Primetime Ratings: Fox Wins on Mighty ‘Empire’

Fox took the Wednesday ratings title with Empire scoring a 4.4 in adults 18-49, according to Nielsen overnights. Fox had a 2.9/9 on the night, well ahead of ABC and CBS, at 1.7/5, NBC at 1.5/5 and The CW at 1.1/4.

The broadcast nets were up against cable news coverage of the mass shootings in San Bernardino.

On Fox, Rosewood had a 1.5, up 25% from last week, when ratings were soft on the night before Thanksgiving. Empire’s 4.4 up 42% over last week, and consistent with two weeks ago.

ABC aired The Middle at 2.1, up 5% from what it did two weeks ago (ABC was in repeats last Wednesday), while The Goldbergs slipped 9% to 2.0. Modern Family, the extended clan getting personal demons out in the open with help from guest star Catherine O’Hara, fell 14% to 2.4. Blackish was off 11% at 1.7, before Nashville rated a 0.9, off one tenth of a point.

Survivor scored a 2.1 on CBS, up 17% from last week’s 1.8, then Criminal Minds a 1.5, flat with its last airing, and Code Black a 1.5, up 7%.

NBC’s Christmas in Rockefeller Center special put up a 1.5, down 21% from last year, before a rebroadcast of How the Grinch Stole Christmas rated a 1.5, and a rerun of Saturday Night Live Christmas a 1.4.

On The CW, Arrow was up 30% from its last airing at 1.3, and Supernatural grew 29% to 0.9.  

Michael Malone

Michael Malone, senior content producer at B+C/Multichannel News, covers network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television. He hosts the podcasts Busted Pilot, about what’s new in television, and Series Business, a chat with the creator of a new program, and writes the column “The Watchman.” He joined B+C in 2005. His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Playboy and New York magazine.