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[02/21/11 - 08:55 AM]
Sunday's Broadcast Ratings: FOX Comedies Edge ABC, CBS for Adults 18-49 Crown
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

nielsen ratings
(fast national numbers for sunday, february 20, 2011)

Here are the highlights of the 17 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night:

FOX (5.23 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.4, #1) pulled in front among adults 18-49 on Sunday with its mix of "American Dad" (4.27 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 2.0, #T11), "The Simpsons" (6.44 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 2.8, #3), "Bob's Burgers" (4.87 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 2.2, #T8), "Family Guy" (6.56 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 3.3, #1) and "The Cleveland Show" (5.42 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 2.6, #T4). A repeat of "The Simpsons" (3.82 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 1.6, #14) led off the evening.

ABC (8.76 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.3, #2) then took home a competitive second place with its mix of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (8.11 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.9, #13), "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (9.53 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.5, #T6), "Desperate Housewives" (10.48 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 3.1, #2) and "Brothers & Sisters" (6.94 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.0, #T11).

Next up was CBS (10.40 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 2.2, #3) with its lineup of "60 Minutes" (11.40 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.4, #16), the premiere of "The Amazing Race: Unfinished Business" (9.14 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.5, #T6), "Undercover Boss" (10.61 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.6, #T4) and "CSI: Miami" (10.47 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.2, #T8). "Race" returned well short of its NFL-powered fall edition on September 26 (11.15 million viewers; adults 18-49: 3.7).

And finally, NBC (5.76 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.6, #4) was out of the hunt with a new "Dateline NBC" (4.69 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.8, #17), a rebroadcast of "Saturday Night Live: Just Commercials" (5.59 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.5, #15) and the debut of "Saturday Night Live: Backstage" (6.39 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 2.1, #10).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49): Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (56.30%), Desperate Housewives (19.20%), Brothers & Sisters (11.10%), The Cleveland Show (8.30%), America's Funniest Home Videos (5.60%), American Dad (5.30%), Bob's Burgers (4.80%), The Simpsons (3.70%), Family Guy (3.10%), CSI: Miami (-8.30% vs. 1/16/11), Undercover Boss (-21.20% vs. 1/16/11), Dateline NBC (-27.30%), 60 Minutes (-33.30%), .


Here are the highlights of the 15 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (2/21/10):

NBC (22.42 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.7, #1) held off the competition on Sunday with its "Winter Olympics 2010" (22.42 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 5.7, #1) coverage.

The silver then went to CBS (10.67 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.9, #2) with its mix of "60 Minutes" (11.26 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.8, #13), "The Amazing Race 16" (9.09 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.9, #6), "Undercover Boss" (13.59 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.8, #2) and "Cold Case" (8.76 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 2.3, #11).

Next up was ABC (8.59 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.7, #3) and its combination of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (7.58 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 2.1, #12), "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (7.99 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 2.5, #T9), "Desperate Housewives" (10.85 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 3.7, #3) and "Brothers & Sisters" (7.93 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 2.5, #T9).

And finally, FOX (5.13 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 2.4, #4) offered up its "NASCAR Overrun/Til Death" (4.25 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 1.5, #14) followed by new episodes of "'Til Death" (2.91 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 1.2, #15), "The Simpsons" (6.08 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 3.0, #5), "The Cleveland Show" (5.60 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 2.8, #T7), "Family Guy" (6.30 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 3.1, #4) and the soon-to-depart "American Dad" (5.64 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 2.8, #T7).

Source: Nielsen Media Research





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