or


[01/08/09 - 12:12 PM]
ABC Marks Its Strongest Wednesday in 2 Months with Total Viewers and Adults 18-49
ABC spins the numbers for Wednesday, January 7.

[via press release from ABC]

Quick Take for Wednesday, January 7, 2009 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC Marks its Strongest Wednesday in 2 Months with Total Viewers and Adults 18-49

"Barbara Walters Special" at 10pm Stands as Wednesday's Most-Watched TV Show

From 8-9pm, ABC's Back-to-Back Repeat "Scrubs" Defeat NBC's Original Episode of "Knight Rider" in Young Adults

ABC News' "Special Edition 20/20 � Vanished" Takes a Solid Second at 9pm to the "People's Choice Awards" and Earn ABC's Best Results in the Slot Since Mid-November

Excluding the "CMA Awards," "Barbara Walters Special -- Patrick Swayze: The Truth" Generates ABC's Biggest Audience in the Wednesday 10pm Hour Since May 2007

Wednesday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

ABC's Wednesday lineup, featuring back-to-back repeat episodes of "Scrubs," a "Special Edition 20/20" and the "Barbara Walters Special," earned second place on Wednesday night with Total Viewers (8.4 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.3/6). In fact ABC qualified as the most-watched network from 9:00-11:00 p.m., outdrawing CBS' "People's Choice Awards" by 1.0 million viewers (10.3 million vs. 9.3 million). The Net ranked No. 1 in the 10 o'clock hour in Viewers and key Adults (AD18-49/AD25-54), as the "Barbara Walters Special -- Patrick Swayze: The Truth" stood as Wednesday's most-watched television show overall.

� ABC generated its strongest Wednesday in 2 months in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49 � since 11/12/08.

"Scrubs" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

From 8:00-9:00 p.m., ABC's back-to-back repeats of "Scrubs" topped NBC's original "Knight Rider" in Adults 18-34 (1.4/4 vs. 1.3/4). And at 8:30 p.m., "Scrubs" beat "Knight Rider" among Adults 18-49 (1.7/5 vs. 1.6/4). In addition with "Scrubs" at 8:30 p.m., ABC beat each of its network rivals among hard-to-reach Men 18-34: ABC (1.5/5) beat NBC (1.4/5), Fox (1.3/4) and CBS (1.0/3).

"Special Edition 20/20 - Vanished: Missing in Milwaukee" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

ABC News' "Special Edition 20/20 - Vanished: Missing in Milwaukee," featuring Elizabeth Vargas' report on the mystery of a loved one's disappearance combined with the realities of domestic violence, took second place from 9:00-10:00 p.m. to the opening hour of CBS' "People's Choice Awards" in Total Viewers (8.0 million), Adults 18-49 (2.3/6) and Adults 25-54 (2.9/7).

� ABC News' "Special Edition 20/20" produced the Net's best numbers in the hour since mid-November in Total Viewers and Adults 25-54 � since 11/12/08.

"Barbara Walters Special - Patrick Swayze: The Truth" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Wednesday's most-watched TV show, "Barbara Walters Special -- Patrick Swayze: The Truth" ranked No. 1 in the 10 o'clock hour in Total Viewers (12.6 million), Adults 18-49 (3.0/8-tie) and Adults 25-54 (4.5/11). In addition to standing as the evening's most-watched show overall, it was also Wednesday's No. 1 TV telecast with Adults 25-54 (4.5/11), Women 18-49 (4.2/10) and Women 25-54 (5.9/13).

� Excluding the "CMA Awards," the "Barbara Walters Special" generated ABC's strongest performance in the time period since May 2007 in Total Viewers and Adults 25-54 � since 5/23/07.

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 29% currently, from 22% at the same point in 2008. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Source: Nielsen Media Research (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings), 1/7/09.





