Self-mutilation on TV causes outrage

Parents’ group horrified by ‘Nip/Tuck’ self-mutilation scene

OK, I’ll give ‘em this one. In the past, when the Parents Television Council (or PTC) has objections to a show, I’ve shrugged off their moral outrage, like a few weeks ago when the group was horrified that NBC had accidentally showed a raised middle finger during an acceptance speech at the Golden Globes (oops!)

But the PTC may actually have a point this time around.

Nip/Tuck, which has seen its share of complaints from the PTC, recently aired a scene that featured a woman cutting off her own breast with an electric carving knife.

“Not content with depictions or descriptions of bestiality, incestuous necrophilia, or blood-soaked stabbings, the narcissistic sociopaths behind the production and distribution of Nip/Tuck have chosen to establish yet another low point in the history of television,” said PTC president Tim Winter in a press release.

“Tuesday’s episode [which aired this week on FX in the U.S.] portrayed sickening and bloody images of a woman who takes a mastectomy into her own hands in the crowded lobby of a doctor’s office.”

Daaamn.

OK, Even though I love the SAW movies, admittedly, the scene was revolting, I’m not going to lie about that. Usually the PTC objects to nudity, sex or language, so their fight against violence is a nice change.

The PTC plans to contact Nip/Tuck’s advertisers and ask “whether bloody self-mutilation with an electric carving knife is in alignment with the corporate image they wish to portray,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.

But I’m sure advertisers are already aware of the shocking, gory scenes of the show, so will it really make that much of a difference?