Following outrage by three groups representing Italian-Americans (Unico National, the Order of the Sons of Italy in America, and the National Italian-American Foundation), Domino’s and American Family Insurance have pulled their sponsorship of MTV’s latest reality show “Jersey Shore.”  The show is centered on eight Italian-Americans living in Seaside Heights, NJ in the same house for the summer.  But there’s more to “Jersey Shore” than just the predictable drama of the network’s other shows you pretend to hate. For starters, cast members describe themselves as “guidos” and “guidettes,” derogatory terms for Italian-Americans that many still find offensive.

In a statement Unico released last week, it accused the television series of using “ethnic slurs, violence and poor behavior to marginalize and stereotype Italian-Americans.” In defense, cast mates said that the term simply refers to a lifestyle of “muscled, well-coiffed and deeply tanned men and women.”

Regardless, the controversy was enough to drive sponsors away.  “We have no issue with MTV, and we haven’t pulled our advertising from the network. We just don’t want to be on that particular show,” said Domino’s rep Tim McIntyre according to Brandweek.  An MTV spokesperson responded with, “[The show] may not be for every sponsor or advertiser and we understand that. We try to provide a variety of environments for our advertisers and it’s never a ‘one size fits all’ scenario with MTV.”

As an Italian-American, I can’t say that the stereotypes portrayed on this show bother me anymore than the disturbing tanning addictions and cheesy nicknames (Mike “The Situation,” anybody?).  Having said that, I can understand why an Italian food chain like Domino’s immediately pulled their plug from it.

Does “Jersey Shore” offend you, and would you buy products from companies that sponsor it?  Do you even watch the show, and if so, what do you think?  Is it that far removed from other shows that have depicted Italian-Americans in unfavorable light, such as “the Soprano” and “Growing Up Gotti?”