For the week ending April , 5 2009, USA Network grabbed the top five spots between WWE Raw and NCIS . Nick grabbed the next three spots with the Penguins of Madagascar and, SpongeBobsqueaked into the top 10 at #10. The O'Reilly Factor placed four airings in the top twenty for FOX News, with its best at #9.
Outside of the top 20, ESPN's kickoff of the baseball season and Sunday Night Baseball with a matchup featuring the World Series champions, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Atlanta Braves scored well with 3.3 million viewers. South Park had over 3 million viewers for Comedy Central and SCI FI's most watched show was Ghost Hunters with over 2.76 million.
Saving Grace dipped below two million (note this was for Monday, March 30th, not the episode on April 6, which won't show up until next week) and again had fewer viewers than it's lead-in, a rerun of The Closer.
The ninety minute plus Damages season finale scored 1.048 million for FX in its initial airing. Again it had fewer viewers than Breaking Bad which had 1.213 million on AMC.
Update: for those wanting premium cable data for Sunday night's season debuts of Showtime's, The Tudors and HBO's In Treatment, here it is.
Top 20 cable shows for the week ending April 5, 2009:
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE COMMENTING, THANK YOU!
Please note, all shows outside of the top twenty are sorted by viewers but ARE NOT ranked. If you don't see a show listed here, the only thing you can conclude for sure is that it wasn't in the top twenty. The top twenty would include premium cable, if any of those shows ever made the top twenty. But the additional show list is for advertising supported basic cable networks only. We do not see data directly for premium cable channels. But if I see anything I'll post it here and if you see anything, please post a link in the comments.
There are over 14,000 shows. I'm not taking requests as it would be impossible to please everyone. Sorry! If you make a request in the comments anyway, I will ignore it, sorry.
| Rank | Shows | NET | DAY | Time | Viewers Live+SD (000) |
| 1 | WWE ENTERTAINMENT | USA | Mon | 10:00P-11:12P | 5,396 |
| 2 | WWE ENTERTAINMENT | USA | Mon | 09:00P-10:00P | 4,999 |
| 3 | NCIS | USA | Tue | 07:00P-08:00P | 4,257 |
| 4 | NCIS | USA | Wed | 07:00P-08:00P | 4,252 |
| 5 | NCIS | USA | Mon | 07:00P-08:00P | 4,049 |
| 6 | PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR | NICK | Sat | 10:00A-10:30A | 4,036 |
| 7 | PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR | NICK | Sun | 10:00A-10:30A | 4,024 |
| 8 | PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR | NICK | Sun | 10:30A-11:00A | 3,998 |
| 9 | THE OREILLY FACTOR | FOXN | Wed | 08:00P-09:00P | 3,939 |
| 10 | SpongeBob | NICK | Sat | 09:30A-10:00A | 3,910 |
| 11 | SpongeBob | NICK | Sun | 09:30A-10:00A | 3,812 |
| 12 | PARENT TRAP, THE (1998) | DSNY | Sun | 09:00P-11:20P | 3,718 |
| 13 | SpongeBob | NICK | Sat | 09:00A-09:30A | 3,703 |
| 14 | THE OREILLY FACTOR | FOXN | Thu | 08:00P-09:00P | 3,684 |
| 15 | NCIS | USA | Mon | 08:00P-09:00P | 3,665 |
| 16 | PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR | NICK | Sun | 11:00A-11:30A | 3,643 |
| 17 | NCIS | USA | Thu | 07:00P-08:00P | 3,640 |
| 18 | THE OREILLY FACTOR | FOXN | Tue | 08:00P-09:00P | 3,598 |
| 19 | NCIS | USA | Wed | 06:00P-07:00P | 3,588 |
| 20 | THE OREILLY FACTOR | FOXN | Mon | 08:00P-09:00P | 3,543 |
| Other shows (sorted, but not ranked) | |||||
