MTV’s ‘Jersey Shore’ Blasted By Italian American Group, Tourism Board

MTV’s new reality series, “Jersey Shore,” is heating up in more ways than one.

The program, which documents the lives of eight lively Italian-American roommates, filmed during one summer on the Jersey seaside, may be making a host of headlines, but various groups are lashing out at MTV for the program.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Unico National, an Italian-American service organization, has asked its members to complain to companies who advertise on the show.

And advertisers are already pulling out of the program, which features plenty of spray tan, big hair, loud mouths and use of the word “guido,” which has Italian-American groups in an uproar.

According to the trade paper both Domino’s Pizza and American Family Insurance stopped advertising on the show since the controversy erupted.

Additionally, according to the Chicago Sun Times, the Jersey Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau have blasted the show.

“MTV is providing a one-dimensional, dramatized version of a very small group of visitors’ summer experiences in one Jersey Shore town,” Daniel Cappello, executive director of the Jersey Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau said in a statement.

“We welcome visitors to come here, even during the holiday season, to enjoy a cultural diversity that in no way reflects what is seen on MTV,” his statement continued.

But MTV’s President of Programming, Tony DiSanto, reportedly recently defended the group, The Hollywood Reporter noted.

“The cast takes pride in their ethnicity. In fact, it is a key driver of how they bond with each other and self-identify. They refer to themselves as ‘guidos’ in a positive manner,” DiSanto reportedly said.

Eye-raising antics on the season so far have included castmate Snookie over-indulging in alcohol use and cozying up to all of her male housemates in the hot tub; Sammi “Sweetheart” flirting with Mike, AKA “The Situation,” and hooking up with both Mike and later, fellow housemate Ronnie, and Pauly D showing off his genital piercing to housemate JWOWW.

What do you think of “Jersey Shore.” Is it a an offensive misrepresentation of Italian-American culture? Cast your vote in the AH Nation poll by clicking HERE.

Copyright © 2024 by NBC Universal, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

This material may not be republished, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Read More

‘90 Day Fiancé: Love In Paradise’ Returning With Dramatic & Wild New Season