Primetime Ratings Report
For the week of January 5, 2009
(Based on National Live + Same Day Program Ratings)
ABC is Up Over the Same Week Last Year in Viewers and Adults 18-49,
While Posting its Strongest Numbers in 5 Weeks on both Nielsen Measures
ABC Airs 10 of the Week's Top 20 Non-Sports TV Programs in Adults 18-49,
Including the Top 2 with "Grey's Anatomy" and "Desperate Housewives"
Monday from 8-10pm, "The Bachelor" Opener Beats NBC's "Superstars of Dance"
Head to Head by 15% in Adults 18-49 and is Monday's No. 1 TV Show in Key Women
Building on its Lead-in at 10pm, ABC's Debut of "True Beauty" is the No. 1 Series in
Its Hour and Earns ABC's Top Numbers in the Slot in 6 Months Among Young Adults
ABC's Tuesday Lineup Premieres with its Best Numbers on the Night Since November
"Homeland Security USA" Brings ABC Considerable Improvement Tuesday at 8pm
In its 8th Season Opener, ABC's Debut of "Scrubs" Outperforms the Show's
May Finale on NBC by 1.2 Million Viewers and by 24% in Adults 18-49
Among Hard-to-Reach Men 18-34, "Scrubs" at 9:30pm Qualifies as Tuesday's
No. 1 TV Show and Marks ABC's Best Non-Sports Rating in the Slot in Over 6 Years
ABC News' "Primetime: What Would You Do?" Logs ABC's Top Numbers at 10pm
In Viewers and Adults 18-49 in 6 Weeks, While Posting Series' Best-Ever Men Ratings
ABC Marks its Strongest Wednesday in 2 Months with Total Viewers and Adults 18-49
ABC News' "Special Edition 20/20 � Vanished" Takes Second to the "People's Choice Awards" and Logs ABC's Best Results Wednesday at 9pm Since Mid-November
"Barbara Walters Special -- Patrick Swayze: The Truth" is Wednesday's No. 1 TV Show and, Excluding "CMA Awards," ABC's Biggest Draw in the Slot Since May 2007
"Grey's Anatomy" Stands as Thursday's No. 1 TV Series in Viewers and Adults 18-49 And as the Top Show Overall in Key Women, Ahead of the BCS Championship Game
In Thursday's 10pm Hour, "Private Practice" Premieres with Improved Audience Retention for ABC and is the First ABC Series This Season to Beat an Original "ER"
Sunday's No. 1 TV Series, "Housewives" Beats the "Golden Globes" in Adults 18-49 And Stands the Night's Top-Rated Entertainment Series for 12th Time in 13 Telecasts
For the 2nd Week in a Row, ABC's "Home Edition" Hits Season Highs in Adults 18-34
WEEK No. 16:
During the week of 1/5/09, ABC beat out NBC in Adults 18-49 (2.7/7 vs. 2.6/7) and earned second place to a football-boosted Fox in Adults 18-34 (2.3/7), leading NBC by 10% (2.1/6) and CBS by 15% (2.0/6).
� On a week that featured stiff competition from the other nets with sports programming (Fox's 3 nights of championship football/CBS big Sunday primetime NFL overrun) and awards shows (CBS "People's Choice Awards"/NBC's "Golden Globe Awards"), ABC drew its biggest audience and top Adult 18-49 number in 5 weeks � since w/o 12/1/08. In addition, the Net was up from the same week last year (w/o 1/7/08) in both Total Viewers (7.8 million vs. 7.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.7/7 vs. 2.6/7).
Rankings: ABC claimed 10 of the week's Top 20 "non-sports" programs in Adults 18-49, including TV's Top 2 with "Grey's Anatomy" and "Desperate Housewives:" "Grey's Anatomy" and "Desperate Housewives" tied for No. 1, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" � No. 11, "Brothers & Sisters" and "Private Practice" tied at No. 12, "True Beauty" and "Scrubs-TU 9:30PM" tied at No. 14, "The Bachelor" and "Scrubs-TU 9PM" tied at No. 16 and "Barbara Walters SP-1/7" � No. 18. Between "Grey's Anatomy" and "Desperate Housewives," ABC delivered the week's Top 2 TV programs across each of the key Women demographics (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54).
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.
Monday
With its premieres of "The Bachelor" and "True Beauty," ABC took second place on Monday in Adults 18-49 (3.1/8) to Fox's Fiesta Bowl coverage, beating third-place CBS by 15% (2.7/7) and fourth-place NBC by 24% (2.5/6). The Net ranked No. 1 on the night across all key Women: Women 18-34 (4.3/11), Women 18-49 (4.5/11) and Women 25-54 (4.8/11).
