via NBC press release:
JAY LENO BEATS 'Late Show' AND Conan O'BRIEN TOPS 'LATE Late Show' IN ALL KEY CATEGORIES FOR THE WEEK OF FEB. 23-27
SEASON TO DATE, JAY'S MARGIN OVER 'Late Show' IN 18-49 VIEWERS IS 23 PERCENT AND Conan WINS OVER 'LATE LATE' BY 28 PERCENT, WITH BOTH LEADS INCREASING AMONG YOUNGER ADULTS TO 43 PERCENT AND 64 PERCENT RESPECTIVELY
UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. – March 5, 2009 – NBC's late-night lineup has won the week of January 23-27 over all cable and broadcast competition, with "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" outscoring CBS's "Late Show with David Letterman" and "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" topping CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" in every key ratings category: adults, men and women 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54, plus total viewers.
With most network late-night shows in rebroadcast last week, Jay won the 11:35 p.m. ET hour by a 28 percent margin over Letterman in 18-49 viewers and Conan beat Ferguson at 12:35 a.m. by 34 percent. Both Jay and Conan increased their leads among younger adults, with Jay topping "Late Show" for the week by a 31 percent advantage among adults 18-34 and Conan achieving a 43 percent margin over "Late Late Show."
Season to date, Jay is delivering a 23 percent margin of victory over Letterman in adult 18-49 viewers and a 29 percent advantage in total viewers, while Conan's leads over Ferguson are 28 percent in 18-49 and 4 percent in total viewers. Both Jay and Conan pull away among younger adults, with Jay leading the season by a 43 percent margin among adult 18-34 viewers and Conan winning by 64 percent.
For the week of February 23-27, Jay's average 1.548 million adults 18-49 topped the 1.208 million of Letterman; in total viewers, Jay's audience of 4.060 million persons beat Letterman's 3.285 million; and in adults 18-34, Jay's 583,000 out-scored Letterman's 446,000. At 12:35 a.m. ET, Conan's 902,000 adults 18-49 for the week out-delivered Ferguson's 671,000; in total viewers, Conan's 1.776 million out-scored Ferguson's 1.683 million; and in adults 18-34, Conan's 413,000 topped Ferguson's 288,000.
WEEKLY AVERAGES
(According to in-home viewing figures from Nielsen Media Research for the week of February 23-27. Ratings reflect "live plus same day" data unless otherwise noted. Season-to-date figures are averages of "live plus seven day" data except for the two most recent weeks, which are "live plus same day.")
ADULTS 18-49
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 1.2 rating, 5 share (in encore telecasts)
CBS "Late Show," 0.9/4 (in encore telecasts)
ABC "Nightline," 1.0/4
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 0.5/3*
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 0.7/4 (in encore telecasts)
CBS "Late Late Show," 0.5/3 (in encore telecasts)
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 0.4/3 (in encore telecasts)
TOTAL VIEWERS
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 4.1 million viewers (in encore telecasts)
CBS "Late Show," 3.3 million viewers (in encore telecasts)
ABC "Nightline," 3.8 million viewers
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 1.6 million viewers*
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 1.8 million viewers (in encore telecasts)
CBS "Late Late Show," 1.7 million viewers (in encore telecasts)
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 1.1 million viewers (in encore telecasts)
* Monday's "Kimmel" was an encore.
SEASON TO DATE
ADULTS 18-49
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 1.4/5
CBS "Late Show," 1.1/4
ABC "Nightline," 1.1/4
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 0.6/3
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 0.8/4
CBS "Late Late Show," 0.6/3
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 0.5/3
TOTAL VIEWERS
11:35 p.m. ET
NBC "Tonight," 5.0 million viewers
CBS "Late Show," 3.9 million viewers
ABC "Nightline," 3.9 million viewers
12:05 a.m. ET
ABC "Kimmel," 1.7 million viewers
12:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Late Night," 2.0 million viewers
CBS "Late Late Show," 1.9 million viewers
1:35 a.m. ET
NBC "Last Call," 1.2 million viewers
SELECTED CABLE RESULTS, WEEK OF FEBRUARY 23-27
NATIONAL ADULT 18-49 RATING
Comedy Central, 11 p.m. ET, "The Daily Show," 0.8
Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. ET, "The Colbert Report," 0.6
Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 0.8
Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 0.4
Each adult 18-49 rating point equals 1.32 million viewers
TOTAL VIEWERS
Comedy Central, 11 p.m. ET, "The Daily Show," 1.7 million
Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. ET, "The Colbert Report," 1.3 million
Adult Swim, 11:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. ET, 1.7 million
Adult Swim, 12:30-1:30 a.m. ET, 1.0 million
