The Parents Television Council is threatening to declare war on CW affiliates who broadcast next week's Very Special Threesome episode of "Gossip Girl."
In a letter to affiliates obtained by TheWrap, PTC chief Tim Winter blasts the scheduled storyline as "reckless and irresponsible" and claims the show is "expressly targeted to impressionable teenagers."
The head of the right-wing political action group says CW affiliates that air the episode will be "complicit in establishing a precedent and expectation that teenagers should engage in behaviors heretofore associated primarily with adult films."
Winter then makes it clear that local affiliates have the right to preempt programming that doesn't meet the interests of their community. And, most disturbingly, he warns the stations that they will "bear the financial burden of an FCC fine" should the government declare that next week's episode violates decency laws.
Of course, Winter hasn't seen the episode in question. He's only read press reports about the hour, including an initial online posting by Entertainment Weekly that stated the episode would feature "three major characters having sex. At the same time. In the same bed. Together."
CW insiders confirm the Nov. 9 show will end with three characters in a tryst. Flashbacks from their menage-a-OMG will air in future episodes.
The network isn't commenting on the upcoming storyline or the PTC missive.
But it's worth noting that The CW, despite Winter's claim, isn't targeted toward teens. The network's median age is 33, while "GG's" average viewer is 27. And fully 84 percent of "GG's" audience is over 18, which is why some affiliates have taken commercials for beer and liquor during the show.
Targeting teens wouldn't make sense for The CW, since there's far more money to be made attracting women 18-34 -- the network's declared demographic. Disney Channel and TeenNick are more likely targets for advertisers looking to reach teens and tweens.
What's more, "GG" airs at 9 p.m., outside of the old family hour (8/7 central) and carries a TV14 rating.
And, oh yes, a threesome is hardly a big deal for kids who easily access online porn. Or listen to Britney Spears coo about the joys of "3" in her latest top-10 radio hit.
The PTC, however, wants affiliates to boycott something they haven't seen, based on a brief item in a magazine.
Here's the full letter from the PTC:
By now you must be aware of reports in Entertainment Weekly and elsewhere that the November 9th episode of the teen-targeted drama Gossip Girl will feature major characters in a sexual threesome.
To include a story line like this on a program that is expressly targeted to impressionable teenagers is reckless and irresponsible. I appeal to your highest sense of decency, respect and common sense in urging you to preempt this episode.
Television is profoundly influential in the lives of children, especially when it comes to sexual decision making - it has even been described by one researcher as a "sexual super-peer" - signifying television's power to amplify, many times over, the peer-pressure teens are already feeling to engage in high-risk sexual behaviors.
