The A.V. Club
In 1993, five years after the founding of The Onion, Stephen Thompson launched an entertainment section at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. This new section was not satire but a serious supplement to the satirical parent publication. Thompson named it The A.V. Club as a reference to audio visual clubs found in American high schools during the late 20th century. These clubs allowed students to use and learn about equipment like speakers and projectors. The supplement debuted on the Internet alongside The Onion in 1996. At that time, The A.V. Club had minimal presence on the main domain theonion.com.
A major website redesign occurred in 2005 that placed The A.V. Club in a more prominent position online. The site moved from being a subsection of the main domain to its own unique address. In December 2004, founder Stephen Thompson was fired from his role as editor while remaining in Madison. The staff eventually left Madison for Chicago following The Onion's move there in early 2001. By October 2007, the website reached over one million unique visitors according to Sean Mills. Late 2009 reports indicated the site received more than 1.4 million unique visitors monthly with 75,000 comments. Content delivery shifted from weekly updates to daily posts starting in 2006.
On the 9th of December 2010, the website ComicsComicsMag revealed a capsule review for the book Genius Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth had been fabricated. The book had not yet been published or even completed by its authors at the time of the review. Editor Keith Phipps posted an apology stating the assigned reporter could not locate a copy of the work. Leonard Pierce, the author of the fake review, was terminated from his freelance role immediately after the discovery. This incident marked a significant breach of trust between the publication and its audience regarding factual integrity.
Long-time writer and editor Keith Phipps stepped down on the 13th of December 2012 citing mutual parting ways with Onion Inc. Film review editor Scott Tobias announced his departure via Twitter on the 2nd of April 2013 after fifteen years. On the 26th of April 2013, writers Nathan Rabin, Tasha Robinson, and Genevieve Koski joined Tobias and Phipps to begin a new project. These six individuals became senior staff members of The Dissolve, a film-focused website run by Pitchfork Media in May 2013. Kyle Ryan, Sonia Saraiya, and Emily St. James left later in 2014 for positions at Entertainment Weekly, Salon, and Vox Media respectively. The Dissolve itself folded in July 2015 after struggling to maintain operations.
Univision Communications acquired a 40% controlling stake in Onion Inc. during January 2016. Later that year, Univision purchased Gawker Media and reorganized several sites into Gizmodo Media Group under Fusion Media Group. In February 2017, editor-at-large John Teti announced a television series based on the website would air on Fusion starting March 16. The site migrated from Bulbs to the Kinja platform developed by Gawker which led to sharp declines in comment activity due to community backlash. By August 2021, Scott Robson joined to lead the team following years of restructuring. In January 2022, seven Chicago-based staff members took severance rather than relocating to Los Angeles where headquarters moved.
Employees announced they had unionized with the Writers Guild of America East in March 2018. This union represented all creative staff across multiple brands including The Onion and ClickHole. Recognition occurred on the 20th of April 2018 followed by a contract agreement reached on the 20th of December 2018. The resulting contract included annual pay increases minimum pay grades strong diversity language just cause provisions editorial independence intellectual property rights and an end to permalancer status. These terms aimed to protect workers while ensuring fair treatment across the organization's various divisions.
In 2017 The A.V. Club won an Eisner Award for Best Comics-related Periodical Journalism covering works published during 2016. Winners included writers Oliver Sava Caitlin Rosberg Shea Hennum and Tegan O'Neil alongside editor Caitlin PenzeyMoog. Starting in 1999 only lists written by individual writers were published before shifting to website consensus rankings in 2006. Annual television show rankings began in 2010 following film and album year-end lists from previous years. Decade-end lists were subsequently released for both the 2000s and 2010s periods highlighting cultural impact over time.
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Common questions
When was The A.V. Club founded and by whom?
Stephen Thompson launched The A.V. Club in 1993 as an entertainment section at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The supplement debuted on the Internet alongside The Onion in 1996.
What happened to The A.V. Club staff after The Onion moved to Chicago in 2001?
The staff eventually left Madison for Chicago following The Onion's move there in early 2001. This relocation marked a significant shift in the publication's operational base from Wisconsin to Illinois.
Who wrote the fake review about Genius Isolated that led to a scandal in December 2010?
Leonard Pierce authored the fabricated capsule review for the book Genius Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth on the 9th of December 2010. Editor Keith Phipps posted an apology stating the assigned reporter could not locate a copy of the work before terminating Pierce immediately.
Which former writers formed The Dissolve website in May 2013?
Writers Nathan Rabin, Tasha Robinson, and Genevieve Koski joined Scott Tobias and Keith Phipps to begin The Dissolve in May 2013. These six individuals became senior staff members of the film-focused website run by Pitchfork Media.
When did The A.V. Club win an Eisner Award for Best Comics-related Periodical Journalism?
In 2017 The A.V. Club won an Eisner Award for Best Comics-related Periodical Journalism covering works published during 2016. Winners included writers Oliver Sava, Caitlin Rosberg, Shea Hennum, and Tegan O'Neil alongside editor Caitlin PenzeyMoog.