Laughter and shock, that's the response we got when we told people the name of the new pizza at Pizza Patron.
It's called "La Ch!#gona," and it's so controversial we can't even say it on air.
"It's impolite. It's probably something you wouldn't tell your grandma or your mother," says one customer. While some people may find the word extremely offensive for others it means "super cool" or "awesome."
"It's very spicy and it's very good, it has a lot of pepperoni with jalapeno and also fresh jalapeno," says Pizza Patron Regional Director Yesica Cardosa.
Like the pizza, the name is getting plenty of heat as well. Austin Spanish language radio station La Z will air the commercial -- which is aimed at Pizza Patron's core customer base, Mexican immigrants, but you won't hear the pizza's name.
"It has to be bleeped, we're not going to air it unfiltered, for sure," says Chase Rupe, the VP of programming and Operations at Emmis Communications.
Like KEYE TV, LA Z is governed by the FCC. "Really don't have bright lines as to what we can and can't say so it becomes a local judgment call and we can certainly get fined if we air on the wrong side of the Judgment.
And it's hard to know what is and isn't acceptable, at least in the FCC's eyes," says Rupe. Violating FCC guidelines can cost thousands of dollars. Pizza Patron says several radio stations across the country are doing the same but the chain doesn't plan on changing the name.
It's called "La Ch!#gona," and it's so controversial we can't even say it on air.
"It's impolite. It's probably something you wouldn't tell your grandma or your mother," says one customer. While some people may find the word extremely offensive for others it means "super cool" or "awesome."
"It's very spicy and it's very good, it has a lot of pepperoni with jalapeno and also fresh jalapeno," says Pizza Patron Regional Director Yesica Cardosa.
Like the pizza, the name is getting plenty of heat as well. Austin Spanish language radio station La Z will air the commercial -- which is aimed at Pizza Patron's core customer base, Mexican immigrants, but you won't hear the pizza's name.
"It has to be bleeped, we're not going to air it unfiltered, for sure," says Chase Rupe, the VP of programming and Operations at Emmis Communications.
Like KEYE TV, LA Z is governed by the FCC. "Really don't have bright lines as to what we can and can't say so it becomes a local judgment call and we can certainly get fined if we air on the wrong side of the Judgment.
And it's hard to know what is and isn't acceptable, at least in the FCC's eyes," says Rupe. Violating FCC guidelines can cost thousands of dollars. Pizza Patron says several radio stations across the country are doing the same but the chain doesn't plan on changing the name.
