The group of leading advertisers -- including McDonalds, Sears, General Motors, IBM, Procter & Gamble and Johnson & Johnson -- has agreed to underwrite the development costs of at least eight family-friendly pilots.

Jordan Levin, executive vice president of programming for the WB network, told The Washington Times that the unusual move was necessary because "many of Hollywood's creative people recoil from the idea of family-friendly shows."

Robert Wehling, a spokesman for Procter & Gamble, told the Wall Street Journal, "We're not going to be involved in the content. We're asking that in general the shows be ones that it would be reasonable to assume a multigenerational household unit could get together and watch without embarrassment."

The American Family Association (AFA) praised the move. Tim Wildmon, vice president of AFA, said, "This is an important step forward in the ongoing battle to clean up television. We've been saying for more than 20 years that the wild card in that effort has always been the advertiser. These sponsors make television possible, and if Hollywood won't listen to parental concerns about what is on the tube, Hollywood will listen to the ones who pay the bills."