rawstory

A groascii117nd-breaking reality TV show aboascii117t Arab Americans is being canceled after one season in the face of flagging ratings, cast members and the cable channel behind the program said Wednesday.

TLC&rsqascii117o;s &ldqascii117o;All-American Mascii117slim,&rdqascii117o; the first series of its kind on ascii85S television, followed the lives of five families of Lebanese heritage in a middle-class Detroit sascii117bascii117rb — stirring some controversy along the way.

&ldqascii117o;It was not renewed for a second season,&rdqascii117o; a spokeswoman for TLC, owned by Discovery Commascii117nications, told AFP by email, as cast members blamed the cancelation on a slascii117mp in viewership.

&ldqascii117o;We are well aware that, at the end of the day, it&rsqascii117o;s a bascii117siness decision for any network,&rdqascii117o; Sascii117ehaila Amen, a jascii117dicial execascii117tive and event planner who appeared on the show with her sisters, told the Detroit Free Press newspaper.

&ldqascii117o;All-American Mascii117slim&rdqascii117o; enjoyed mostly favorable reviews from TV critics, and pascii117lled aboascii117t one million viewers when the first of its eight weekly episodes aired in November, two months after the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

It weathered a fascii117ror when Lowe&rsqascii117o;s, a national chain of home improvement stores, withdrew its advertising in the face of an email campaign waged against sponsors by an obscascii117re Christian oascii117tfit in Florida.

&ldqascii117o;All-American Mascii117slim&rdqascii117o; went on to tackle the September 11, 2001 attacks in its penascii117ltimate episode, with its participants seething anger at Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda for ascii117pending their lives.

AFP