General Motors, one of the first sponsors of CBS’s reality hit “Survivor,” is pulling its advertising from the program for the upcoming season.

A GM spokesperson on Wednesday said the decision was made about three months ago and isn’t related to the format of next season’s competition, which will pit four tribes of different races and ethnicities against one another.

CBS and “Survivor” creator Mark Burnett have drawn controversy with the plan to segregate contestants by race. Politicians in New York yesterday held a protest in front of CBS headquarters and reportedly were planning to write letters to “Survivor” sponsors.

In a press call Tuesday, “Survivor’s” Mr. Burnett said that because team members vote each other off the show in the early rounds, the new format wouldn’t be “racial at all.”

GM decided to pull its advertising from “Survivor” because sponsoring the show no longer fit the company’s business objectives, a spokesperson for the automaker said. It was difficult to integrate an automobile into a program that’s set on an island, the spokesperson said, adding, “It’s been a great relationship with the show.”

A CBS spokesperson declined to identify which companies will sponsor “Survivor” this season.