� ABC's drew its top-rated Monday in 6 weeks in Adults 18-49 (3.1/8) - since 11/24/08. In addition, the Net matched its highest-rated Monday of the season with Adults 18-34 (3.0/8).
"The Bachelor" (8:00-10:00 p.m.)
Ranking No. 2 from 8:00-10:00 p.m. behind only Fox's Fiesta Bowl game among Adults 18-49, ABC's "The Bachelor" outperformed NBC's "Superstars of Dance" Monday premiere by 15% in the key young adult sales demo (3.1/8 vs. 2.7/7) head to head in the 2-hour time slot. "The Bachelor" dominated its time period and ranked as Monday's No. 1 TV program among Women 18-34 (4.4/11) and Women 18-49 (4.6/11).
� Against stiff competition, "The Bachelor" gained audience during each half-hour from 8-10pm, building by 1.3 million viewers (8.1 million to 9.4 million) and by 21% in Adults 18-49 (2.8/7 to 3.4/8) from start to finish.
� Versus its most comparable recent premiere, in January '06 (1/9/06) at 10pm, "The Bachelor" was up by 1.5 million viewers (8.7 million vs. 6.2 million) and by 15% in Adults 18-49 (3.1/8 vs. 2.7/7).
Please Note: Normally premiering during the springtime and at a later hour, it was "The Bachelor's" earliest-ever season opener - in terms of both time of year and time of day. Last year "The Bachelor" premiered coming out of "Dancing with the Stars" on 3/17/08 at 9:30pm.
"True Beauty" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
Proving itself a highly compatible addition to ABC's Monday lineup with strong retention of its lead-in, the series debut of "True Beauty" ranked as the No. 1 series in the 10:00 p.m. hour among young adults (Adults 18-49 = 3.2/8 and Adults 18-34 = 3.1/9). The new ABC unscripted series towered above its unscripted competition in the 10 o'clock hour, beating NBC's "Momma's Boys" by 2.3 million viewers (7.6 million vs. 5.3 million) and by 60% in Adults 18-49 (3.2/8 vs. 2.0/5). Versus its lead-in from "The Bachelor," "True Beauty" grew by 3% in both Adults 18-49 and Adults 18-34. In fact on its debut airing, "True Beauty" emerged as Monday's No. 1 TV series in Adults 18-34.
� The premiere of "True Beauty" generated ABC's best young adult numbers (AD18-49/AD18-34) in the Monday 10pm hour in 6 months - since 7/7/08 with the season finale of "The Bachelorette."
� Ranked against all new series debuts on the broadcast nets this TV Season, "True Beauty" is No. 2 in Adults 18-34 (3.1/9) and stands as the No. 1 new show opener of the season with Women 18-34 (4.1/11).
Tuesday
With its Tuesday premiere lineup of "Homeland Security USA", "Scrubs" and "Primetime: What Would You Do?," ABC turned in its strongest performance on the evening in 6 weeks in Total Viewers (7.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.7/7) - since 11/25/08.
� Compared to the year-ago Tuesday, ABC's numbers jumped by 3.1 million viewers and by 125% in Adults 18-49 (4.1 million & 1.2/3 on 1/8/08).
"Homeland Security USA" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
Opposite stiff competition from CBS' stalwart "NCIS" and NBC's season premiere of "The Biggest Loser: Couples," ABC's debut telecast of "Homeland Security USA" was a solid upgrade for ABC in the hour. "The Homeland Security USA" debut was also up sharply from the average for "Opportunity Knocks" in the hour earlier this season, improving the slot by nearly 2 million viewers (7.8 million vs. 5.9 million) and by 44% in Adults 18-49 (2.3/6 vs. 1.6/5).
� Despite the competition, the new unscripted series gained overall audience from start to finish (7.7 million to 7.9 million) and grew by 14% in Adults 18-49 (2.2/6 to 2.5/6).
"Scrubs" (9:00-9:30 p.m.)
Building on its lead-in in a highly competitive slot against CBS' "The Mentalist" and NBC's "The Biggest Loser: Couples," the ABC premiere of "Scrubs" earned second place in Adults 18-34 (3.0/8) and ranked No. 1 with hard-to-reach Men 18-34 (3.2/9). In fact it premiered with ABC's highest Men 18-34 rating in the half-hour with non-sports programming in more than 2 years - since 11/14/06.
