or


[05/08/09 - 12:10 PM]
ABC Wins Its 3rd Consecutive Thursday of the May Sweep in Adults 18-49
ABC spins the numbers for Thursday, May 7.

[via press release from ABC]

Quick Take for Thursday, May 7, 2009 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

With its Biggest Audience on the Night Since Mid-Feb, ABC Wins Its 3rd Consecutive Thursday of the May Sweep in Adults 18-49

"Ugly Betty" Tops its NBC Comedy Competition from 8-9pm by Wide Margins In Viewers and Young Adults and Places No. 1 in the Slot in Women 18-34

Thursday's No. 1 TV Show in Both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, "Grey's Anatomy" Topples CBS' "CSI" and Turns in its Strongest Numbers in 6 Weeks

"Michael J. Fox: Adventures of an Incurable Optimist" Wins the 10pm hour in Viewers and Key Adults, Drawing ABC's Biggest Audience in the Slot in 11 Weeks

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

ABC won its 3rd consecutive Thursday of the 2009 May Sweep among Adults 18-49 (3.5/10) and Adults 18-34 (3.1/10), topping its closest competition by 9% (CBS = 3.2/9) and 29% (NBC = 2.4/8), respectively.

* Growing its overall audience for the 5th week in a row, ABC generated its most-watched Thursday (11.1 million) since mid-February - since 2/19/09.

"Ugly Betty" (8:00-9:00 p.m.)

A growing "Ugly Betty" outdrew its NBC comedy competition in the 8 o'clock hour ("My Name is Earl"/"Parks and Recreation") by 3.0 million viewers (7.5 million vs. 4.5 million) and by 13% in Adults 18-49 (2.1/7 vs. 1.9/6). "Betty" finished No. 1 in the slot with Women 18-34 (2.9/10) for its 3rd straight telecast.

* Up week to week by 11% in Total Viewers (7.5 million vs. 6.7 million) and by 5% in Adults 18-49 (2.1/7 vs. 2.0/6), "Ugly Betty" produced ABC's biggest audience in the time period and the series' most-watched telecast in 11 weeks - since 2/19/09.

"Grey's Anatomy" (9:00-10:00 p.m.)

On its 100th episode, ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" emerged as Thursday's No. 1 TV show in both Total Viewers (15.3 million) and Adults 18-49 (5.3/14). Beating "CSI" by 51% in Adults 18-49 (5.3/14 vs. 3.5/9), the ABC medical drama defeated the CBS crime drama for the 3rd week running by best-of-season margins, representing its biggest advantage in 2 years - since 5/3/07. In addition, "Grey's" topped an original of "CSI" by a best-ever 178% in Adults 18-34 (5.0/15 vs. 1.8/6).

* "Grey's" marked its 16th time in its past 17 original telecasts to stand as Thursday's No. 1 regular entertainment show in Adults 18-49, including a streak of 10 straight original airings.

* Building its numbers for the 2nd straight week in Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, "Grey's" turned in its best performance in 6 weeks - since 3/26/09.

"Michael J. Fox: Adventures of an Incurable Optimist" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Topping the 10 o'clock hour in viewers and across all key adults (AD18-34/AD18-49/AD25-54), ABC's special "Michael J. Fox: Adventures of an Incurable Optimist" bested its nearest competitor in the time period (CBS) by 9% in Total Viewers (10.6 million vs. 9.7 million) and by 38% in Adults 18-49 (3.3/10 vs. 2.4/7). Fresh off its pick-up for next season, NBC's original "Southland" finished a distant third in the hour on both counts and continued to sink to another series low.

* "Michael J. Fox: Adventures of an Incurable Optimist" generated ABC's biggest audience in the time period in nearly 3 months - since 2/19/09.

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 31% currently, from 24% 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), 5/7/09.





  [may 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
     


· CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION (CBS)
· GREY'S ANATOMY (ABC)
· MY NAME IS EARL (NBC)
· PARKS & RECREATION (NBC)
· SOUTHLAND (TNT)
· UGLY BETTY (ABC)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[08/26/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of August 18: "KPop Demon Hunters" Reigns as Netflix's Most Popular Film, Claims No. 1 in Top 10
"Wednesday" stayed on top of the English TV list for a third week with Wednesday Season 2, Part 1 claiming another 13.4 million views.

