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On 'Gossip Girl,'
three's not a crowd

But expect a huge crowd tuning into the teen soap

By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Nov 9, 2009

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Perhaps someone should inform the Parents Television Council that in raising a huge stink over tonight's "Gossip Girl," they're probably ensuring that it gets even bigger ratings.

People who didn't even realize that tonight's episode features a steamy threesome are now informed, and there will likely be viewers tuning in to the CW at 9 p.m. who don't usually watch the show just for the titillation factor.

In case you missed it, here's the story: The PTC has asked the CW's affiliates to preempt tonight's episode, calling it "reckless and irresponsible" in a letter that was also sent to CW president Dawn Ostroff.

PTC president Tom Winter claims that the network is being disingenuous when it says it does not target teens and describes the threesome as "establishing a precedent and expectation that teenagers should engage in behaviors heretofore associated primarily with adult films."

The CW has pointed out that the average age of "Girl" viewers is 27 years old and that the show targets women 18-34.

The CW has never pretended that "Girl" is anything but racy. Previous advertising campaigns for the show have included taglines like "OMFG" and "Every Parent's Nightmare."

The show averaged a 2.2 among women 18-34 last week airing opposite the World Series. It has been seeing DVR playback increases of more than half when compared to live viewing. No doubt those levels will be even higher for tonight's episode.

Oh, and as for the trio involved in the threesome, that has yet to be revealed.

A look at this week’s top TV draws
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 9
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	Fox	“House” (D)	House attends a conference with Cuddy and Wilson.
8:30 p.m.	ESPN	“Monday Night Football” (S)	Good AFC matchup between the 5-2 Steelers and 6-1 Broncos.
9 p.m.	CW	“Gossip Girl” (D)	Nate and Chuck try to get Blair and Serena back on the same page. (And three people have sex.)
9 p.m.	VH1	“For the Love of Ray J” (R)	The women perform movie scenes with Ray.
9:30 p.m.	CBS	“The Big Bang Theory” (C)	Sheldon is the mediator in a fight between Leonard and Penny.
10 p.m.	Lifetime	“Rita Rocks” (C)	Swoosie Kurtz guests at Rita’s stereotypically judgmental mother.
10 p.m.	CBS	“CSI: Miami” (D)	The first part of a three-way crossover between all the “CSIs.”
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 10
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	ABC	“Good Morning America” (N)	Author Stephen King guests.
7 p.m.	Versus	“NHL Hockey” (S)	The Penguins take on the Bruins in Boston.
8 p.m.	NBC	“The Biggest Loser” (R)	The contestants find out that two will be bounced at the next weigh-in.
8 p.m.	CBS	“NCIS” (D)	An assassin from North Korea puts Vance’s family in danger.
8 p.m.	ABC	“V” (D)	Performed well last week, how will ratings hold up?
9 p.m.	ESPN	“World Series of Poker” (S)	Coverage of the final table of the 2009 Las Vegas Main Event.
10 p.m.	MTV	“The Hills” (R)	Brody and Kristin think about reuniting and Justin and Audrina discuss their future.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 11
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	NBC	“Today” (N)	Andre Agassi guests and Bon Jovi performs. Again.
8 p.m.	ABC	“43rd Annual CMA Awards” (A)	Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood host.
8 p.m.	CW	“ America’s Next Top Model” (R)	The final four learn a hip-hop version of the hula.
8 p.m.	ESPN	“NBA Basketball” (S)	Eastern Conference finals rematch between the Cavs and Magic.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Criminal Minds” (D)	A killer seems to follow a rock star’s tour.
9 p.m.	Fox	“Glee” (C)	The school tries to pay for a wheelchair-accessible bus.
10 p.m.	FX	“Nip/Tuck” (D)	Julia shows up to help Matt recovery from surgery.
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12
Time	Network	Program	Description
7 a.m.	ABC	“Good Morning America” (N)	Dolly Parton and Kate Walsh both guest.
8 p.m.	Fox	“Bones” (D)	The crew looks into the death of a small wrestler.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Grey’s Anatomy” (D)	Kim Raver plays a new cardiothoracic surgeon.
9 p.m.	CBS	“CSI” (D)	Final part of the three-way “CSI” crossover.
9 p.m.	NBC	“The Office” (C)	Michael starts acting strangely after rumors spread about the company.
10 p.m.	ABC	“Private Practice” (D)	Addison and Sam run into a couple trapped inside a car after an accident.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	CBS	“Ghost Whisperer” (D)	Melinda is led to a murdered body by its ghost.
8 p.m.	CW	“Smallville” (D)	Clark gets in trouble with the law.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Ugly Betty” (D)	Daniel brings Amanda to one of his support group meetings.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Medium” (D)	Ariel has a new boyfriend, but Allison thinks he’s a killer.
9 p.m.	USA	“Monk” (D)	Monk looks for someone who’s trying to ruin a wedding.
10:30 p.m.	ESPN	“NBA Basketball” (S)	The Lakers face off against the Nuggets in Denver.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14
Time	Network	Program	Description
3:30 p.m.	ABC	“College Football” (S)	Hugely important Big Ten game between Iowa and Ohio State.
8 p.m.	Fox	“Cops” (R)	Cops in California look for a man wanted for domestic violence and burglary.
8 p.m.	Telemundo	“Soccer” (S)	Mexican league match between Chivas and Cruz Azul should draw a good Hispanic audience.
8 p.m.	Nickelodeon	“iCarly” (C)	Carly tries to get Lewbert and his ex-fiancée back together.
9 p.m.	Hallmark Channel	“Flower Girl” (M)	A florist gets caught up in a love triangle.
11:30 p.m.	NBC	“Saturday Night Live” (C)	January Jones hosts and the Black Eyed Peas perform.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15
Time	Network	Program	Description
3:15 p.m.	ABC	“NASCAR Racing” (S)	Sprint Cup race from Phoenix.
8 p.m.	Fox	“The Simpsons” (C)	Marge poses for a calendar for charity and some racy photos are leaked. To Playboy, apparently.
8:15 p.m.	NBC	“NFL Football” (S)	AFC rivals New England and Indianapolis square off.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Desperate Housewives” (D)	Gaby does all she can to get Juanita into a Catholic school.
9 p.m.	Fox	“Family Guy” (C)	Quagmire becomes a father and realizes it’s not his thing.
9 p.m.	Showtime	“Dexter” (D)	Dexter thinks the Trinity Killer is heading out of town.
10 p.m.	E!	“Girls Next Door” (R)	Hef and the girls head to Italy for a music festival.
A = awards show or special, C = comedy, D = drama, DD = daytime drama, G = game show, K = kids, M = movie, N = news/documentary, R = reality, S = sports, T = talk/variety show.