Gay Group Applauds Cancellation of Diversity Promoting Show  6/30/05

Officials at America's The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) have applauded TV bosses, who have axed a new reality show aimed at promoting diversity, understanding and acceptance.

ABC TV chiefs have opted to shelve new series Welcome to the Neighborhood before its first episode over fears the show, in which gay, pagan, black, Latino and Korean-American families try to win a house in a white conservative neighborhood, would be too controversial.

TV bosses made the decision after taking a preview of the series to ethnic and minority groups and asking for their opinion on the concept.

GLAAD Entertainment Media Director Damon Romine says, "It's clear, having seen the entire series, that the producers intended to send a powerful message about the value of diversity and embracing the differences of others.

"Yet while the spirit of the show was admirable, the episodic nature of the series created serious issues in terms of depicting the neighbors' journey from intolerance to acceptance.

"In terms of structure, if viewers only watched the first episode or two, they could come away with a message that prejudice and discrimination are not that big a deal, which is the exact opposite of what the producers intended.

"Regardless of how things turn out at the end of the last show, it's dangerous to let intolerance and bigotry go unchallenged for weeks at a time."