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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Fringe’ Bounces Back, ’20/20′ Hits Two-Year High, ‘CSI:NY’ Returns

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday March 31, 2012 @ 9:56am PDTTags: 20/20, CSI: NY, Fringe
Nellie Andreeva

There are not that many cases when a 1.2 demo rating wold be a cause for celebration. This is one of them — last night Fox’s bubble sci-fi drama Fringe  posted a 1.2/4 in adults 18-49, shooting up 33% from the series low it posted in its return from hiatus last week. Fringe also matched its lead-in, Kitchen Nightmares, which also recovered from its all-time low of a 1.0 rating last week.

CBS’ lineup returned to normal after two weeks of NCAA basketball, bringing with it CSI: NY, back after a midseason break to a 1.6/5 in 18-49, 9.4 million viewers, down a tenth in the demo from its last original almost 2 months ago. Undercover Boss (1.8/7, 8.1 million) was down 10% from its most recent episode 3 weeks ago when both Undercover Boss and Blue Bloods underwent significant downward ratings adjustment in the finals. Blue Bloods (1.6/5, 10.6 million) was even with that final demo rating and once again ranked as the most watched program of the night.

Highest-rated among adults 18-49 was ABC’s 20/20 (2.1/7, 6.9 million), which had its best demo delivery in more than 2 years (since 1/8/10) with a program devoted to the Mega Millions lotto frenzy. Primetime: What Would You Do? (1.5/5) also was competitive, but with Shark Tank a repeat (1.2/5), ABC (1.6/5, 5.6 million) was edged by CBS (1.7/6, 9.4 million) for the top 18-49 spot for the night. CBS also won in total viewers.

NBC’s Grimm (1.2/4) aired its first original since the show was renewed for a second season. The fairytale/horror procedural was sluggish in its return, down 20% from its last fresh episode. Grimm was not helped by its lead-in, Who Do You Think You Are? (0.8/3, down 20% from last week.) Dateline (1.2/4) closed out the night for NBC. The CW’s Nikita (0.4/2) dropped a tenth from last week to match its series low, Supernatural (0.7/2) rose a tenth.

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RATINGS RAT RACE: Strong Friday Start For ‘Boss’, ABC Has First Nightly Win Over CBS

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday February 18, 2012 @ 9:48am PSTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Ratings, Undercover Boss
Nellie Andreeva

Last night’s ratings provided more ammunition for the theory that scripted programming may be doomed on Friday. The two highest-rated programs on the night in adults 18-49 by a mile were a a reality series, CBS’ Undercover Boss (2.4/8), and a newsmagazine, ABC’s 20/20 (2.0/6). The former made a very strong entry on Friday, drawing not only the highest 18-49 rating of the night but also the largest audience (10.7 million), edging the usual Friday winner in total viewers, CBS drama Blue Bloods (10.3 million, 1.6/5 in 18-49). Seeing an unscripted show almost double the delivery of a high-end drama (A Gifted Man) in the 8 PM hour has got to give CBS, the staunchest supporter of maintaining an all-scripted Friday lineup, a pause. Especially since Undercover Boss not only outperformed A Gifted Man but posted CBS’ largest audience and 18-49 rating in the hour in three years — since the March 6 and May 1 episodes of Ghost Whisperer, the last CBS scripted series to worked in the Friday 8 PM slot. A Gifted Man (9.5 million, 1.5/4) didn’t do much with the better 9 PM time period and big lead-in from Boss, only matching its best 18-49 delivery to date. Read More »

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Ratings Rat Race: CBS’ ‘CSI: NY’ Hits Low, NBC’s Family Pic Tanks; Where’s ‘Grimm’?

