Television news
Carphone Warehouse ditches Celebrity Big Brother sponsorship | Carphone Warehouse ditches Celebrity Big Brother sponsorship |
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| Written by Matt Chapman | |
| Thursday, 18 January 2007 | |
The Carphone Warehouse has pulled its sponsorship from Celebrity Big Brother following a flood of complaints from viewers. Telecom watchdog Ofcom said it had received 27,000 complaints by Thursday afternoon over alleged racial abuse aimed at Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty.
“Our concern has rapidly mounted about the broadcast behaviour of individuals within the Big Brother house,” said Charles Dunstone, CEO of Carphone Warehouse. “We are totally against all forms of racism and bullying and indeed this behaviour is entirely at odds with the brand values of The Carphone Warehouse.” Dunstone said that because of this position, Carphone Warehouse was unable to associate its brand with the programme. “We have already made it clear to Channel 4 that were this to continue, we would have to consider our position. Nothing we saw last night gave us any comfort," Dunstone added. “Accordingly we have instructed Channel 4 to remove our sponsorship name and branding with immediate effect.” |
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