� Compared to its final original airing on NBC (5/8/08), ABC's "Scrubs" debut was up by 1.2 million viewers (6.7 million vs. 5.3 million) and by 24% in Adults 18-49 (3.1/7 vs. 2.5/7). In addition, it was the series' most-watched telecast since March 17, 2008, surpassing its final 3 original airings on NBC in its Thursday "Must-See TV" comedy lineup at 9pm. On average, of the 28 non-sports series that NBC broadcasts this season, 21 are lower-rated among Adults 18-49 than ABC's debut of "Scrubs."
"Scrubs" (9:30-10:00 p.m.)
Building on its lead-in at 9:30pm with Adults 18-49 (3.2/8), Adults 18-34 (3.4/9) and Men 18-34 (3.6/10), "Scrubs" held second place in the 9:30pm half-hour in Adults 18-34 and ranked No. 1 in Men 18-34. In fact it stood as Tuesday's No. 1 TV show with Men 18-34. Furthermore, it produced ABC's highest non-sports Men 18-34 rating in the half-hour in well over 6 years - since 9/10/02.
� "Scrubs" was up hugely for ABC in the half-hour over the same night last year with original comedy programming ("Carpoolers"), jumping by 3.2 million viewers (6.6 million vs. 3.4 million) and by 191% in Adults 18-49 (3.2/8 vs. 1.1/3).
"Primetime: What Would You Do?" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
Airing against established original dramas on NBC ("Law & Order: SVU") and CBS ("Without a Trace"), ABC News' season premiere of "Primetime: What Would You Do?" ranked No. 2 in the hour among young adults (AD18-49 = 2.7/7 and AD18-34 = 2.3/7) and Teens 12-17 (1.7/7).
� "Primetime: What Would You Do?" pulled in the Net's top numbers in the time slot in 6 weeks in both Total Viewers (7.0 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.7/7) - since 11/25/08.
� In its second season premiere the show marked the show's highest-ever ratings across all key Men demos (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54).
Wednesday
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 (8.3 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 nearly 1 million viewers (10.3 million vs. 9.4 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" tied "Knight Rider" among Adults 18-49 (1.7/5).
"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 (2.2/6) 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.)
The "Barbara Walters Special -- Patrick Swayze: The Truth" ranked No. 1 in the 10 o'clock hour and stood as the night's top show in Total Viewers (12.6 million), Adults 18-49 (3.0/8-tie), Adults 25-54 (4.4/11), Women 18-49 (4.1/10) and Women 25-54 (5.8/13).
� 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.
Thursday
Facing Fox's highly-rated National College Football BCS Championship Game (Florida-Oklahoma) on the night, ABC qualified as Thursday's No. 1 non-sports network, outpacing its nearest entertainment competition by 1.1 million viewers (10.2 million vs. 9.1 million � CBS) and by 68% in Adults 18-49 (3.7/9 vs. 2.2/6 � CBS and NBC tied in rating). ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and the Thursday premiere of "Private Practice" qualified as the Top 2 non-sports telecasts of the evening in Adults 18-49.
� Despite the stiff competition from the football game, ABC turned in its strongest Thursday with regular series programming on the night in nearly 2 months � since 11/20/08.
"Ugly Betty" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
The top-rated series telecast in the 8 o'clock hour among Adults 18-49, ABC's "Ugly Betty" (2.4/6) beat out its non-sports competition on CBS by 20% (2.0/5 � "C.S.I.: NY" replay) and on NBC by 26% (1.9/5 � originals of "My Name is Earl"/"Kath & Kim"). In addition, "Betty" outdrew NBC's "My Name is Earl"/"Kath & Kim" combo in the hour by 53% in Total Viewers (7.5 million vs. 4.9 million). In fact it was "Betty's" biggest percent advantage this season over the NBC original comedies in the hour in both viewers and young adults.
"Grey's Anatomy" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)
ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" registered as Thursday's No. 1 non-sports program in both Total Viewers (13.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.2/12). It was the night's highest-rated program overall across the key Women demos [W18-34 (7.8/20), W18-49 (7.7/18) and W25-54 (8.4/18)], outdelivering even the BCS Championship Game. In fact "Grey's" was Thursday's No. 1 TV series in Adults 18-49 for its 6th consecutive original airing and the 7th time in the last 8 original telecasts.
"Private Practice" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
Delivering improved lead-in retention for ABC coming out of "Grey's Anatomy," ABC's Thursday premiere of "Private Practice" ranked as the No. 1 non-sports program during the 10 o'clock hour in Total Viewers (9.0 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.3/8). In fact the ABC sophomore series defeated NBC's veteran "ER" in the time slot by 23% in Total Viewers and by 27% in Adults 18-49 ("E.R." = 7.3 million and 2.6/7). "Private Practice" is the ABC's first series this season to beat an original episode of "ER" in the key young adult sales demo.
