It turns out that Wednesday–the eve of Thanksgiving–was not an opportunistic scheduling night for broadcast networks. Freshman standouts like “Modern Family,” “Glee” and “Cougar Town” saw their ratings hit bottoms as viewers neglected the comedies, at least in large part due to preparation for the American holiday.
ABC’s “Family,” for instance, dropped a staggering 35% to a 2.4 adults 18-49 rating with 7.1 million viewers. Coupled with a 41% drop for “Cougar Town,” (5.5 million, 1.9), ABC’s poor performance in the 9PM hour ranked behind that of CBS (“Criminal Minds” – 13.9 million, 3.2), NBC (“The Biggest Loser: Where Are They Now – 7.7 million, 2.9 for the hour; 7.7 million, 2.8 from 8-10PM) and FOX (“Glee” – down 23% to 6.1 million, 2.5).
Other ratings notes: CBS’ “Criminal Minds” won the night in viewers and adults 18-49, netting 13.5 million viewers and a 3.2, respectively. 8PM belonged to the “Biggest Loser” special (7.7 million, 2.7 for the hour), while 10PM fell to “CSI:NY” (12.7 million, 2.9). Excluding The CW’s airing “Gracie,” ABC’s “Eastwick” (3.7 million, 1.1) was the worst performer, followed by FOX’s “So You Think You Can Dance” (4.9 million, 1.6).