CNN
NEW YORK (AP) -- Fox's plan to air a prime-time special on the selection of a Playboy centerfold next week has drawn the ire of conservative groups urging the network to think twice about showing it.
The two-hour show, "The Girl Next Door: The Search for a Playboy Centerfold," is scheduled for 8 p.m. on May 10.
"It's men victimizing women for the sake of money and ratings," said Jan LaRue, chief counsel of Concerned Women for America. CWA is one of seven groups, including the Christian Coalition and Focus on the Family, that protested the show in a letter to Rupert Murdoch, chairman of Fox's parent News Corp.
A Fox spokesman, Scott Grogin, said on Wednesday, "We respect all of our viewers' rights to their opinions. If this is a show they don't like or feel is appropriate, please don't watch." {This is the best thing I've ever heard of a TV exec saying}
The special, during a "sweeps" month where ratings are watched closely to set advertising rates, focuses on a dozen women flown to Los Angeles to pursue their dreams of becoming a centerfold.
Playboy puts the women up in an estate, and follows them "sunbathing by the pool (and) primping for photo shoots." The women are treated to Hollywood shopping sprees and evenings out at restaurants and clubs.
At the end, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner selects one for a centerfold shoot.
On its face, the program appears to be a cross between ABC's popular "The Bachelor" series and its Victoria's Secret fashion show aired last November. The Victoria's Secret special prompted a Federal Communications Commission investigation that ruled it didn't violate broadcast standards for decency.
LaRue said she was concerned the special would encourage men to treat women as sex objects and sends a dangerous message to girls.
"It communicates to 12- and 13-year-old girls that this is what you have to do to be attractive to men," she said. "It dehumanizes, it objectifies and it is a gateway to hard-core pornography."
The special is airing on a Friday, normally one of the least popular nights for television viewing, but a big one for males.
Some of the same groups last month complained to the FCC about Fox's "Boston Public," saying the classroom drama is heavy on sexual topics, particularly for a program airing it what used to be known as television's family hour.
Fox defended "Boston Public" and series creator David E. Kelley, saying "we're proud to have it on our air."
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Ummm, so what's the problem again here? Sounds to me like the only problem is that it's on Fox so all it's really going to be is a big tease [img]images/smiles/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]
I hate whiners... can you believe SEVEN groups complained about this?