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday December 3, 2011 @ 10:32am PSTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Blue Bloods, CSI: NY, Dateline, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Grimm, Nikita, Ratings Rat Race, Supernatural, TV Ratings, Univision
Nellie Andreeva

Last time we checked on Grimm the week before the Thanksgiving holiday, the rookie NBC drama seemed to be bottoming out, holding steady week-to-week to stop its post-premiere slide. But then the fairytale procedural was benched once for the holiday, which is understandable, and then again last night for original movie Game Of Your Life, which is not so much. Last night, the latest of the Procter & Gamble/Walmart-funded family movies that air on NBC as time buys drew a meager 0.5/2 in adults 18-49 from 8-10 PM and 2.2 million viewers. It is tied as the lowest-rated such movie to air on NBC on Friday or Saturday, in- or off-season. The first one, Secrets Of The Mountain, averaged a respectable 1.3/5 in 18-49 and 7.8 million viewers in April 2010. The Jensen Project posted a 0.9 and 3.9 million in summer 2010. Both aired on Friday. Field Of Vision (0.5/2, 2.7 million) and A Walk In My Shoes (1.3/4, 4.9 million) aired on Saturday this past summer. To keep airing those movies, NBC no doubt is making money on the time buys (and let’s face it, it’s not that NBC has cupboards stacked with originals after a brutal fall riddled with cancellations). But I’d question the scheduling choice for Game Of Your Life, which extends unnecessarily the hiatus of a freshman series so early into its run. With Dateline (1.0/3, 4 million) at 10 PM, NBC finished fourth for the night in 18-49. Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: CBS Series & NBC’s ‘Rock Center’ Rise, Fox Dramas Slide

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday November 15, 2011 @ 9:39am PSTTags: 2 Broke Girls, 20/20, Dancing With The Stars, Hawaii Five-0, House, How I Met Your Mother, Mike & Molly, Monday Night Football, Ratings Rat Race, Rock Center With Brian Williams, Terra Nova, The Sing-Off, TV Ratings, Two and a Half Men
Nellie Andreeva

CBS’ Monday lineup posted across-the-board gains for a second straight week. How I Met Your Mother (4.5/12 in adults 18-49, 10.4 million total viewers) was up a tenth in 18-49 from last Monday, 2 Broke Girls (4.8/12, 11.7 million) was up 7% from its fast national last week to post its best 18-49 rating in the 8:30 PM slot, Two And A Half Men (5.3/12, 14.6 million) was up 4% to once again rank as the top program of the night in 18-49, and Mike & Molly (4.4/10, 12.2 million) was up 5%. Hawaii Five-0 (3.3/8, 11.5 million) flourished without scripted broadcast competition in the 10 PM hour, up 10% in the demo from its fast national last week to post its best demo and total viewer number since the season premiere. Hawaii will likely tie its season-high opener in the finals if it’s adjusted up a tenth as it normally is. CBS (4.2/10, 12 million) easily won the night in 18-49.

NBC’s Rock Center With Brian Williams (1.3/3, 4.5 million) last night boasted the biggest news “get” of the moment, an exclusive interview with former Penn State football coach and accused child molester Jerry Sandusky. The one-on-one with Bob Costas boosted the struggling newsmagazine to its highest rating to date, up 30% from the 1.0 Rock Center posted in its first two weeks. Still, the show was dwarfed in the 10 PM hour by another newsmagazine, ABC’s special edition of 20/20 (2.8/7, 13.4 million) featuring Diane Sawyer’s interview with recovering shooting victim U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, as well as CBS’ Hawaii Five-0. Rock Center also ranked as the lowest-rated program on the Big 4 networks, and its fast national numbers may have been inflated by a local NFL pre-emption in Minneapolis, so an adjustment down is likely. Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Fringe’ Hits Series Low, ‘Grimm’ Slips Again

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday November 12, 2011 @ 2:09pm PSTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Blue Bloods, Chuck, CSI: NY, Dateline, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Fringe, Grimm, Kitchen Nightmares, Nikita, Ratings Rat Race, Supernatural, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

