or


[09/22/09 - 10:13 AM]
CBS Opens the New Season with a Big Bang "The Big Bang Theory" Premieres with Its Largest Audience Ever and Highest Adult 18-49 Rating
CBS spins the numbers for Monday, September 22.

[via press release from CBS]

CBS OPENS THE NEW SEASON WITH A BIG BANG "THE BIG BANG THEORY" PREMIERES WITH ITS LARGEST AUDIENCE EVER AND HIGHEST ADULT 18-49 RATING

"The Big Bang Theory" Builds on its Lead-In in Both Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54

The Season Premiere of "CSI: Miami" Tops NBC and ABC Combined in Adults 18-49

The Series Premiere of "Accidentally on Purpose" Retains 98% of its Viewer and Adult 25-54 Lead-in and 91% of Its Adult 18-49 Lead-in

CBS Places Second in Adults 18-49 on a Night of Two-Hour Premieres on the Competition

"Late Show with David Letterman" With Guest President Barack Obama Tops the Primetime "The Jay Leno Show" in Local Markets and Nearly Triples the Rating of "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien"

CBS launched the new season with a big bang as the third season premiere of THE BIG BANG THEORY in its new time period delivered its largest audience ever, series high ratings in adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 and built on its lead-in among key demos, according to Nielsen preliminary live plus same day ratings for Monday, Sept. 21, the first night of the 2009-2010 television season.

THE BIG BANG THEORY (P) (7.8/11, 12.83m) was second in adults 25-54 (5.7/12), adults 18-49 (4.6/10) and tied for second in adults 18-34 (2.9/07). THE BIG BANG THEORY was up +37% in households (from 5.7/09), +36% in adults 25-54 (from 4.2/11), +28% in adults 18-49 (from 3.6/10), +16% in adults 18-34 (from 2.5/08) and added +3.49m viewers (from 9.34m, +37%) from its 8PM premiere last year.

This was THE BIG BANG THEORY's best delivery in viewers, adults 25-54 and adults 18-49, matched the best ever households delivery. THE BIG BANG THEORY built on its TWO AND A HALF MEN lead-in by +2% in adults 25-54, +5% in adults 18-49 and +12% in adults 18-34.

At 10:00 PM, CSI: MIAMI (P) was first in households (8.7/14), viewers (13.73m), adults 25-54 (5.4/13) and adults 18-49 (4.3/11).

CSI: MIAMI beat the competition combined in adults 25-54 (5.4/13 vs. 5.1/12, +6%) and adults 18-49 (4.3/11 vs. 4.1/11, +5%) while more than doubling the audience of "The Jay Leno Show" (5.67m). CSI: MIAMI posted its best delivery in adults 25-54 since February 2, 2009, best adults 18-49 delivery since March 9, 2009.

Earlier in the night, at 8:00 PM, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (P) (5.7/09, 9.22m) was second in adults 18-34 (3.2/09) and averaged a 3.5/09 in adults 18-49 and 4.0/10 in adults 25-54.

At 8:30 PM, the series premiere of ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE (P) (5.7/08, 8.99m) averaged a 3.2/08 in adults 18-49 and 3.9/09 in adults 25-54. ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE retained 98% of its viewers and adult 25-54 lead-in and 91% of its adult 18-49 lead-in.

At 9:00 PM, the season premiere of TWO AND A HALF MEN (P) (8.5/12, 13.59m) was second in adults 25-54 (5.6/12), adults 18-49 (4.4/10).

For the night, CBS (7.5/12, 12.01m) was second in adults 25-54 (5.0/12) and adults 18-49 (4.0/10).

In late night, LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN (5.6/14) with guest President Barack Obama finished more than a rating point ahead of primetime "The Jay Leno Show" (4.4/07), according to ratings in the 56 metered markets. LATE SHOW also nearly tripled "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" (1.9/05).

Monday was the highest rated LATE SHOW broadcast since Dec. 1, 2005 (10.1/24, with Oprah Winfrey) and was the second highest rated broadcast of LATE SHOW on a premiere Monday since Sept. 20, 1993.

THE LATE LATE SHOW with CRAIG FERGUSON (2.5/09) more than doubled "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" (1.1/04).

Monday was the highest rated broadcast of THE LATE LATE SHOW since Dec. 1, 2005 (3.3/12) and was also the second highest rated telecast of the program since Craig Ferguson became the host. This was also the highest rating for a premiere Monday since Ferguson became host on Jan. 3, 2005.

