The Streisand Effect (Atlanta)

In August 2016, FX announced that the fourth episode of the season would be titled "The Streisand Effect" and that it would be written by series creator and main actor Donald Glover and directed by producer Hiro Murai. This was Donald Glover's second writing credit, and Murai's fourth directing credit.[1]

The episode was watched by 0.920 million viewers, earning a 0.5 in the 18-49 rating demographics on the Nielson ratings scale. This means that 0.5 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode.[2] This was a 15% decrease from the previous episode, which was watched by 1.074 million viewers with a 0.6 in the 18-49 demographics.[3]

"The Streisand Effect" received positive reviews from critics. Joshua Alston of The A.V. Club gave the episode a "B+" and wrote, "Atlanta has become a show that works best in hindsight, and one that almost requires that each episode be viewed multiple times. Once you have a better idea of what the episode is doing, it's easier to relax and let it wash over you."[4]

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "Atlanta has very smartly told smaller stories, like last week's pairing of Earn struggling to play for a mid-priced dinner with Van while Alfred and Darius work through a drug deal, or tonight's duo of short stories, as Darius' offer to make Earn some extra cash proves more complicated than Earn expected, while Alfred foolishly tries to engage with one of his trolls."[5] Michael Arceneaux of Vulture gave the episode a 3 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "One of the things I like most about Atlanta is how the story develops like short ribs cooking in a slow cooker. Even so, I don't really think that deliberate pace works especially well for 'The Streisand Effect.' The Zan story line could've been executed differently; he seemed like an inspired character at first, but he quickly went flat. I'm still very interested in seeing how Alfred deals with fame, so perhaps he'll return with more depth in a future episode."[6]

Michael Snydel of Paste wrote, "'The Streisand Effect' is all about facing Earn and Miles with concrete representations of these conflicts, whether it's Miles grappling with his own place in hip-hop, or Earn realizing that it takes more than ambition to succeed."[7] Grant Ridner of PopMatters gave the episode an 8 out of 10 rating and wrote, "Ultimately, this episode is a rich character study that further familiarizes us with Atlanta's three stars, so that when the stakes begin to rise we'll be fully locked in and invested. The show's doing the unglamorous narrative and character work here, but it's clear that the journey we're on with Earn, Alfred, and Darius wouldn't work without these quieter moments. 'The Streisand Effect' should be a hit with Paper Boi fans and #zansexuals alike."[8]