The Futon Critic

The Futon Critic is a website that provides articles and information regarding prime time programming on broadcast and cable networks in the United States. The site publishes reviews of prime time programming and interviews of people in the television industry, as well as republishing Nielsen ratings data reports and press releases provided by television networks. The Futon Critic was founded by Brian Ford Sullivan in 1997.

The Futon Critic

Available in	English
Headquarters	United States
Owner	Futon Media
Created by	Brian Ford Sullivan
URL	thefutoncritic.com
Registration	Optional
Launched	January 14, 1997; 27 years ago (1997-01-14)
Current status	Active

History

Brian Ford Sullivan, CEO of Futon Media, registered The Futon Critic on January 14, 1997.^[1][2] From its founding, the site has published reviews on prime time programming, as well as interviews its staff conducted with members of the television industry.^[3] The site also contains sections of articles dedicated to republishing press releases, network schedules and Nielsen ratings data, which have been cited by articles on websites such as The Huffington Post and TV by the Numbers.^[4][5][6] Its publications of Nielsen ratings data have also been used as a resource by institutions such as the University of Colorado Boulder and Temple University.^[7][8]

In 2009, Sullivan appeared on WGN's The Nick Digilio Show to discuss television and the Emmy nominations of the year on behalf of the site.^[9] In 2010, Sullivan announced a new section of their site dedicated to tracking the availability of programming on digital distribution platforms, to be launched in August of the same year. He also announced the production of a television pilot to be released onto the section sometime after its launch; entitled .comEDY, it was pitched as a comedic look at the effects of the dot-com bubble burst around Silicon Valley.^[2]

The site ceased publishing original reviews and interviews in early 2013.^[10] As of 2024^[update], the site no longer posts significant original content, but continues to be updated regularly with press releases from various media outlets, development updates, and seasonal program listings.

References

1. "[The] Futon Critic". Trademark Status and Document Retrieval. Alexandria, Virginia: United States Patent and Trademark Office. Archived from the original on April 4, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
2. Miller, Liz Shannon (May 6, 2010). "TV Expert TheFutonCritic.com to Add Online Listings, Original Content". San Francisco: Gigaom. Archived from the original on April 12, 2022. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
3. Lacey, Gord (March 9, 2007). "The Futon Critic reports on more Ed news". TVShowsOnDVD.com. New York City: CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
4. Harnick, Chris (June 29, 2012). "Bristol Palin's Reality Show Bumped For Dance Moms Reruns". The Huffington Post. New York City. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
5. Seidman, Robert (October 21, 2009). "Fox benches Dollhouse for November sweeps after all". TV by the Numbers. San Francisco: Tribune Media Services. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
6. Seidman, Robert (November 17, 2009). "The Futon Critic reports Burn Notice returns January 28, to be paired with White Collar". TV by the Numbers. San Francisco: Tribune Media Services. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
7. Couture, Juliann. "Finding Nielsen Ratings". University of Colorado-Boulder Libraries. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
8. "Nielsen Ratings". Philadelphia: Temple University Libraries. February 5, 2014. Archived from the original on March 10, 2018. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
9. "Brian Ford Sullivan". Los Angeles Times. July 18, 2009. Archived from the original on April 25, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
10. "Interviews". The Futon Critic. Retrieved February 7, 2022. (last interview dated February 15, 2013)

External links

• Official website