The Parents Television Council released its annual ranking of the "Top Ten Best and Worst Advertisers." PTC lists television advertisers from best to worst according to content in the primetime broadcast television programs they chose to underwrite.

Advertisers that landed on the best list primarily sponsored family-friendly television shows, while those on the worst list often supported programs containing graphic sexual content, excessive violence or profanity.

"The role that television advertisers play in determining what type of content comes into every home in America cannot be overstated," said PTC President Tim Winter. "We commend the advertisers on our best list that have chosen to associate their hard-earned corporate brands with positive programming that the entire family can watch together.

"By contrast, parents can thank many of the advertisers on the worst list for enabling the networks to pump some of the most shocking and outrageous content on the air today directly into their living rooms.

"During the holiday season, we call on our members and all concerned citizens to carefully consider which companies they will support with their shopping dollars. The PTC will continue to encourage corporate responsibility for advertising buys and ask consumers to do the same by reinforcing that message with their wallets," Winter concluded.

The PTC's list is based on each company's primetime network television ad buys during the 2007-2008 television season. Each company listed purchased at least 25 ads on primetime broadcast programs. Companies with the most ads on green light shows, based on PTC's trademarked traffic-light ratings system, were ranked the best, while companies with the most ads on red light shows were ranked the worst. PTC "campaign shows," which consistently feature problematic sexual, violent or profane content, were given special weight. To see each prime time show's rating, please visit http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/familyguide/main.asp.

BEST

1. Coca-Cola

2. The Clorox Co.

3. Century 21 Real Estate

4. H&R Block

5. Ferrero S.p.A. (U.S.A.)

6. CVS Caremark

7. Whirlpool

8. The Hershey Co.

9. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance

10. Hewlett-Packard

WORST

1. General Motors

2. Nissan North America

3. L'Oreal USA

4. Pepsi-Cola North America

5. GlaxoSmithKline (Brands include: Beano, Lowerthepain.com, Os-Cal, Nicoderm, Sensodyne, Valtrex, Advair, Aquafresh, and Myalli.com)

6. Reckitt Benckiser (Brand: Delsym)

7. Target

8. Kohl's

9. Verizon Communications

10. Toyota Motor North America

To compare this ranking to 2007, visit  http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/news/release/2007/0808.asp.