or


[05/16/16 - 10:15 AM]
Sunday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Pulls in Front Among Adults 18-49
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

Primetime Preliminary Fast National Nielsen Data
(includes all DVR playback through 3:00 am)

Here are the highlights of the 19 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (5/15/16):

ABC (3.789 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.1, #1) staked claim to the Sunday crown with its mix of a new "Once Upon a Time" (4.312 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T1) followed by the season finales of "Once Upon a Time" (3.821 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.1, #4), "The Family" (3.288 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T13) and "Quantico" (3.735 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T5).

CBS (7.749 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T2) then was the most-watched network with its combination of "60 Minutes" (10.729 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T5), "60 Minutes - Morley Safer: A Reporter's Life" (9.480 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T5), the return of "Undercover Boss" (5.790 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9) and a repeat "NCIS" (4.999 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.6, #18).

Next up was FOX (2.146 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T2) and its lineup of "Bordertown" (1.329 million viewers, #19; adults 18-49: 0.5, #19), a repeat "The Simpsons" (1.584 million viewers, #18; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T15), originals from "The Simpsons" (2.766 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 1.2, #3), "Bob's Burgers" (2.273 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T5), "Family Guy" (2.682 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 1.3, #T1) plus the season finale of "The Last Man on Earth" (2.245 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9).

And finally, NBC (4.416 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #4) closed out the evening with "Dateline NBC: On Assignment" (4.170 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T15), a repeat "Little Big Shots" (5.755 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9) and new episodes of "The Carmichael Show" (4.061 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T13), "Crowded" (3.042 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T15) and "Dateline NBC" (4.188 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+40.00% - Dateline NBC: On Assignment
+25.00% - Bordertown
+14.29% - The Family
+11.11% - Quantico
+9.09% - The Simpsons
0.00% - Family Guy
0.00% - 60 Minutes
0.00% - Bob's Burgers
0.00% - The Last Man on Earth
0.00% - The Carmichael Show
0.00% - Crowded
-8.33% - Once Upon a Time
-10.00% - Dateline NBC
-25.00% - Undercover Boss (vs. 2/5/16)

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+125.00% - Dateline NBC (vs. American Odyssey)
+50.00% - Undercover Boss (vs. Battle Creek)
+11.11% - 60 Minutes - Morley Safer: A Reporter's Life (vs. I Love Lucy Superstar Special)
0.00% - The Simpsons
0.00% - Family Guy
0.00% - 60 Minutes
0.00% - The Carmichael Show (vs. AD: The Bible Continues)
-7.14% - Once Upon a Time - 7:00 (vs. America's Funniest Home Videos)
-9.09% - Bob's Burgers (vs. Brooklyn Nine-Nine)
-12.50% - Crowded (vs. AD: The Bible Continues)
-16.67% - Bordertown (vs. The Simpsons (Repeat))
-18.18% - The Last Man on Earth (vs. Bob's Burgers)
-30.00% - Dateline NBC: On Assignment
-70.27% - Once Upon a Time - 8:00 (vs. The 2015 Billboard Music Awards)
-72.97% - Quantico (vs. The 2015 Billboard Music Awards)
-78.38% - The Family (vs. The 2015 Billboard Music Awards)


Here are the highlights of the 15 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (5/17/15):

ABC (9.939 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.1, #1) overshadowed the competition on Sunday with the season finale of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (6.395 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.4, #2) and "The 2015 Billboard Music Awards" (11.120 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.7, #1).

FOX (2.300 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.0, #2) then was a distant second with its mix of a repeat "The Simpsons" (1.540 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T12), a new "Bob's Burgers" (1.933 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9) and the season finales of "The Simpsons" (2.793 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 1.2, #4), "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" (2.295 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T5), "Family Guy" (2.820 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 1.3, #3) and "Bob's Burgers" (2.420 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T5).

Next up was CBS (6.376 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3) and its combination of "60 Minutes" (8.699 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T7), "I Love Lucy Superstar Special" (6.408 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T9), "Battle Creek" (5.104 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T12) and a second "Battle Creek" (5.292 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T12).

And finally, new episodes of "Dateline NBC" (5.740 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T7), "AD: The Bible Continues" (4.846 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.8, #11) and "American Odyssey" (2.665 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.4, #15) closed out the evening on NBC (4.748 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T3).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+11.11% - Dateline NBC
0.00% - America's Funniest Home Videos
0.00% - The Simpsons
-8.33% - Bob's Burgers - 9:30
-8.33% - Brooklyn Nine-Nine
-9.09% - 60 Minutes
-10.00% - Bob's Burgers - 7:30 (vs. 5/3/15)
-11.11% - AD: The Bible Continues
-18.75% - Family Guy (vs. 5/3/15)
-20.00% - American Odyssey
-25.00% - Battle Creek

