Jan. 27, 2005 – A coalition of groups is asking the creators and sponsors of NBC’s Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Model Search to take the program off the air because it sends a negative message to young women.
The controversial program, which began airing earlier this month and will end in mid-February, has young women compete against each other for the opportunity of modeling in Sports Illustrated’s famous swimsuit issue. Competitors are judged on their bodies.
"NBC and their corporate sponsors -- including Verizon, Sports Illustrated, and Nautica -- should pull the plug on this ridiculous and regressive show," Joe Kelly, president of the organization Dads and Daughters, said in a press statement. "As parents, we know that shows like this are bad for our children because they tell both our daughters and our sons that a female should only be valued for her body."
Dads and Daughters, a national nonprofit advocacy group that organizes fathers to oppose "pervasive cultural messages that devalue girls and women," is joined its campaign by Girls, Women + Media Project, Mind on the Media, and the National Organization for Men Against Sexism-Boston Chapter.
