| Scoreboard |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Viewers (million) | 12.990 | 11.238 | 8.627 | 5.749 | 4.530 | 2.693 |
| Rating/Share: Adults 18-49 | 3.6/9 | 2.9/7 | 3.3/8 | 2.3/6 | 1.9/5 | 1.4/3 |
| Rating/Share: Adults 18-34 | 2.6/7 | 1.9/5 | 2.9/8 | 2.1/6 | 2.3/6 | 1.8/5 |
NCIS was the most watched show of the night beating back a direct challenge from an early Dancing with the Stars results show, but it was ABC's Presidential Debate coverage and analysis that helped them take the viewership and demo 18-49 adults crowns for the night. NBC won the demo adults 18-34 nightly average on the strength of Biggest Loser and its young skewing debate viewers.
Note: These fast affiliate results are necessarily inaccurate for live events like the Presidential Debate because of their measurement methods, see below.
Head to head at 8pm, NCIS put Dancing with the Stars in its rear view mirror. NCIS was down a bit in viewers, but up a few tenths in both demos from last week. Not so with Dancing with the Stars, direct NCIS competition pulled down its results from last week 10-15% across the board. Biggest Loser showed surprising strength, up across the board from last week to be the 18-34 demo winner for the hour. Take these results with a grain of salt, House was in repeat last night. 90210 was down slightly from last week in viewers and 18-34 demo and flat for the 18-49 demo.
ABC claimed the viewer and the 18-49 demo win for the Presidential Debate that ran from 9-10:30 Eastern and the analysis that began at about 10:30. It was nip and tuck for the debate 18-34 demo between ABC and NBC and NBC edged ABC for the 18-34 demo analysis segment.
Against debate only English broadcast competition, Priviledged grew its audience 24% and its demo ratings by 0.2 (18-49) and 0.1 (18-34) from last week. Still, it was a distant 6th for its hour.
Full details:
| Time | Net | Show | Viewers Live+SD (Millons) | 18-49 Rating/ Share | 18-34 Rating/ Share |
| 8:00 | CBS | NCIS | 15.692 | 3.7/10 | 2.3/7 |
| ABC | Dancing with the Stars | 13.445 | 3.3/9 | 2.0/6 | |
| NBC | Biggest Loser: Families | 7.487 | 3.0/8 | 2.7/8 | |
| FOX | House (repeat) | 6.325 | 2.6/7 | 2.3/7 | |
| UNI | Cuidado con el Angel | 4.406 | 1.8/5 | 2.3/7 | |
| CW | 90210 | 3.055 | 1.7/4 | 2.2/7 | |
| 9:00 | ABC | Presidential Debate | 14.643 | 4.2/9 | 3.2/8 |
| NBC | Presidential Debate | 9.935 | 3.7/8 | 3.3/8 | |
| CBS | Presidential Debate | 9.368 | 2.7/6 | 1.8/4 | |
| UNI | Fuego en la Sangre | 5.242 | 2.2/5 | 2.7/7 | |
| FOX | Presidential Debate | 5.172 | 2.1/5 | 1.9/5 | |
| CW | Privileged | 2.331 | 1.1/3 | 1.4/4 | |
| 10:00 | ABC | Presidential Debate | 12.126 | 3.8/9 | 3.0/8 |
| NBC | Presidential Debate | 9.295 | 3.4/8 | 2.9/8 | |
| CBS | Presidential Debate | 9.171 | 2.6/6 | 1.7/4 | |
| UNI | Aqui y Ahora | 4.310 | 1.9/4 | 2.2/6 | |
| 10:30 | ABC | Debate Analysis | 9.637 | 3.0/8 | 2.2/6 |
| CBS | Debate Analysis | 8.135 | 2.2/6 | 1.5/4 | |
| NBC | Debate Analysis | 7.626 | 2.7/7 | 2.3/6 | |
| UNI | Aqui y Ahora | 3.576 | 1.6/4 | 1.8/5 |
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Shows are sorted by viewers in each time slot. Timeslot demo winners are in bold.
Nielsen TV Ratings: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved.
Definitions:
Fast Affiliate Ratings: These first national ratings, including demographics, are available at approximately 11 AM (ET) the day after telecast, and are released to subscribing customers daily. These data, from the National People Meter sample, are strictly time-period information, based on the normal broadcast network feed, and include all programming on the affiliated stations, sometimes including network programming, sometimes not. The figures may include stations that did not air the entire network feed, as well as local news breaks or cutaways for local coverage or other programming. Fast Affiliate ratings are not as useful for live programs and are likely to differ significantly from the final results, because the data reflect normal broadcast feed patterns. For example, with a World Series game, Fast Affiliate Ratings would include whatever aired from 8-11PM on affiliates in the Pacific Time Zone, following the live football game, but not game coverage that begins at 5PM PT. The same would be true of Presidential debates as well as live award shows and breaking news reports.
