The episode was heavily promoted and hyped, with some sources calling it "much anticipated" and "long-awaited". In addition to the publicity about the coming-out of a character, "There's Something About Marrying" was discussed a lot in the media before its airing because of its gay marriage theme. The entertainment website MovieWeb predicted in October 2004 that the episode would become controversial when it aired because of the large children audience and "also because it comes at a time when many states are seeking to ban same-sex wedding ceremonies." According to Knight Ridder, "some conservative groups [...] growled in advance over the episode", but most pre-broadcast publicity was directed at the outing. Mark Pinsky, on the other hand, wrote in his book "The Gospel According to The Simpsons" that when the announcement that an episode of the show would focus on gay marriage was made, "it stoked a debate that few issues and few television shows could." Before its original airing, Pinsky was interviewed about the episode on ABC's "World News Tonight", CNN, BBC Radio, and more, as the author of a book on religion in "The Simpsons".