The 81st Academy Awards and American Idol led the week, but The Mentalist was the week's most-watched scripted show. NBC doesn't place a single show in this list, and fares only a bit better among adults 18-49. How well Survivor holds up is impressive, as is the renaissance of The Bachelor, and how well Two and a Half Men fares in repeats.
Nielsen Top Twenty Shows by viewers for the week ending February 22, 2009:
| Rank | Shows | R=Repeat S=Special P=Premiere | Net | # Viewers (LIVE+SD) (000) | HH rating (LIVE+SD) | HH SHARE (LIVE+SD) | 18-49 Rank |
| 1 | ACADEMY AWARDS(S) | S | ABC | 36,310 | 20.6 | 31 | 1 |
| 2 | AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY | FOX | 25,374 | 14.3 | 21 | 2 | |
| 3 | AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY | FOX | 24,790 | 14.1 | 22 | 3 | |
| 4 | OSCAR'S RED CARPET 2009(S) | S | ABC | 24,357 | 14.5 | 23 | 4 |
| 5 | Mentalist, THE | CBS | 18,226 | 11.3 | 17 | 14 | |
| 6 | NCIS | CBS | 18,064 | 11.0 | 17 | 15 | |
| 7 | CSI | CBS | 16,920 | 10.4 | 16 | 10 | |
| 8 | Grey'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM | ABC | 15,572 | 10.0 | 15 | 5 | |
| 9 | CRIMINAL MINDS | CBS | 14,536 | 9.2 | 14 | 20 | |
| 10 | HOUSE | FOX | 14,195 | 8.5 | 13 | 6 | |
| 11 | SURVIVOR: TOCANTINS | CBS | 13,589 | 7.8 | 12 | 8 | |
| 12 | TWO AND A HALF MEN | R | CBS | 13,319 | 8.1 | 12 | 13 |
| 13 | BACHELOR, THE | ABC | 12,524 | 8.0 | 12 | 9 | |
| 14 | CSI: NY | CBS | 12,331 | 8.0 | 13 | 25 | |
| 15 | WITHOUT A TRACE | CBS | 12,102 | 7.9 | 13 | ||
| 16 | BARBARA WALTERS SP-2/22(S) | S | ABC | 11,549 | 7.3 | 12 | 23 |
| 17 | LOST | ABC | 11,406 | 6.5 | 10 | 7 | |
| 18 | 24 | FOX | 11,224 | 6.5 | 10 | 18 | |
| 19 | ELEVENTH HOUR | CBS | 11,170 | 7.3 | 12 | ||
| 20 | PRIVATE PRACTICE | ABC | 11,157 | 7.3 | 12 | 11 |
Nielsen RatingsData: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved
All numbers above based on live plus same day DVR viewing.
