praise. With the caveat that the series might look very different were it focused on Dearborn's more conservative Palestinian or Yemeni communities, THR found the series "undeniably authentic and moving" and that viewers would come away with a greater understanding of the Muslim-American community. The series premiere was viewed by 1.7 million viewers. Ratings dropped for subsequent episodes, with the December 18 episode registering 900,000 viewers. The series has averaged 1 million viewers per episode. Sponsorship controversy TLC General Manager Amy Winter was asked about the possibility of sponsor backlash while the series was in production. She responded, "We usually find with TLC that the backlash occurs as soon as we start marketing something and once viewers experience the show, we get a far different response." On December 9, 2011, born-again Christian David Caton, the "founder and sole employee" of the Florida Family Association, sent e-mails to various companies, claiming that the show is favorable propaganda for Muslims and urging them to withdraw their sponsorship from the show. The home-improvement chain Lowe's did so. FFA posted an email (which Lowe's described as a "form letter") in which the chain noted FFA's communication and informed the group that it would pull its advertising. A chain spokesperson said it was because of "concerns, complaints or issues from multiple sides of the viewer spectrum" and did not mention the FFA specifically. Lowe's later posted to its Twitter feed: "We did not pull our ads based solely on the complaints or emails of any one group. It is never our intent to alienate anyone. Lowe's values diversity of thought in everyone, including our employees and prospective customers." In response to Lowe's decision, celebrities including Russell Simmons and Mia Farrow called for a boycott of the retail outlet. Simmons bought advertising time for the episode scheduled to air December 18, 2011. Actor and former Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Engagement Kal Penn also called for a boycott. Representative Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to the United States Congress, criticized Lowe's decision "to uphold the beliefs of a fringe hate group and not the creed of the 1st Amendment." Representative John Conyers of Michigan called on Lowe's to apologize. Michigan state representative Rashida Tlaib contacted the company's corporate headquarters, reporting that Lowe's declined to change its decision. California state senator Ted Lieu also issued a boycott call, labeling the Lowe's action