The fast nationals for last night were delayed by Nielsen this morning … or was it sabotage at the hands of Fringe fans trying to delay the bad ratings news? The Fox sci-fi drama (1.1/3 in adults 18-49) was down 15% from last week to post a series low. That was despite its lead-in, Kitchen Nightmares (1.6/5), rising a tenth. You can’t blame slot rival NBC’s Grimm (1.5/5) for Fringe‘s misfortune — the fairytale-themed NBC drama continued its slide following the strong premiere three weeks ago, down 17% from last Friday. At 8 PM, NBC’s Chuck (0.9/3) was up a tenth from last week’s fast national, flat with the final. Dateline (1.4/4, 4.9 million) was up 17%. CBS’ A Gifted Man (1.2/4, 8.3 million) matched its soft performance from the past few weeks. CSI: NY (1.7/5, 10.2 million) was up a tenth and beat Grimm in the demo after losing to the rookie in their first face-off last week. Blue Bloods (1.7/5, 11.2 million) was down 19% in 18-49 from last Friday’s season high. CBS (1.5/5, 9.9 million) won the night in both 18-49 and total viewers. It edged in the demo Fox (1.4/4, 3.5 million), which finished second; NBC (1.3/4, 4.4 million); and ABC (1.1/3, 5.2 million). Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Grimm’ Slips, ‘Blue Bloods’ Hits Season Highs, ‘Chuck’ Slides

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday November 5, 2011 @ 10:06am PDTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Blue Bloods, Chuck, CSI: NY, Dateline, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Fringe, Grimm, Kitchen Nightmares, Nikita, Ratings Rat Race, Supernatural, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

Following its surprisingly strong debut against Game 7 of the World Series last week, NBC’s new fairytale-themed drama Grimm (1.8/5 in 18-49, 5.92 million viewers) dropped a modest 14% in its second airing. It won the 9 PM hour in the demo and ranked as the second-highest-rated program of the night behind the CBS drama Blue Bloods. Things looked much gloomier for NBC’s departing dramedy Chuck (0.8/3, 3.1 million), which was the lowest-rated and least-watched program on the Big 4 — down 20% in the demo from its season premiere last week for a new series low. Dateline (1.2/4, 4.1 million) closed out the night for NBC, down a tenth from last week. Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Grimm’ Debuts Big Against World Series, ‘Chuck’ Sets New Low

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday October 29, 2011 @ 9:13am PDTTags: 20/20, Chuck, Dateline, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Grimm, Ratings Rat Race, TV Ratings, World Series
Nellie Andreeva

How bad is the current economic recession? Viewers are flocking to fairy tales, one of the most popular entertainment genres during the Great Depression. After the surprisingly strong launch on Sunday of ABC’s Once Upon A Time — which became the top-rated new drama series with a 4.0 Live+Same Day 18-49 rating — the other fairytale-themed new series, NBC’s Grimm, also exceeded expectations, premiering on Friday and against Game 7 of the World Series no less. The drama drew a 2.1/6 fast national rating among adults 18-49 last night (6.5 million total viewers), which is certain to go up in the finals. It was by far the highest-rated NBC drama premiere this season and the highest-rated Friday non-sports telecast on any network since Dec. 31, 2010 (ABC’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve). For NBC, it was the highest 18-49 rating in the Friday 9 PM slot in almost two years. And Grimm accomplished that with no help from its lead-in, the final season premiere of Chuck, which managed only a 1.0/3 in 18-49 and 3.4 million viewers, a series low. Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ABC Ties CBS In Adults 18-49, ’20/20′ Tops Night

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday October 22, 2011 @ 10:02am PDTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Blue Bloods, CSI: NY, Dateline, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Kitchen Nightmares, Nikita, Ratings Rat Race, Supernatural, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

Just like it happened the same time last year, once ABC dropped repeats on Friday to go for a lineup of reality series and newsmagzines, it became an instant formidable rival to CBS for the top spot on the night among adults 18-49. Last year, it started with a tie before ABC posted a couple of outright victories in the demo. And last night, in its first outing with an all-original Friday lineup, ABC (1.6/5 in 18-49, 6.2 million) tied CBS in 18-49. ABC also boasted the highest-rated program of the night among adults 18-49: newsmagazine 20/20 (2.1/6, 7.6 million total viewers), which was up a whopping 75% in the demo from last week with headline-grabbing interviews featuring the daughter-in-law of convicted Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff and Nick Cannon, Mariah Carey and their twins. 20/20 also was helped by a stronger lead-in from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. The veteran reality series started its Friday debut slow, posting a 1.1/4 in 18-49 at 8 PM. But its second episode at 9 PM (1.7/5) picked up significantly, off only by two tenths from the series’ most recent airing on Sunday last week. Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: CBS Wins But ‘Blue Bloods’ Drops

