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LOS ANGELES -- Laura Schlessinger's TV talk show, criticized by homosexual rights groups and snubbed by advertisers and viewers, was canceled after one season.
"Dr. Laura," which debuted in September, taped its final episode this week but could continue to air through the fall, Paramount Pictures Television Group said Friday.
Poor ratings had prompted stations in major television markets including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago to move the syndicated "Dr. Laura" from daytime to the middle of the night.
Schlessinger, who was unable to convert her radio popularity into TV success, said she was proud of the program that she called a "true alternative."
"I believe it could have earned a substantial audience in time, but the television advertiser boycott precluded that," Schlessinger said in a statement.
Paramount had defended the show as part of a free exchange of ideas in which "hurt, hate and intolerance" had no place.
"We commend Dr. Laura, her producers and staff for their desire to create an alternative program for daytime viewers, and are proud of their efforts to do so," Paramount said Friday.
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, a vocal Schlessinger critic since she labeled homosexuality "deviant" and "a biological error" several years ago, lauded the show's demise.
"Paramount from the beginning said 'Let the people decide.' Viewers and advertisers alike have decided, and they decided to reject 'Dr. Laura's' message of intolerance," said GLAAD executive director Joan M. Garry.
"We hope that as a function of this media outlets will think twice before giving a platform to somebody who is provocative at our expense," Garry said from New York.
Schlessinger, who noted Friday that no specific episode of her TV show generated protests, had toned down her combative radio style and offered an apology last October for what she called "poorly chosen" words about homosexuality.
But protests against "Dr. Laura," which began as soon as Paramount announced the series, were unabated. Advertisers felt the pressure, with Procter & Gamble and other big firms pulling out as sponsors.
Media analysts said her relative blandness on TV also worked against her. Chances for "Dr. Laura" to find an audience dwindled when stations shoved her show into the late-night hours.
"Dr. Laura" was drawing a fraction of the audience for "Oprah," the daytime talk queen.
Schlessinger, who draws her "Dr. Laura" title from a Columbia University doctorate in physiology, is heard on more than 400 U.S. and Canadian radio stations and attracts about 18 million listeners.
She maintained that her goal on television as well as on radio was to "preach, teach and nag for people to do the right thing."
