Cincinnati.com
by Rachel Richardson and Joel M. Beall
A&E confirmed Monday it has canceled a controversial reality TV show following swingers in Warren County’s Hamilton Township.
The buzz about the program’s fate began circulating late Sunday after the network did not air the third episode in the “Neighbors with Benefits” series Sunday night.
Entertainment Weekly TV critic Gillian Telling believes viewers simply couldn’t be sold on the show’s premise. “As we learned, it’s not an easy lifestyle to lead,” she said.
Telling told the Enquirer that she doesn’t know the ratings or the reasoning behind the cancellation, but that the universal pan the show received was possibly the cause.
David Wiegand, TV critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, told the Enquirer the show’s immoral tone was the reason for its demise.
“Although TV is awash with sleazy reality shows, this one was offensively sleazy. You add that to the already existing glut of reality shows and your chances of survival diminish significantly.”
Wiegand added, “I saw one episode and I’d like to say it was a new low, but, in fact, it was just this week’s new low.”
Brian Lowry of Variety disagreed the show died because it was immoral. Its demise probably was all about the numbers, he said.
“I’m not sure that’s unique to reality shows,” Lowry wrote to the Enquirer. “But in this case I’d say the show was put on to be provocative, and if it didn’t deliver commensurate ratings then it wasn’t worth the headaches. Being trashy tends to be more acceptable when it works.”
Tony and Diana McCollister, who were portrayed as the leaders of what’s described as a thriving swinging culture in their Thornton Grove neighborhood, posted messages on Facebook and Twitter late Sunday indicating the show would not air and deferring all questions to A&E officials.
“#?NeighborswithBenefits won’t air this Sunday. Please direct all questions to A&E. We LOVE our fans & hope to be back on the air soon!” read the couple’s social media posts.
A&E officials declined to provide details on why the show, which drew national criticism from both conservative groups and critics, was canceled. …