.
11/16/2004 19:12
RTR