Microsoft Yanks Seth MacFarlane Sponsorship

Windows pulls sponsorship of comedy special after watching it
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 27, 2009 1:00 PM CDT
Microsoft Yanks Seth MacFarlane Sponsorship
Seth MacFarlane arrives at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2009, in Los Angeles.   (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)

Apparently, Microsoft just can’t handle a good Holocaust joke. After attending a taping of Family Guy Presents: Seth and Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show, the software giant has pulled its support, saying the content “was not a fit with the Windows brand.” The show, a variety act from Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein (Family Guy’s Lois), was to run commercial-free, with lone sponsor Microsoft promoted within the program.

When Microsoft initially inked the deal, it said it wasn’t worried about how the stars would pitch Windows 7 to the audience. But the content around that pitch is apparently even more over-the-top than Family Guy, with jokes about incest, deaf people, feminine hygiene, and the aforementioned Holocaust. Fox still plans to air the special, with a yet-to-be-named sponsor. (More Microsoft stories.)

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