Editor's Note: Nielsen preliminary fast national ratings for late night will be available this afternoon.

Updated primetime Monday ratings will be also available this afternoon.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: What follows is the afternoon update with the final national Nielsen ratings.]

CBS OPENS THE NEW SEASON WITH A BIG BANG

Editors: This updated primetime ratings release also includes updated Late Night ratings reflecting viewers and demographic ratings for "Late Show with David Letterman"

CBS OPENS THE NEW SEASON WITH A BIG BANG

"THE BIG BANG THEORY" PREMIERES WITH ITS LARGEST AUDIENCE EVER AND HIGHEST ADULT 18-49 RATING

"The Big Bang Theory" Builds on Its Lead-In in Both Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54

The Season Premiere of "CSI: Miami" Tops NBC and ABC Combined in Adults 18-49

The Series Premiere of "Accidentally on Purpose" Retains 98% of its Viewer, 95% of Its Adult 25-54 Lead-in and 92% of Its Adult 18-49 Lead-in

CBS Places Second in Adults 18-49 on a Night of Two-Hour Premieres on the Competition

"Late Show with David Letterman" With Guest President Barack Obama Delivers 7.22 Million Viewers, Most Watched Broadcast Since 2005

"Late Show" Tops Primetime "The Jay Leno Show" and "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" in Viewers and Key Demographics

CBS launched the new season with a big bang as the third season premiere of THE BIG BANG THEORY in its new time period delivered its largest audience ever, series high ratings in adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 and built on its lead-in among key demos, according to Nielsen live plus same day ratings for Monday, Sept. 21, the first night of the 2009-2010 television season.

THE BIG BANG THEORY (P) (7.9/11, 12.96m) was second in adults 25-54 (5.8/12), adults 18-49 (4.7/11) and adults 18-34 (3.0/08). THE BIG BANG THEORY was up +39% in households (from 5.7/09), +38% in adults 25-54 (from 4.2/11), +31% in adults 18-49 (from 3.6/10), +20% in adults 18-34 (from 2.5/08) and added +3.62m viewers (from 9.34m, +39%) from its 8PM premiere last year.

This was THE BIG BANG THEORY's best delivery in households, viewers, adults 25-54 and adults 18-49. THE BIG BANG THEORY built on its TWO AND A HALF MEN lead-in by +2% in adults 25-54, +4% in adults 18-49 and +15% in adults 18-34.

At 10:00 PM, CSI: MIAMI (P) was first in households (9.0/15), viewers (14.20m), adults 25-54 (5.5/13) and adults 18-49 (4.3/11).

CSI: MIAMI beat the competition combined in adults 25-54 (5.5/13 vs. 5.2/12, +6%) and adults 18-49 (4.3/11 vs. 4.1/11, +5%) while more than doubling the audience of "The Jay Leno Show" (5.81m). CSI: MIAMI posted its best delivery in adults 25-54 since February 2, 2009, best adults 18-49 delivery since March 9, 2009.

Earlier in the night, at 8:00 PM, HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (P) (5.5/08, 9.09m) was second in adults 18-34 (3.3/09) and averaged a 3.6/10 in adults 18-49 and 4.0/10 in adults 25-54.

At 8:30 PM, the series premiere of ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE (P) (5.6/08, 8.91m) averaged a 3.3/08 in adults 18-49 and 3.9/09 in adults 25-54. ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE retained 98% of its viewers, 95% of its adult 25-54 lead-in and 92% of its adult 18-49 lead-in.

At 9:00 PM, the season premiere of TWO AND A HALF MEN (P) (8.5/12, 13.63m) was second in adults 25-54 (5.7/12), adults 18-49 (4.5/10).

For the night, CBS (7.6/12, 12.16m) was second in adults 25-54 (5.1/12) and adults 18-49 (4.1/10).

In late night, LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN with guest President Barack Obama, averaged a 5.0/13 with 7.218 million viewers, according to Nielsen fast affiliate ratings (11:30pm-12:30am).

Monday's broadcast was the highest rated and most watched telecast of LATE SHOW since a 9.2/23 with 13.455 mil viewers on Dec. 1, 2005 (Oprah Winfrey). LATE SHOW beat the primetime "Jay Leno Show" by +28% in households (5.0/13 vs. 3.9/6), by +1.41 mil viewers (7.22m vs. 5.81m), by +9% in adults 25-54 (2.4 vs. 2.2) and by +6% in adults 18-49 (1.9 vs. 1.8).