� Compared to ABC's average with regular original programming in the hour this season coming out of originals of "Grey's Anatomy," "Private Practice" exhibited considerably improved retention of its lead-in among both Total Viewers (65% vs. 57%) and Adults 18-49 (63% vs. 47%).
� Although it faced a strong draw from the football game, "Private Practice" attracted its second-largest audience of the season and matched its season-high among Adults 18-49.
Friday
"Supernanny" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
Building on its lead-in, "Supernanny" delivered it best-ever performance in its Friday time period in both Total Viewers (5.6 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.9/5 - tied). In addition, the unscripted program drew ABC's largest audience and matched its best Adults 18-49 rating in the time period in 7 months - since 6/4/08.
"20/20" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
Building on the previous week's telecast for the 2nd consecutive week, ABC News' "20/20" attracted its best numbers in both Total Viewers (7.9 million) and Adults 25-54 (2.8/7) in 7 weeks - since 11/21/08. The ABC newsmagazine placed second in the hour in both Nielsen measures while winning the hour among Women 18-34 (2.3/7) and Women 18-49 (3.0/9) for the 2nd week in a row.
Sunday
Opposite an NFL Divisional Game overrun-driven CBS, the "Golden Globes Awards" on NBC, and the 2-hour premiere of "24" on Fox, ABC retained 100% of its Adults 18-49 performance (3.5/8) over the previous week. The Net saw week-to-week increases among Adults 18-34 (3.1/8 vs. 2.8/8), Women 18-34 (4.0/11 vs. 3.6/10) and Women 18-49 (4.6/11 vs. 4.5/11), delivering its strongest ratings on the night in all three demographics in 6 weeks � since 11/30/08. ABC took second on the night in the two younger women demos. ABC beat Fox on the night in Total Viewers (10.3 million vs. 9.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (3.5/9 vs. 3.4/8).
� For its 12th consecutive original airing this season, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" stood as Sunday's most-watched entertainment series. "Housewives" posted its 11th time in 12 original broadcasts this season as Sunday's top-rated entertainment series in Adults 18-49.
"America's Funniest Home Videos" (7:00-8:00 p.m.)
Ranking as the top non-sports telecast in the 7 o'clock hour in viewers and young adults, ABC's "America's Funniest Home Videos" was up over the previous week by 1.0 million viewers (8.1 million vs. 7.1 million) and by 5% in Adults 18-49 (2.1/5 vs. 2.0/5). In fact, the video clip show turned in its best numbers in both Nielsen measures in 6 weeks � since 11/30/08.
"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
Airing against the opening hours of NBC's "Golden Globe Awards" and Fox's "24," "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" improved its performance over the prior week among Adults 18-34 (3.0/8 vs. 2.9/8), Men 18-34 (2.6/7 vs. 2.4/7), Teens 12-17 (1.8/5 vs. 1.6/5) and Kids 2-11 (2.6/9 vs. 2.3/7). In fact, the ABC unscripted series hit a season high with Adults 18-34 and Men 18-34 for the second consecutive week.
"Desperate Housewives" (9:00-10:01 p.m.)
Sunday's No. 1 program, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" topped the 9 o'clock time period, beating NBC's "Golden Globe Awards" by 8% in Adults 18-49 (5.2/12 vs. 4.8/11). "Housewives" also won the hour among Adults 18-34 (4.9/12) and Adults 25-54 (5.7/12).
� ABC's "Desperate Housewives" held perfect retention in Adults 18-49 from the previous Sunday, while seeing gains among Adults 18-34 (4.9/12 vs. 4.3/11), Women 18-34 (7.0/17 vs. 5.6/14) and Women 18-49 (7.2/16 vs. 6.8/15).
"Brothers & Sisters" (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
Despite airing head-to-head with the final hour of NBC's "Golden Globe Awards," ABC's "Brothers & Sisters" improved on its week-ago performance among Adults 18-49 (3.3/8 vs. 3.2/8) and Adults 18-34 (2.9/8 vs. 2.5/7). "Brothers & Sisters" topped CBS' "The Unit" by 27% in Adults 18-49 (2.6/7) and by 61% in Adults 18-34 (1.8/5).
Source: Nielsen Media Research (National Live+Same Day Program Ratings), week of 1/5/09, unless stated otherwise.
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