| BRAVES/PHILLIES | ESP2 | Sun | 08:00P-10:35P | 3,313 | |
| NORA ROBERTS HIGH NOON | LIFE | Sat | 09:00P-11:00P | 3,313 | |
| BACK AT THE BARNYARD | NICK | Sat | 10:30A-11:00A | 3,061 | |
| HOUSE | USA | Fri | 08:00P-09:00P | 3,046 | |
| FAMILY GUY | ADSM | Wed | 11:30P-12:00A | 3,025 | |
| FAIRLY ODD PARENTS | NICK | Sat | 08:30A-09:00A | 3,022 | |
| iCarly | NICK | Wed | 06:30P-07:00P | 3,007 | |
| SOUTH PARK | CMDY | Wed | 10:00P-10:30P | 3,005 | |
| LOVE TAKES WING | HALL | Sat | 09:00P-10:45P | 2,847 | |
| WIZARDS OF WAVERLY PLACE | DSNY | Sun | 08:30P-09:00P | 2,772 | |
| GHOST HUNTERS | SCIF | Wed | 09:00P-10:01P | 2,764 | |
| Hannity | FOXN | Wed | 09:00P-10:00P | 2,729 | |
| NCAA WMN BSKT CHAMP SPL L | ESPN | Sun | 09:07P-09:31P | 2,704 | |
| STANFORD/UCONN | ESPN | Sun | 09:31P-11:31P | 2,664 | |
| SUITE LIFE ON DECK | DSNY | Fri | 08:00P-08:30P | 2,588 | |
| WWE HALL OF FAME | USA | Sat | 10:00P-11:05P | 2,582 | |
| GLENN BECK | FOXN | Thu | 05:00P-06:00P | 2,477 | |
| I LOVE MONEY 2 | VH1 | Mon | 09:00P-10:00P | 2,452 | |
| OKLAHOMA/LOUISVILLE | ESPN | Sun | 07:00P-09:07P | 2,424 | |
| GEORGE LOPEZ | NAN | Fri | 10:30P-11:00P | 2,419 | |
| ROCKETS/LAKERS | ESPN | Fri | 10:31P-01:07A | 2,381 | |
| SPECIAL AGENT OSO | DSNY | Sat | 08:30A-09:00A | 2,336 | |
| NORA ROBERTS HIGH NOON | LIFE | Sun | 09:00P-11:00P | 2,283 | |
| LAW & ORDER: SVU | USA | Sun | 11:00P-12:00A | 2,172 | |
| CLOSER, THE | TNT | Mon | 09:00P-10:00P | 2,133 | |
| DOG THE BOUNTY HUNTER | A&E | Wed | 10:00P-10:30P | 2,058 | |
| SAVING GRACE | TNT | Mon | 10:00P-11:00P | 1,998 | |
| DAILY SHOW | CMDY | Wed | 10:59P-11:30P | 1,978 | |
| TNA: IMPACT | SPK | Thu | 09:00P-11:00P | 1,970 | |
| UFC FIGHT NIGHT LIVE | SPK | Wed | 08:00P-10:13P | 1,874 | |
| ECW | SCIF | Tue | 09:00P-10:00P | 1,838 | |
| THE FIRST 48 | A&E | Thu | 10:00P-11:00P | 1,808 | |
| OPERATION REPO | TRU | Mon | 09:30P-10:00P | 1,740 | |
| CAVALIERS/WIZARDS | TNT | Thu | 08:17P-10:49P | 1,701 | |
| REAL WORLD XXI | MTV | Wed | 10:00P-11:00P | 1,698 | |
| REAL WORLD XXI REUNION | MTV | Wed | 11:00P-12:00A | 1,668 | |
| THATS SO RAVEN | DSNY | Wed | 06:00P-06:30P | 1,665 | |
| ROCK OF LOVE 3 | VH1 | Sun | 09:00P-10:00P | 1,660 | |
| HOUSE HUNTERS | HGTV | Sun | 09:00P-09:30P | 1,627 | |
| EXTERMINATORS, THE | A&E | Wed | 10:30P-11:00P | 1,623 | |
| WONDER PETS | NICK | Fri | 10:30A-11:00A | 1,604 | |
| SEINFELD | TBSC | Tue | 07:30P-08:00P | 1,603 | |
| WHO WAS JESUS | DISC | Sun | 10:00P-11:00P | 1,584 | |
| MORAL OREL | ADSM | Wed | 12:15A-12:30A | 1,553 | |
| COLBERT REPORT | CMDY | Wed | 11:30P-12:00A | 1,471 | |
| AX MEN | HIST | Mon | 10:00P-11:00P | 1,427 | |
| DINERS, DRIVE INS & DIVES | FOOD | Mon | 10:30P-11:00P | 1,425 | |
| MAKING THE BAND 4 | MTV | Thu | 09:00P-10:00P | 1,422 | |
| BREAKING BAD | AMC | Sun | 10:00P-11:00P | 1,213 | |
| IRON CHEF AMERICA | FOOD | Sun | 09:00P-10:00P | 1,213 | |
| PARDON THE INTERRUPTION | ESPN | Thu | 05:30P-06:00P | 1,184 | |
| DAMAGES | FX | Wed | 10:00P-11:32P | 1,048 | |
| AROUND THE HORN | ESPN | Thu | 05:00P-05:30P | 862 | |
| BRIDGETS SEXIEST BEACHES | TTC | Thu | 10:00P-11:00P | 644 | |
| HANEY PROJECT | GOLF | Mon | 09:00P-09:30P | 356 |
Nielsen Ratings Data: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved
sound like Highest Ratings for the Penguins of Madagascar will mark the beginning of the era known as the Dreamworks Nick Take-Over.
hey thanks for Bridgets Sexiest Beaches….but it seems low are those normal numbers for Travel Channel?
