American Legislative Caucus, and Richard Bilotti, the chairman of the New Jersey Italian and Italian American Heritage Commission, have sent a letter to Viacom, MTV's parent company, asking them to cancel the show for its "offensive, inaccurate" portrayal of Italian-Americans. Vitale and Bilotti say the show violates, at least in spirit, New Jersey's hate and bias crime laws writing, "these acts are contrary to the spirit of New Jersey law and jeopardize the active and open pursuit of freedom and opportunity." Senator Vitale further requested that the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development opened an investigation into employment and wage practices, as well as the tax status of the "Shore Store" where cast members worked. Officials refused to confirm whether or not a probe was taking place. MTV response In light of UNICO National President Andre DiMino's concerns about the show, MTV released a statement, which reads: Jersey Shore is a reality series that follows eight young adults spending their summer at the beach. The show continues MTV's history of documenting various subcultures, rites of passage of young people, and the ways they self-identify. The Italian-American cast takes pride in their ethnicity. We understand that this show is not intended for every audience and depicts just one aspect of youth culture. MTV's Italian-American president of programming, Tony DiSanto, stated that "The cast takes pride in their ethnicity ... In fact, it is a key driver of how they bond with each other and self-identify. They refer to themselves as 'guidos' in a positive manner." DiSanto also said, "We want to make breakout shows that will get people talking about us ... It's pure entertainment, dramatic, engaging and comedic" MTV has since refrained from using the terms "guido" and "guidette" in promo clips and on their web site after being confronted by UNICO National President Andre DiMino prior to the series debut. FoxNews.com reported that the MTV building in Times Square received threatening emails, abusive phone calls, and hurtful Facebook messages, mainly directed at staff members involved with the press for the show, and were hiring more security as a result. A spokesperson for MTV responded to the rumors saying that everything was fine at their headquarters and MTV "has not received any death threats." Cast response Various members of the cast defended the show prior to airing saying to give the show a chance, with Mike Sorrentino saying,