Next week, after four
successful seasons, the Fox series
Prison Break
is going off the air, and the publicity team at Fox sent over a
little reminder to tune in -- a press release, accompanied by a
bar of soap.
The marketing team at
Fox used this gimmick once before while promoting the third
season's premiere in New Zealand in 2008. Those bars of
soap featured the imprint of a key -- an attempt to show how
keys are sometimes duplicated in prison. The soap was then
strategically placed in bars and clubs.
The bar of soap sent to
The Advocate
just features the run dates of the series, and the accompanying
press release reads, "We hope the enclosed bar of PRISON
BREAK soap helps lather up excitement for the two-hour series
finale airing Friday, May 15."
"It's unfortunate
that Fox thinks a veiled reference to prison rape is an
appropriate part of their marketing campaign for this
show," Rashad Robinson, senior director of media programs
for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, said in an
exclusive statement to
The Advocate
.
Fox was approached for
comment but did not respond by deadline.
The series, about two
brothers breaking in and out of prison while attempting to
expose a government conspiracy, stars Dominic Purcell and
Wentworth Miller.