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday October 15, 2011 @ 9:56am PDTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Blue Bloods, CSI: NY, Dateline, Fringe, Kitchen Nightmares, Last Man Standing, Ratings Rat Race, TV Ratings, Univision
Nellie Andreeva

Another Friday with mostly minor adjustments of a tenth of a 18-49 rating. CBS’ 10 PM drama Blue Bloods (1.7/5 in adults 18-49, 10.9 million viewers) posted the biggest drop from last week — two tenths in 18-49. It … Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Kitchen Nightmares’ Steady As All Friday Scripted Series Drop

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday October 1, 2011 @ 9:59am PDTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Blue Bloods, CSI:NY, Dateline, Fringe, Kitchen Nightmares, Nikita, Ratings Rat Race, Supernatural, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

Last November, when ABC beat CBS’ scripted Friday lineup multiple times in adults 18-49 with a mix of reality shows and newsmagazines, I wondered whether the concept of putting scripted series on Friday was doomed. Well, looking at the numbers last night, it certainly seems that way, particularly if you program for the advertiser-friendly adults 18-49 set. Fox’s reality series Kitchen Nightmares (1.6/6 in adults 18-49, 4 million viewers) and ABC’s newsmagazine 20/20 (1.2/4, 4 million) were the only programs on the Big 4 networks last night not to drop from premiere week in adults 18-49, with all scripted shows down. While this may not be particularly disconcerting for CBS — which is putting an older-skewing fare on the night that can pack 10 million viewers despite low 18-49 numbers — it has got to be alarming for NBC, which is about to unspool two younger-skewing shows on the night, Chuck and Grimm.

Following Kitchen Nightmares, Fringe (1.2/4, 3.1 million viewers) was down 20% from its low season premiere last week. Granted the series grows some 50% in DVR viewing, this is still a very low base to start from, making it unlikely that the sci-fi drama can cheat cancellation one more time.

Like Fringe, CBS’ rookie A Gifted Man (1.2/4, 8.1 million) is fading, down 14% from its debut last week and tied with Fringe and 20/20 as the lowest-rated first-run program last night. CSI: NY (1.6/5, 10 million) was down 11% from last week in 18-49, while Blue Bloods (1.8/6, 11.2 million) was down 10% but still ranked as the highest-rated program on Friday in both 18-49 and total viewers. Read More »

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Ratings Rat Race: Modest Start For ‘Gifted Man’; ‘Fringe’, ‘CSI: NY’, ‘Supernatural’ Down

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday September 24, 2011 @ 10:21am PDTTags: 20/20, A GIfted Man, Blue Bloods, CSI: NY, Dateline, Fringe, Kitchen Nightmares, Nikita, Ratings Rat Race, Revenge, Supernatural, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

Maybe Ghost Whisperer was the only scripted series able to get a demo number at 8 PM on Fridays. CBS is trying a second consecutive drama with ghosts in the slot following the cancellation of Ghost Whisperer, to similar modest results. In its premiere last night, A Gifted Man (1.4/5) matched the season debut in the hour of Medium last year. (Medium was canceled a couple of months later.) That was down 39% from the season opener of Ghost Whisperer the year before. In total viewers, Gifted Man represented a vast improvement vs. last fall with 9.3 million viewers vs. 6.1 million for Medium. That was CBS’ largest audience in the hour since May 2009 when the network had Ghost Whisperer on. At 9 PM, veteran CSI: NY (1.8/6, 10.7 million) was down 10% in the demo from last season’s debut in the slot but finished No. 1 in the hour. 10 PM anchor Blue Bloods (2.0/6, 11.8 million) was down 9% in the demo from its series premiere last fall. It tied NBC’s Dateline as the highest-rated program of the night in 18-49 and was tops in viewers. CBS (1.7/5, 10.6 million) edged the competition to finish No. 1 for the night in 18-49 and total viewers. Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Fringe’ Down In Finale, ‘Flashpoint’ Low In Return

