Advertisers cautious on political TV shows

A number of advertisers said they will not run ads on Fox News Channel's "The Glenn Beck Program" after receiving complaints from viewers about an incident in which Beck said President Barack Obama is a "racist" who has a "deep-seated hatred for white people."

ColorOfChange.org, an organization that advocates for black Americans, urged members to contact advertisers and urge them to pull ads from Beck's highly rated TV show.

The industry trade paper Ad Age reported Monday that marketers appear to be considering pulling ads from politically charged cable shows regardless of whether the shows lean right or left.

Walmart Stores, Berkshire Hathaway's Geico and Men's Wearhouse, among others, have said their ads will no longer run during Beck's show. Procter & Gamble and S.C. Johnson have said their ads had been placed on the show in error.

Clorox Co. issued a statement saying it will not advertise on any politically oriented talk shows, Ad Age said.

"Clorox holds true to our advertising standards and we hold true to our nation's heritage of free expression of political opinions," the statement said. "However, consistent with our standards, we do not want to be associated with inflammatory speech used by either liberal or conservative talk-show hosts."

A Fox spokeswoman told UPI, "The advertisers referenced have all moved their spots to other programs on the network, so there has been no revenue loss."

Copyright 2009 by United Press International.