Rating: Estimated percentage of the universe of TV households (or other specified group) tuned to a program in the average minute. Ratings are expressed as a percent.
Share (of Audience): The percent of households (or persons) using television who are tuned to a specific program, station or network in a specific area at a specific time. (See also, Rating, which represents tuning or viewing as a percent of the entire population being measured.)
Time Shifted Viewing – Program ratings for national sources are produced in three streams of data – Live, Live+Same Day (Live+SD) and Live+7 Day. Time shifted figures account for incremental viewing that takes place with DVRs which are currently in approximately 24.4% of all U.S. TV households. Live+Same Day (Live+SD) include viewing during the same broadcast day as the original telecast, with a cut-off of 3:00AM local time when meters transmit daily viewing to Nielsen for processing. Live+7 Day ratings include incremental viewing that takes place during the 7 days following a telecast.
For more information see Numbers 101.
Pretty healthy decline in the ratings for the debate from the 9 to 10pm hours. Guess it wasn’t just the pundits who thought the debate was boring this time!
Good for NCIS, too. It not only beat DWTS in overall ratings, it also won 18-49 and nearly won 18-34. If only certain other preferred shows of mine — *cough* those starring Summer Glau — could have similar mojo.
Bill, could you please tell me if 90210 is doing good for the CW? I don’t want it cancelled by the end of the season:( do you think it’s chances for renewal are good?
Thanks
90210 has the highest average 18-49 audience for any CW show so far this season. If its current audience holds up, there is no chance that it gets cancelled.
It’s interesting to see how bad NBC has been doing overall – but appears to have some strength amoung 18-34 lately. Wonder how that will end up turning out?
Thanks Bill!:)
They have put way too much marketing behind 90210 to cancel it. It really is fairly lousy, though – especially considering the other CW shows have done much better against the debate, by a tune of about half a million viewers.
Priveledged is a goner, though!
Well at least “Circus” With The Stars went down in ratings- I want that show gone in the next 3 years!…Hey….I do have realistic goals you know.
Wow, the ratings are way up for this Presidential Debate over the first one. I knew with Dancing with the Stars being the lead-in, that ABC would win the night hands down.
Nice to see viewership for Privileged go up. But even in CW terms, it’s not doing well enough to get beyond the initial 13 episodes, right? Damn shame, but oh well, won’t be such a big deal for me. But I am sharing Outlander’s concern though, about that show starring Summer Glau.
Hi Bill, first: sorry for my bad english! i am a huge fan of the US shows Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Prison Break, One Tree Hill and Ugly Betty. De ratings of these shows ar low i heard, and i have peace with cancellation for Prison Break, buw if Terminator and One Tree Hill and Ugly Betty get cancelled i would be VERRY sad…
Can you tell me how likley in percent (%) per show it is that these shows are going to be cancelled?
greetings from Holland!!!
@ Gusar: i like Privileged, but it is’nt a top show. I hope the show is nog getting cancelled, but if it is, i would not verry upset over it
Eddie, based on that logic, shouldn’t CBS have won the debate ratings?
Seriefan, One Tree Hill and Ugly Betty are fine. They will finish this season and probably both come back next year. Prison Break and Terminator are not doing well. Right now, it is likely that Terminator will get only 13 episodes this season. Prison Break could still air its full 22 episodes.
Hi Holly, wel if Prison Break getting the axe, i am fine with it. But TERMINATOR!? OMG… Such al great show, and i know the ratings are bad buth if FOX just move the show to Tuesdays after House en Fringe to monday 8 the ratings are getting better i think…
Seriefan, thanks for commenting from Holland.
It’s unlikely Terminator gets beyond 13 episodes this year.
Prison Break is in better shape, both because of its ratings and because it nearly has enough episodes (100) for syndication.
I’d be surprised if Ugly Betty doesn’t ultimately get renewed for another year, but I’m going to guess that fans may have some significant worrying to do about its future in the Spring at this rate.
One Tree Hill is very strong, no need to worry about it.
At the rate CW is going, One Tree Hill is going to last until all the actors all die from old age.
NCIS claimed another scalp. The Tuesday results show for Dancing With The Stars isn’t as popular as it used to be. Should ABC be worried? It’s amazing to see this spin off from JAG actually become more popular than its predecessor.
Cameron, of course I like to play up the competition, but I don’t think you can project DWTS’s future off last nights results. It was a time slot change on a special night that easily could have caught people off guard. Plus 8pm is a more lightly viewed hour in general.
Even if it turns out that DWTS did stay around this level for the results show ABC isn’t about to go canceling it. Profit-wise, it would still probably be one of their biggest payoffs.
Bill, correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t Prison Break in the last two weeks have worse ratings than Terminator?
The thing is though, PB is a Fox production which gives it preferential treatment, even if you don’t factor in syndication. Excuse the language, but this just utterly and completely sucks!