[08/26/25 - 08:24 AM]
"Sunday Night Baseball Presented by Capital One": Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees Draws ESPN's Second-Largest Audience of MLB Season: 2,572,000 Viewers
The game peaked with 2,889,000 viewers at 8:15 p.m. ET, according to Nielsen.

[08/20/25 - 11:07 AM]
Alicia Silverstone-Led Crime Drama "Irish Blood" Is the Biggest New Series Premiere in Acorn TV History
The August 11 premiere also drove the biggest day of subscriber sign-ups on Acorn TV's direct-to-consumer platforms in nearly two years.

[08/19/25 - 04:03 PM]
FX's "Alien: Earth" Premiere Episode Launches with 9.2 Million Views Globally After Six Days of Streaming
Future episodes of the eight-episode season will premiere each following Tuesday on Hulu beginning at 8 p.m. ET and on FX at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

[08/19/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of August 11: "Wednesday" Charms at No. 1 For Another Top 10 Week
"Fit for TV: The Reality of the Biggest Loser," a three-part documentary exploring the reality show's biggest scandals, debuted at No. 2 in English TV with 7.5 million views.

[08/19/25 - 10:13 AM]
NBC Sports Delivers Most-Watched Premier League Opening Weekend in U.S., Headlined by Record-Setting Manchester United-Arsenal Match on NBC & Peacock
The Manchester United-Arsenal match on NBC, Peacock, and NBC Sports Digital platforms on Sunday, featuring 2024-25 PL runner-up Arsenal earning a 1-0 victory, averaged 2.0 million viewers.

[08/19/25 - 09:03 AM]
FOX Sports Delivers Network's Most-Watched NFL Preseason Game Since 2021
This past Sunday, 5.1 million viewers tuned in to FOX's preseason coverage of the Chicago Bears 38-0 victory over the Buffalo Bills.

[08/14/25 - 01:33 PM]
With 5 Million Cross-Platform U.S. Viewers in Its First Three Days, Sunday's Season Finale Episode of "The Gilded Age" Is the Fifth Consecutive Episode to Clinch a Series High
This season is well on track to become the most watched of the series.

[08/12/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of August 4: "Wednesday" Wins the Week - Season 2 Snaps Its Way to No. 1 in Top 10
Like the view from the top of El Capitan, "Untamed" held its place among the metaphorical clouds of the English TV List, now in the No. 3 spot with 7.2 million views.

[08/12/25 - 07:44 AM]
August 10 Edition of ESPN "Sunday Night Baseball Presented by Capital One" Draws Nearly Two Million Viewers for Chicago Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals Game
The audience peaked with 2,115,000 viewers at 9:15 p.m. ET.

[08/08/25 - 09:10 AM]
"Live with Kelly and Mark" Notches Summertime Win with Best Total Viewer Audience in Over Three Months
In addition, the show earned its best rating among Households in nine weeks and its best numbers among both Women 18-49 and Women 25-54 in five weeks.

[08/05/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of July 28: "Happy Gilmore 2" Continues to Swing Big at No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
The Yosemite National Park-set thriller "Untamed" maintained the No. 1 spot on the English TV List for a third week with another 12.2 million views added to its accumulated 59.6 million total.

[08/05/25 - 11:01 AM]
ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball" Featuring the Detroit Tigers vs. Philadelphia Phillies Averaged 2 Million Viewers - Up 72% from Last Year's Comparable Game
"Sunday Night Baseball" is averaging 1,680,000 million viewers, up seven percent from last year.

[08/05/25 - 10:27 AM]
ABC Airs One of Its Most-Watched WNBA Games This Season
The Indiana Fever's win over the Seattle Storm averaged 1.6 million viewers, peaking with 2.0 million.

[08/01/25 - 01:56 PM]
Matt Damon and Ken Jennings' Million Dollar Win Scores Big in Ratings for "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire"
The series owns ABC's top two entertainment telecasts in Total Viewers summer to date with its week 2 episode (4.46 million) and season premiere (4.24 million).