  [january 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· 20/20 (ABC)
· KNIGHT RIDER (NBC)
· SCRUBS (ABC)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[10/23/26 - 03:54 PM]
ESPN's NBA Opening Wednesday Delivered Its Second-Largest Audience Ever
The Minnesota Timberwolves' victory over the Miami Heat averaged 2.52 million viewers, up 16% from last year's comparable game.

[10/23/26 - 03:25 PM]
USA Sports Delivers Most-Watched WNBA Finals Game 3 Since 1999, Best Ever on Cable
1.71 million viewers on average tuned into Wednesday night's Game 3 coverage across USA Sports' linear platforms (USA Network and CNBC) and streaming on Peacock.

[10/23/26 - 08:30 AM]
Record College Football Viewership Propels ESPN to Second Best Start Since 2011 with "College GameDay" on Track for Most-Watched Season Ever
ESPN networks are averaging 2.2 million viewers across 120 games on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU - the second-best start for ESPN since 2011.

[10/22/26 - 04:01 PM]
ABC News Wins Across Friday Night, Sunday Morning and Late-Night
"20/20: The Suitcase Murders" ranked as Friday's No. 1 newsmagazine in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54, and Adults 18-49.

[10/22/26 - 04:00 PM]
CBS Dominates Its Premiere Week in Seven-Day Multiplatform Viewership, Up +14% from Last Year, with Six Series Topping 10 Million Viewers
Among its broadcast competition, CBS claimed eight of the top 10 series.

[10/22/26 - 02:50 PM]
NBC Sports Delivers Most-Watched NBA Tip-Off Primetime Game Ever with 76ers-Knicks
Viewership peaked at 9.1 million - an NBA Tip-Off record - from 9:45-10:00 pm ET as the 76ers clinched the victory.

[10/22/26 - 02:00 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Waltzes to Season High During Heartfelt "Dedication Night" with 7.36 Million Total Viewers
The October 20 episode hit a season high with the show's best non-finale episode in six years.

[10/21/26 - 04:01 PM]
USA Sports' Coverage of Dream-Valkyries Game 2 Is Most-Watched WNBA Finals Game 2 Ever on Cable
Monday night's coverage averaged 1.33 million viewers across USA Sports' linear platforms (USA Network, CNBC and E!).

[10/21/26 - 03:15 PM]
It's Back to School at "Abbott Elementary" as Show Returns with Over 6 Million Total Viewers
The premiere episode scored the show's best streaming performance since Season 4, based on views over seven days on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+.

[10/21/26 - 02:31 PM]
Commanders-49ers on "Monday Night Football" Delivers 17.9 Million Viewers
Six weeks into ESPN's Super Bowl LXI season, "Monday Night Football" is up 23% compared to the same point in 2025, averaging 19 million viewers.

[10/21/26 - 11:01 AM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of October 12
"Carrie," "Neagley," "Reacher," "Off Campus," and "Sterling Point" led all original series worldwide.

[10/21/26 - 06:39 AM]
NFL Network's London Slate Culminates with 6.4M Viewers for Jaguars-Texans
Season to date, through three games in London, NFL Network is averaging 6.9M viewers, up 15% vs. the network's six-game International Series average last season.

[10/21/26 - 06:30 AM]
NBC and Peacock Deliver Most-Watched WNBA Finals Game 1 Ever
Led by Gabby Williams' 26 points, Golden State's 68-64 win over Atlanta peaked at 3.0 million viewers for the game's exciting conclusion from 5:45 - 5:55 p.m. ET.

[10/20/26 - 03:19 PM]
"College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" Delivers Its Third Most-Watched Regular-Season Episode Ever from BYU
ESPN networks had 3 of the top 4 games this week, the second most-watched regular season Saturday on record (based on minutes).

[10/20/26 - 03:08 PM]
Ohio State's Win Over Indiana Scores Most-Watched College Football Game of the Week
Viewership peaked at 14,269,000 viewers from 3:30-3:45 PM ET on FOX.