LATE SHOW topped "The Tonight Show" by +194% in households (5.0/13 vs. 1.7/5), by +4.78m viewers (7.22m vs. 2.44ml), by +118% in adults 25-54 (2.4 vs. 1.1), by +90% vs. in adults 18-49 (1.9 vs. 1.0) and by +63% in Adults 18-34 (1.3 vs. 0.8).





  [september 2009]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
  


· ACCIDENTALLY ON PURPOSE (CBS)
· BIG BANG THEORY, THE (CBS)
· CSI: MIAMI (CBS)
· HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (CBS)
· JAY LENO SHOW, THE (NBC)
· TWO AND A HALF MEN (CBS)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[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).

[08/01/25 - 10:15 AM]
"Big Brother" Watched by Nearly 26 Million Unique Viewers
On Paramount+, the series ranks as the #1 unscripted program and #7 program overall in reach and total time spent since its July 10 premiere.

[07/30/25 - 04:01 PM]
"South Park" Season 27 Premiere Surges with Nearly 6M Cross-Platform Viewers and Biggest Share in Over 25 Years
Tune-in tonight, July 30, for an encore airing of the premiere episode, "Sermon on the 'Mount," with a new episode airing Wednesday, August 6 at 10 p.m. ET on Comedy Central and next day on Paramount+.

[07/30/25 - 03:06 PM]
"Christmas in July" Gifts Hallmark Channel #1 Most-Watched Entertainment Cable Network of the Month
The network's first-ever limited docuseries "Christmas at Sea" was the #2 most-watched entertainment cable program in its time period on Mondays among Women 18+.

[07/29/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of July 21: "Happy Gilmore 2" Finds Its Happy Place at No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
Mystery thriller "Untamed" spent another week at No. 1 on the English TV List.

[07/29/25 - 11:46 AM]
ABC Airs Another of Its Most-Watched WNBA Games Ever: Indiana Fever vs Chicago Sky Averaged 1.5 Million Viewers, Up 17% from Last Year's ABC Average
Said audience peaked with 1.7 million viewers.

[07/28/25 - 12:03 PM]
"The Summer I Turned Pretty" Season 3 Draws 25 Million Viewers in Its First 7 Days and Reaches #1 in Over 120 Countries
The show of summer is "Summer."

[07/25/25 - 02:51 PM]
ABC Summer Game Shows "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" and "Match Game" Return for New Seasons with Multi-Year Highs
"Millionaire" returned for a new season as the No. 1 telecast of the night among Total Viewers (4.24 million), earning its most-watched telecast in over four years.

[07/25/25 - 08:59 AM]
"Live with Kelly and Mark" Grows for the Second Week in a Row in Total Viewers and Households
On Tuesday (7/8/25), featuring Jensen Ackles, "Live with Kelly and Mark" turned in its most-watched telecast (2.285 million) in nearly two months.

[07/22/25 - 03:03 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in Adults 18-49, Leading CBS' "After Midnight" and NBC's "Late Night with Seth Meyers" in the Demo for the 6th Consecutive Week
"Nightline" posted week-to-week increases in Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49, hitting a 4-week high in the key Adult news demo.

[07/22/25 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10 Week of July 14: "Untamed" Hunts and "KPop Demon Hunters" Slay in This Week's Top 10
True crime lovers also made their voices heard - documentary series "Amy Bradley Is Missing" appeared at No. 2 on the English TV list, with 12.2 million views.

[07/22/25 - 10:30 AM]
2025 NBA Las Vegas Summer League Viewership Up Double Digits
Said telecasts averaged an audience of 255,000 viewers, up 27% from last year.

[07/22/25 - 08:04 AM]
ESPN, ABC and Disney+ Score Historic Viewership for 2025 WNBA All-Star Events
The Skills Challenge & 3-Point Contest and the WNBA All-Star Game averaged 1.3 million viewers and 2.2 million viewers, respectively.

[07/21/25 - 10:09 AM]
ESPN's Outstanding Nielsen Viewership for First Six Months of 2025: At the Halfway Mark, ESPN has Achieved Multiple Successes Across the Board
ESPN on its own is up 4% year-over-year across the entire day (24 hours of programming) and up 9% when isolating the primetime hours (8-11 p.m. ET).

[07/17/25 - 01:31 PM]
Netflix: What We Watched the First Half of 2025
This report, which captures ~99% of all viewing in the first half of 2025, shows that people watched a lot of Netflix - over 95B hours - spanning a wide range of genres and languages.