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Wrigley, H&R Block Pull Ads from Skins

The Wrigley Company and H&R Block dropped Skins on Saturday, becoming the third and fourth sponsors to pull their ads from the controversial MTV show."Wrigley has decided to suspend any advertising during MTV's Skins as it was never our intent to endorse content that could offend consumers," the company told The Hollywood Reporter in a statement. "Any ads that previously ...

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Joyce Eng

The Wrigley Company and H&R Block dropped Skins on Saturday, becoming the third and fourth sponsors to pull their ads from the controversial MTV show.
"Wrigley has decided to suspend any advertising during MTV's Skins as it was never our intent to endorse content that could offend consumers," the company told The Hollywood Reporter in a statement. "Any ads that previously aired during the show were part of a broader advertising plan with the network."

General Motors places Skins on "do not buy" list

H&R Block told TMZ that it was not a formal advertiser on the racy new teen drama and that one of its ads ran during Monday's premiere by mistake as part of a rotation on the network."Once we learned this, we immediately took steps to ensure it didn't happen again," the tax return company said in a statement. "This program is not brand right and H&R Block did not select it to be part of our rotation."Skins has already lost Taco Bell and General Motors, which placed the show on its "do not buy" list, as advertisers.

Parents Television Council calls for federal investigation into MTV's Skins

Wrigley's and H&R Block's withdrawals come a day after the Parents Television Council urged the companies and other advertisers to join Taco Bell and GM in dumping Skins."Every single advertiser who sponsored the premiere episode of Skins is not only endorsing, but glorifying teen drug and alcohol abuse, not to mention a plethora of baseless sexual content," PTC President Tim Winter said in a statement. "We sincerely hope these advertisers will agree that the content in Skins is harmful to their corporate image."

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Schick Hydro, L'Oreal, Subway and Foot Locker are the other advertisers on the show.Dubbing Skins "the most dangerous television show for children that we have ever seen," the PTC has also called for a federal investigation into whether the show violates child pornography and exploitation laws. Actors as young as 15 star on the show, which features frank depictions of teen sex and drug use.MTV has said it was "confident" Skins complied with federal laws.

Watch the stars of Skins defend the show below: