or


[01/08/21 - 08:36 AM]
Thursday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Tops Charts with "Celebrity Wheel of Fortune" Premiere
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

Primetime Preliminary Fast National Nielsen Data
(includes all DVR playback through 3:00 am)

Here are the highlights of the 16 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (1/7/21):

ABC (5.951 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #1) was the top draw on Thursday thanks to the debut of its game show lineup of "Celebrity Wheel of Fortune" (7.831 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.1, #1), "The Chase" (6.203 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #2) and "The Hustler" (3.819 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T3).

FOX (2.949 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #2) took home the silver among adults 18-49 with the return of "Hell's Kitchen" (2.670 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T3) followed by the formal debuts of "Call Me Kat" (3.203 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T5) and "Last Man Standing" (3.254 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T9).

Next up was NBC (3.381 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.5, #3) with the premiere of "Mr. Mayor" (4.917 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T5), a second "Mr. Mayor" (4.293 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T9), the return of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.770 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T5) and "Dateline NBC" (1.768 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T13).

Meanwhile, CBS (2.619 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.3, #4) opted for repeats of "Young Sheldon" (4.278 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T5), "B Positive" (3.003 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T11), "Mom" (3.054 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T11) and "The Unicorn" (2.186 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T13) plus "Star Trek: Discovery" (1.596 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.2, #15).

And finally, an encore of "iHeartRadio Music Festival Night 2 2020" (0.411 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 0.1, #16) rounded out the night on The CW (0.411 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.1, #5).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+40.00% - The Hustler (vs. 1/4/21)
0.00% - Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (vs. 12/3/20)
0.00% - Last Man Standing (vs. 1/3/21)
0.00% - Star Trek: Discovery (vs. 12/17/20)
-25.00% - Dateline NBC (vs. 12/17/20)
-53.85% - Call Me Kat (vs. 1/3/21)

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+33.33% - Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (vs. Will & Grace/Perfect Harmony)
-12.50% - Hell's Kitchen (vs. Last Man Standing/Last Man Standing)
-14.29% - Call Me Kat (vs. Deputy)
-14.29% - Mr. Mayor - 8:00 (vs. Superstore)
-16.67% - Mr. Mayor - 8:30 (vs. The Good Place)
-18.18% - The Chase (vs. Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein)
-28.57% - Last Man Standing (vs. Deputy)
-36.36% - The Hustler (vs. Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein)
-50.00% - Star Trek: Discovery (vs. Evil)
-50.00% - Celebrity Wheel of Fortune (vs. Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time)
-57.14% - Dateline NBC (vs. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit)


Here are the highlights of the 17 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (1/9/20):

ABC (9.286 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.5, #1) was the network to beat on Thursday thanks to night three of "Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time" (15.377 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.2, #1) and the special "Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein" (6.240 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #2).

FOX (4.173 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #2) had to settle for the silver with its mix of "Last Man Standing" (4.354 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T4), another "Last Man Standing" (4.393 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T4) and "Deputy" (3.972 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7).

Next up was CBS (4.901 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T3) with originals from "Young Sheldon" (7.488 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #3), "The Unicorn" (4.809 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T10), "Mom" (5.945 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T4), "Carol's Second Act" (4.886 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T10) and "Evil" (3.139 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T14).

Meanwhile, NBC (2.708 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T3) offered up the return of "Superstore" (2.695 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7), "The Good Place" (2.198 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T10), "Will & Grace" (2.378 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.5, #13), "Perfect Harmony" (1.601 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T14) and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (3.688 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7).

And finally, repeats of "Supernatural" (0.634 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 0.1, #T16) and "Legacies" (0.379 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 0.1, #T16) closed out the night on The CW (0.507 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.1, #5).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+16.67% - Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (vs. 11/21/19)
+16.67% - Superstore (vs. 12/12/19)
+14.29% - Mom (vs. 12/12/19)
0.00% - Young Sheldon (vs. 12/12/19)
0.00% - Deputy
0.00% - Carol's Second Act (vs. 12/12/19)
0.00% - The Good Place (vs. 11/21/19)
0.00% - Will & Grace (vs. 11/21/19)
0.00% - Perfect Harmony (vs. 12/12/19)
-11.11% - Last Man Standing - 8:30
-11.11% - Last Man Standing - 8:00
-14.29% - The Unicorn (vs. 12/12/19)
-20.00% - Evil (vs. 12/12/19)

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+300.00% - Jeopardy! The Greatest of All Time (vs. Modern Family/The Goldbergs (Repeats))
+57.14% - Truth and Lies: Jeffrey Epstein (vs. Truth and Lies: Monica and Bill)
+14.29% - Last Man Standing - 8:30 (vs. Gotham)
+14.29% - Last Man Standing - 8:00 (vs. Gotham)
0.00% - Deputy (vs. The Orville)
-12.50% - Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
-46.67% - Mom
-50.00% - Carol's Second Act (vs. Fam)
-55.56% - Perfect Harmony (vs. The Good Place)
-55.56% - Evil (vs. SWAT)
-56.25% - Superstore (vs. The Titan Games)
-58.33% - Young Sheldon (vs. The Big Bang Theory)
-58.33% - Will & Grace (vs. Brooklyn Nine-Nine)
-62.50% - The Good Place (vs. The Titan Games)
-68.42% - The Unicorn (vs. Young Sheldon)

Source: Nielsen Media Research





  [may 2026]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
     


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[05/28/26 - 03:23 PM]
2026 NBA Eastern Conference Finals Presented by Dunkin' Finishes Strong with Average Audience of 7.4 Million Viewers Across ESPN and ABC
Additionally, Game 4 on ESPN averaged 7.2 million viewers, marking the most-viewed Eastern Conference Finals Game 4 across any network since 2018.

[05/28/26 - 11:00 AM]
CBS Outpaces Competitors with Eight of the Top 25 Series Across All Streaming and Broadcast Originals in Nielsen's All-Series Ranker
CBS has the most top 25 series of any streaming or broadcast competitor and twice as many as its closest broadcast competitor, including six series with 10+ million viewers.

[05/28/26 - 10:31 AM]
FOX Delivers Most-Watched UFL Game Since League Started in 2024
1,593,000 viewers watched as Louisville defeated Dallas 37-23 on Sunday.

[05/28/26 - 10:26 AM]
FOX Scores with 110th Running of the Indianapolis 500
6,635,000 viewers watched Felix Rosenqvist edge David Malukas by 0.0233 seconds with a last-lap pass to win the Indy 500 Sunday on FOX.

[05/27/26 - 03:13 PM]
FOX Saturday Baseball Draws Strong Audience Over Holiday Weekend
2,355,000 viewers tuned in to the two-game slate highlighted by the Dodgers' 11-3 victory over the Brewers in most of the country.

[05/26/26 - 12:03 PM]
"Off Campus" Season 1 Has Reached 36 Million Viewers Worldwide in Its First 12 Days
Off Campus. On everyone's screen.

[05/26/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of May 18 - In Ruthless Pursuit, "Nemesis" Steals No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
Retirement in "The Boroughs" is anything but sleepy as the Duffer Brothers-produced sci-fi series took No. 2 on the list with 5.6 million views.

[05/26/26 - 11:00 AM]
"Dutton Ranch" Is the Biggest Original Series Debut in Paramount+ History
In addition to its record-setting performance on Paramount+, "Dutton Ranch" is also the #1 streaming series according to Nielsen based on average audience for the week of May 11 according to preliminary data.

[05/21/26 - 02:32 PM]
ESPN Delivered Most-Watched NBA Eastern Conference Finals Game 1 Since 2018
The New York Knicks overtime victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers on May 19 generated an average audience of 7.1 million viewers and peaked with 8.87 million viewers at 10:45 p.m. ET.

[05/21/26 - 02:00 PM]
"Survivor" Historic 50th Season Concludes with Most-Watched Finale Since 2020
The season finale drew an average of 5.78 million viewers, based on Nielsen Preliminary panel only data.

[05/21/26 - 07:01 AM]
NBC Sports' 2026 SuperMotocross Coverage Delivers Viewership Gains and Milestones
The seven races featured on NBC and Peacock averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 468,000 viewers on NBC and Peacock, up 8% vs. 2025.

[05/20/26 - 03:05 PM]
NBC and Peacock Deliver the Most-Watched Western Conference Finals Game 1 Ever for Monday's Spurs-Thunder Double Overtime Thriller
Coverage peaked with 12.0 million viewers from 11:30-11:43 p.m. ET for the second overtime and game's conclusion.

[05/20/26 - 03:04 PM]
ESPN Aired Its Most Viewed 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Round of the Current Rights Deal
Collectively all 11 Second Round games, with nine airing on ESPN and two on ABC, delivered 2.2 million viewers, up 76% year-over-year.

[05/20/26 - 07:36 AM]
After Record-Setting 2025 Season, "Sunday Night Football" Finishes Fall-Spring TV Season as Primetime's No. 1 Show for Unprecedented 15th Consecutive Year
The series averaged 23.5 million viewers in 2025, marking the show's best-ever viewership - up nearly 1 million viewers from the prior record for the series set a decade ago (22.6 million in 2015 season) and an increase of 9% over the '24 season (21.6 million).

[05/19/26 - 02:52 PM]
Subway Series Delivers Second Most-Watched FOX Saturday Baseball Telecast of the Season
2,500,000 viewers tuned-in to the two-game slate highlighted by the Mets' 6-3 victory over the Yankees in most of the country.