to drop, with at one point the series had fallen behind re-runs of shows such as Friends. The Monday, September 4 episode only achieved 5.5. Cassandra's banishment episode did see an increase in ratings, however, receiving 12.5 million viewers. The finale garnered 11.13 million viewers, beating out the Olympics. Despite the decline in ratings, the series' official website did receive a large amount of traffic, due to the live feed being available there. It was also noted that as the ratings decreased, traffic onto the main site increased. The online aspect of the series "changed both the dynamic in the house and the TV show’s content" according to the LA Daily News. It was also reported that the official website for the series was one of the most popular new websites for the month of July. Public reaction Big Brother 1 has typically been cited as "boring" by critics and fans of the series. John Carman of The San Francisco Chronicle stated "Wondering 'Will Karen run out of Kleenex?' is about the most interesting thing about Big Brother." Comedian Kathy Griffin (who has since become a fan of the series, making guest appearances in Big Brother 16 and Big Brother 17) mocked the series, stating "Do you guys [watch] those 'tards on Big Brother?" Joyce Millman of Salon.com felt that ratings for the series dropped due to the "boring" cast. The New York Times later reported that CBS was disappointed with the series. Les Moonves, CBS chief, stated that the "casting sucked" for the series, leading to its disappointing run. He later stated "there were more provocative storylines that could have been followed that were dropped." John de Mol, the creator of the series and owner of Endemol, blamed not only the casting but the changes made to the show and format to suit American audiences. Executive producer Paul Romer felt that the group of HouseGuests were "too aware of the cameras" and were concerned with "how they'd look on TV." Former co-host Ian O'Malley claimed he predicted the series would be panned, stating "I knew the critics were probably going to go bananas because of the voyeuristic aspect." Upon its announcement, the series has come under fire for both controversy and criticism. After the premiere of the first season, Chicago attorney Marvin Rosenblum filed a lawsuit against CBS, then corporate parent Viacom, and the production company Orwell Productions for