>HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
The November sweep ended with a thud Wednesday — the night before Thanksgiving is always a tough night to program as viewers are distracted with feast preparations, travel, and other changes to the weekly routine. Three networks managed year to year increases on this tough night (although still at depressed levels), while NBC fell a reliable 24% from the same night last year. The final results? FOX finished November #1 with a 3.1 rating, up an impressive 16% over last November. CBS was up 7% with a solid second place finish (2.8 rating). ABC (2.5) and NBC (2.3) each lost a tenth of a rating point from last November. Collectively, the four real broadcast networks did the impossible in this increasingly fragmented and complicated digital world: prime time viewing of network TV, on old fashioned TV sets no less, went up in 2011. Network TV in November 2011 was up 4% from November 2010, from a combined 10.4 rating to a 10.8 rating. Program detail from last night follows, as well as a look behind the November sweep results by each night of the week.
NOVEMBER SWEEP LAST NIGHT
2011 vs 2010 Day 28
2011 2010
FOX 2.1 1.8 +14%
ABC 2.7 2.3 +19%
CBS 1.8 1.7 + 4%
NBC 1.2 1.6 -24%
NOVEMBER SWEEP SCORECARD
2011 vs 2010 Through Day 28 of 28
2011 2010
FOX 3.1 2.7 +16%
CBS 2.8 2.7 + 7%
ABC 2.5 2.6 – 2%
NBC 2.3 2.4 – 3%
It is always risky to schedule the regular line-up of programs on the night before Thanksgiving. TV usage is usually lower than normal on this night and patterns are disrupted. ABC’s usually powerful Wednesday schedule had its worst performance of the year but ratings were up from last year when the network went with more repeats and specials. ABC ended up winning the night but did not realize the full potential of one of 22 precious original episodes.
ABC Wed 9.21 9.28 10.5 1012 1019 1026 11.2 11.9 1116 1123
The Middle 3.1 2.7 2.8 2.9 3.0 3.2 3.0 — 3.0 2.5*
Suburgatory — 3.3 3.1 3.1 3.1 3.4 3.1 — 2.9 2.5*
Modern Fami 6.1 5.7 5.7 5.9 5.6 4.5R 5.7 — 5.6 4.5*
Happy Ending — 3.1 2.8 3.2 3.0 3.5 3.4 — 3.2 2.7*
Revenge 3.4 2.7 2.4 2.7 2.5 2.7 3.0 — 2.6 2.1*
FOX went with The X Factor from 8-9 pm and received a series low 2.5 rating, followed by an original episode of Mobbed which was only able to aggregate a 1.6 rating. Still the night was better than last year’s Human Target (1.4) and Hell’s Kitchen (2.2).
FOX Wed 9.21 9.28 10.5 1012 1018 1025 11.2 11.9 1116 1123
X Factor 4.4 4.1 4.1 — 3.9 4.4 4.0 3.8 3.9 2.5*
Tue Tue
CBS wisely sat out the night before Thanksgiving with a clip show from Survivor and repeat dramas at 9 and 10 pm.
CBS Wed 9.21 9.28 10.5 1012 1019 1026 11.2 11.9 1116 1123
Survivor 3.2 3.2 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.5 3.6 3.2 3.3 1.9R*
Criminal Mi 4.1 3.6 3.8 3.8 3.9 2.8R 3.7 3.4 3.7 1.8R*
CSI 3.2 3.1 2.9 2.6 2.6 2.0R 2.7 2.5 2.6 1.6R*
NBC’s Up All Night coughed up a 1.5 rating, followed by a 1.0 at 8:30 for a repeat Up All Night and a 1.2 for a special “where are they now” Biggest Loser. Last year on this night, Merry Madagascar (1.5) and Kung Fu Panda holiday special (1.6) combined with a better performance from a similar Biggest Loser special (1.7), when that franchise was in much better health.
NBC Wed 9.21 9.28 10.5 1012 1019 1026 11.2 11.9 1116 1123
Up All Nigh 2.4 2.1 2.3 2.1 2.1 1.1R 1.8 1.8 1.9 1.5*
Free Agents 1.3 1.0 1.0 — — — — — —
Harry’s Law 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.3 0.8R 1.1 1.3 1.1 —
L&O SVU 2.4 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.2 — 2.0 1.9 1.9 —
SWEEP WRAP-UP — NIGHT BY NIGHT. As the with the season in general, CBS dominated Mondays in November and were very competitive on Tuesdays and Thursdays. FOX is in very good shape Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, although they did not dominate any single night (particularly as The X Factor continued to slide and lost its grip on Thursday). ABC can lay claim to Wednesday but the other nights remain in surprisingly decent shape if it can quickly replace its rapidly aging dramas next season. NBC had Sunday firmly in control this November, but the lease runs out at the end of the year and soon Sunday will look like the other nights of the week with very little to build from.
Nov 2011 Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
FOX 2.4 3.0 3.4 3.1* 1.3* 1.4 3.4
CBS 4.1 3.2 2.8 3.1 1.5 1.0* 2.8
ABC 2.8 2.6 3.6 2.5 1.2 2.4 2.8
NBC 1.3 2.1 1.5 1.8 1.4 0.6 7.0
vs Nov 2010 Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
FOX -22% + 6% +74% +15% +52% -30% -12%CBS +16% +13% + 5% – 6% – 9% -13% -18%ABC -19% – 7% +15% -13% -24% +45% – 1%NBC -27% – 4% -15% -19% +29% -23% + 7%
* Note: For the fairest comparisons, truly extraordinary nights have been excluded: Thursday Oct 27 for FOX (World Series Game 6), Friday Oct 28 for FOX (World Series Game 7), and Saturday Nov 5 for CBS (LSU-Alabama football game)
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WEDNESDAY Ratings
Preliminary ratings are delayed by Nielsen until at least 9:30 am PT (90 minutes past due). The ratings service is performing extra “quality checks,” so be prepared for unusually high quality ratings later this morning!
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