That’s a lot of O’Reilly in the top 20.
The 2nd season of Damages was really a disappointment. Last year, I cared about the case and the other mysteries I still think the finale was one of the best I’ve ever seen where the writers didn’t know if there was going to be another season. It managed to be satisfying as both a season and a series finale.
This year, there were just too many characters, and I didn’t care about any of them. And I HATED the fact that the whole FBI thing was not a real investigation.
I’m just glad WWE kicked all of the other shows’ asses.
Kyle I second that!
Go Batista!
Cable ratings might get more interesting this fall when Lifetime picks up CBS soaps Guiding Light and As the World Turns. Wonder what the numbers will look like if the two soaps flocked there?
I know you guys hate requests, but can you provide a link to cable numbers so i can look up The Soup and Greek. thanks
OpeningDayGuy, I don’t think either of those soaps gets enough viewers to make it on the top 20 list now, and I seriously doubt they’ll get more viewers after the move to Lifetime.
Verna, unfortunately we’re not pulling these off a web link, so I can’t link you. Sorry.
@Sam, Bridget’s #s are lower than the primetime averages for TTC which you can see here:
http://tvbythenumbers.com/2009/04/07/usa-nickelodeon-lead-cable-network-weekly-ratings-march-23-29-2/16099 (we initially typed the dates wrong in the headline, but don’t mind the URL, it’s the info for 3/30-4/05 just like above).
NCIS does really well in repeats on USA, I wouldn’t be surprised if they pick up the spin-off or The Mentalist which fits their brand although I suspect that the other cable nets like TNT, A&E etc will be sniffing at it too.
Saving Grace does really badly without The Closer lead in but it has been renewed so it doesn’t matter but I wonder if TNT will consider axing it as it clearly can’t survive on it owns compared to Leverage although it’s doing much better than Trust Me.
Penguins of Madagascars id doing well for Nickelodeon, the numbers are very close for the airings so I guess kids do like watching shows over and over again as evident with Spongebob.
Also, regarding HBO and Showtime. Doesn’t Showtime have half the number of subscribers compared to HBO? If so, it must be embarassing to get beaten although I think In Treatment gets more critical praise and the numbers will be higher once repeats and On Demand is factored in.
HBO has lost its touch slightly but hopefully they will redeem themselves with future projects like Hung and The Pacific.
Holly, they will definitely not make it to the TOP 20 but they might make it to the TOP 40. They probably only need between 1.5-2.5 million viewers a day to be successful and 2.5-3 million viewers to make it to the TOP 40. ATWT is already getting almost 3 million viewers a day. On Lifetime it probably gets 2 million viewers a day. The ratings could rise on Lifetime because viewers might get a chance to keep up with it at nighttime if they show encores which will increase their audience during the day. Lifetime is going to promote the shit out of it so people will know its on there.
Anyone know where i can find the ratings for the 2 stargate direct to dvd movies that debuted on scifi this past Friday?
Yeah RAW is dominating cable for the year of 2009. I really dont think they have dropped out of the top 5 for any of the two hours with the exception of a rare occasion, and they ussually have the # 1 and #2 spot. Also the WWE Hall of Fame did farely good numbers for two reasons. They were on the worst night- Saturday, and on at 11 pm on USA.
Also TNA IMPACT beat ECW! haha that is great
Wrestling is a cash cow for the networks right now and the business is having a great year as you see from the WWE ratings along with the Hall of Fame and TNA Impact. The WWE Hall of Fame did better than the other major sport hall of fames outside of football.
Raw is up year to year and could see an increase with the post-Wrestlemania edition last night and the Draft next week.
UPDATE: Monday Night Raw last night scored hours of 3.83 and 4.0 for a 3.92 cable rating, with an average of 5,946,000 million viewers. It looks like Raw did do just that and will be #1 and #2 again next week.
Its a three hour show next week I believe although the first hour of those usually aren’t seen in the same figures as the normal two-hours so 1, 2 and 3 seems unlikely.
I’d also point out that heading into their biggest show dropping viewers week-on-week (which is what Raw has done) is not a good sign nor is it something to shout about.
Alex that’s not a good thing but any time you can come off your biggest show of the year and see an increase is just a positive. Since that was all in the past and they got 6 million viewers last night. They’re happy.
Getting RAW back is one of the best decision that USA did and it’s paying off, ECW isn’t doing as well on Sci-Fi but I think they will keep it unless they are outbid by a male channel like Spike or G4.