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One of the challenges of the fall TV season every four years is avoiding taking too many ratings hits on the nights when Presidential politics monopolizes the TV airwaves. Perhaps that’s the reason that Top Chef Masters ratings dropped 16.5% this week, compared with last. The best example we know of the damage that politics can do to Bravo’s ratings was the unfortunate timing of the Real Housewives of Atlanta freshman season premiere, which just so happened to be scheduled on the same night in 2008 that Candidate Obama & Candidate McCain held their debate. This meant that the most successful franchise in Real Housewives’ history had one of the worst premiere ratings, as on that might just 628,000 viewers chose Nene & co over their potential presidents.

On Wednesday night Top Chef Masters was up against President Bill Clinton’s address to the Democratic National Convention and whether or not that detracted from TCM’s audience, it does provide Bravo Execs some cover. Just 874,000 viewers tuned in (0.40 18-49 demo) for the 10pm showing and that’s some 31% lower than the comparable episode in it’s previous season. Through seven episodes this fourth season of Top Chef Masters is heading to be its lowest rated season ever, as the season average is now 973,429 some 16.55% down in total audience numbers and a larger 21.85% in the important 18-49 demo. After the relative failure of Around the in 80 Plates, Bravo’s food advertisers will be beginning to wonder what’s going wrong with Bravo and may start moving their advertising dolar elsewhere.

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Source: Nielsen Media Research via TVByTheNumbers