Advertisers Drop 'Pretty Little Liars' After Character Comes Out

[Brian Damage]

After Shay Mitchell's character on Pretty Little Liars, Emmy Fields, revealed she was a lesbian (not the first on the show, mind you), the Florida Family Association (who's core mission can probably be summarized as: ahhh homosexuals, they are taking over the world!) launched a campaign targeting the show's advertisers. According to E! Online, Remax Realty and General Mills pulled their advertising soon after, though neither says the FFA's anti-smut drive was the reason. But considering that the show has maintained strong ratings — it was ranked fifth in the 18-49 audience bracket in last Tuesday's cable lineup — GM's claim that its decision was based on a a change in the "relevance of the show's audience for our brands" rings a little hollow. Oh yeah, and there's a sort of incriminating e-mail from GM's Director of Consumer Services to the FFA, which reads: "We have investigated this matter and confirmed that our advertising did air as you have reported. We have informed ABC Family Channel and our agencies that Pretty Little Liars is not a program that we will sponsor. Thank you for bringing this to our attention."

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