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday May 7, 2011 @ 9:32am PDTTags: 20/20, Blue Bloods, CSI: NY, Dateline, Flashpoint, Friday Night Lights, Fringe, Kitchen Nightmares, Ratings Rat Race, Shark Tank, Smallville, Supernatural, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

Fringe ended its third season last night in a ho-hum fashion. (Knowing their show is coming back, fans probably didn’t feel any urgency to see the finale right away.) It drew a 1.2 rating in 18-49, down a tenth from … Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Shark Tank’ Rises; ‘Smallville’ Up, ‘FNL’ Down In Return

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday April 16, 2011 @ 10:30am PDTTags: 20/20, Chaos, Dateline, Friday Night Lights, Fringe, Kitchen Nightmares, Primetime: What would You Do?, Ratings Rat Race, Shark Tank, Smallville, Supernatural
Nellie Andreeva

ABC (1.5/5 in adults 18-49, 4.9 million viewers) won Friday night among adults 18-49 with a consistent ratings performance, topping every night of primetime in the demo (including a tie with Fox’s Kitchen Nightmares at 8 PM). In the 8 … Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: Slow Start For ‘Chaos’

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday April 2, 2011 @ 9:32am PDTTags: 20/20, Blue Bloods, Chaos, CSI: NY, Dateline, Ratings Rat Race, Shark Tank, Who Do You Think You Are?
Nellie Andreeva

It seems like the fate of new CBS series Chaos was sealed the day the network announced that the comedic CIA drama it fought so hard to pick up to series last summer was being assigned the Friday 8 PM … Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: NBC Wins With ‘Dateline’, CBS’ ‘I Get That A Lot’ Soft

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday December 18, 2010 @ 10:01am PSTTags: 20/20, CBS Ratings, I Get That A Lot, NBC Ratings, Ratings Rat Race, TV, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

Guess who started winning nights in the 18-49 demo this season? After going without a nightly victory outside of football-fueled Sunday until Monday, NBC won 2 nights this week, Tuesday and Friday. NBC has been helped by other networks airing … Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Supernanny’ Premiere Helps ABC Gain On Friday

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday November 6, 2010 @ 6:00am PDTTags: 20/20, ABC Ratings, Blue Bloods, CBS Ratings, CSI:NY, CW Ratings, Dateline Friday, Fox Ratings, Medium, Primetime: What would You Do?, Ratings, Ratings Rat Race, School Pride, Smallville, Supernatural, Suppernanny, The Good Guys, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

No major moves on Friday, though ABC continues to strengthen its lineup and is challenging CBS for the top position in the demo on the night. After successfully introducing Primetime: What Would You do? in the 9 PM hour once … Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ‘Smallville’ Scores With 200th Episode, ‘School Pride’ Humbled

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Saturday October 16, 2010 @ 9:06am PDTTags: 20/20, Blue Bloods, CSI:NY, CW Ratings, CW Smallville, Dateline Friday, Ratings, School Pride, Smallville, Supernatural, TV, TV Ratings
Nellie Andreeva

It’s not very often that the CW wins an hour of primetime among adults 18-49. The network accomplished just that last night with the 200th episode of Smallville, which led the competition at 8 PM with a 1.3/5, matching its season premiere demo number and hitting a season high in total viewers with 3.2 million. Supernatural (1.2/4, 2.8 million) was also strong, matching its season premiere numbers and finishing tied for second place in 18-49 at 9 PM behind CSI: NY (1.7/6, 9.5 million). CBS’ CSI: NY and Blue Bloods (1.7/6, 10.3 million) were both down from last week, by 11% and 6% Read More »

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RATINGS RAT RACE: ABC Extends Streak

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday July 27, 2010 @ 9:36am PDTTags: 20/20, ABC Ratings, CBS Ratings, Dateline Monday, Last Comic Standing, Lie To Me, NBC Ratings, Ratings, The Bachelorette, The Big Bang Theory, The Good Guys, TV, TV Ratings, Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Nellie Andreeva

With The Bachelorette, ABC posted its 8th consecutive Monday nightly win among adults 18-49, the network’s longest streak on the night in more than 10 years, since the heyday of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (Nov. 1999 – Jan. 2000) The two-hour Bachelorette: Men Tell All special (2.8/9 in … Read More »

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