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+150.00% - Dateline NBC (vs. Coldplay: Ghost Stories/American Dream Builders)
+18.18% - Family Guy (vs. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey)
+5.71% - The 2015 Billboard Music Awards
0.00% - Bob's Burgers - 9:30 (vs. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey)
0.00% - AD: The Bible Continues (vs. The Women of SNL (Repeat))
-12.50% - America's Funniest Home Videos
-23.08% - 60 Minutes
-25.00% - Bob's Burgers - 7:30 (vs. American Dad)
-25.00% - The Simpsons
-45.00% - Brooklyn Nine-Nine (vs. Family Guy)
-47.06% - I Love Lucy Superstar Special (vs. The Amazing Race)
-50.00% - American Odyssey (vs. The Women of SNL (Repeat))
-50.00% - Battle Creek - 9:00 (vs. The Good Wife)
-60.00% - Battle Creek - 10:00 (vs. The Mentalist)

Source: Nielsen Media Research





  [may 2016]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[11/05/26 - 09:30 AM]
"Yaga" Is the #1 Exclusive Series Launch in the History of AMC+
The series also charted as the #1 social drama across all U.S. TV and streaming on its premiere day.

[11/04/26 - 03:37 PM]
Bears-Seahawks Draws 16.4M Viewers, Becomes Most-Watched ESPN-Only "Monday Night Football" Game Since 2019
Bears-Seahawks is also "Monday Night Football's" third most-watched Week 8 game of the ESPN era (2006-present).

[11/04/26 - 12:31 PM]
"Saturday Night Live" Hits Season High with Host Inde Navarrette and Musical Guest Gracie Abrams
It was also the top Peacock performance of the season and best since March 14, 2026, with host and musical guest Harry Styles.

[11/04/26 - 11:01 AM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of October 26
"The Terminal List," "Carrie," "Reacher," "Neagley," and "Helluva Boss" led all original series worldwide.

[11/03/26 - 03:01 PM]
USA Sports Delivers Most-Watched WNBA Playoff Game Ever; 3.3 Million Viewers Watch Valkyries Win Title in First-Ever Game 7
Viewership was up 128% vs. the 2025 WNBA Finals deciding game (LV-PHX Game 4).

[11/03/26 - 02:42 PM]
"College GameDay" Continues Historic Run Over Halloween at IU, ABC Takes Top Spot and Delivers Three of Top Five Most-Watched Games
ESPN topped all networks in Week 9, with ABC delivering three of the week's five most-watched games and winning the noon and afternoon windows.

[11/03/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of October 26 - "Lupin" Part 4 Captures the No. 1 Spot in This Week's Top 10
"The One About Matthew Perry" debuted in the No. 1 spot on the English TV list, gathering 9.5 million views.

[11/03/26 - 11:01 AM]
CBS Up +12% from Its Week #2 Last Year - Network Places 14 of the Top 20 Series; Top Two Comedies; Top Three New Series
CBS episodes topped the Nielsen live plus 7-days of multiplatform viewership for the week of October 12-18.

[10/31/26 - 10:48 AM]
USA Sports Delivers 1.5 Million Viewers for Valkyries-Dream Game 6 Thursday Matinee
USA Sports' Game 6 coverage delivered the fifth most-watched WNBA Finals game on cable on record.

[10/30/26 - 08:57 AM]
ABC News Wins Across Friday Night, Sunday Morning and Late-Night
"20/20: Help Dale Find Dee" ranked as Friday's No. 1 newsmagazine in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54, and Adults 18-49.

[10/29/26 - 03:25 PM]
Champions at Last: 14.2 Million Viewers Projected for FOX Sports' Coverage of Milwaukee Brewers World Series Clinch
13,476,000 viewers tuned in for World Series Game 4 presented by Capital One across FOX and FOX Deportes.

[10/29/26 - 12:21 PM]
ABC Thursday Returns Strong with "9-1-1" and "9-1-1: Nashville" Rising Over Previous Season Averages
The Season 10 debut of "9-1-1" (8 p.m.) earned 8.14 million Total Viewers after seven days of viewing on ABC, Hulu, Hulu on Disney+ and digital platforms, based on Nielsen's competitive multiplatform measurement.

[10/28/26 - 03:31 PM]
Cowboys-Eagles on "Monday Night Football" Delivers 18.8M Viewers
Seven weeks into ESPN's Super Bowl LXI season, "Monday Night Football" is up 26% compared to the same point in 2025, averaging 19M viewers.

[10/28/26 - 11:30 AM]
"The Drew Barrymore Show" Hits All-Time Series High
This season to date, "The Drew Barrymore Show" averaged 1.90 million total viewers, up +36% year over year.

[10/28/26 - 11:01 AM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of October 19
"The Terminal List," "Carrie," "Reacher," "Neagley," and "Off Campus" led all original series worldwide.