or


[04/07/19 - 08:32 AM]
Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: CBS Wins Big with Final Four Coverage
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 nine ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (4/6/19):

CBS (14.544 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 3.7, #1) surged to the top spot on Saturday with its primetime coverage of the "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament" (16.593 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.0, #1) Final Four followed by a second entry from the "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament" (14.134 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 3.6, #2).

NBC (2.958 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.4, #2) then was a distant second with its mix of "Dateline Saturday Night Mystery" (3.000 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T4), another "Dateline Saturday Night Mystery" (3.477 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #3) and a vintage "Saturday Night Live" (2.398 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T4).

Next up was ABC (2.423 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.3, #3) with encores of "American Idol" (1.986 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.3, #7) and "20/20 Saturday" (3.299 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T4).

And finally, FOX (0.865 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.2, #4) closed out the evening with second runs of "MasterChef Junior" (0.746 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T8) and "9-1-1" (0.984 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T8).

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

· The April 6 telecast of "Saturday Night Live," with host Kit Harington and musical guest Sara Bareilles, averaged a 4.4 rating, 11 share in "live plus same day" household results from the 56 local markets metered by Nielsen Media Research and a 1.7/9 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

· The April 6 "Saturday Night Live" ranks as the #1 non-sports show of the night on the Big 4 networks in both metered-market households and 18-49 in the local people meters, easily topping all primetime entertainment programs on those nets. In fact, in 18-49 in the local people meters, "SNL" topped all but three primetime entertainment programs on the Big 4 so far this week.

· Versus what "Saturday Night Live" averaged with originals for the month of April last year, the April 6 telecast is up +2% in metered-market households (4.4 vs. 4.3).


Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (4/7/18):

ABC (2.353 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #1) inched past the competition on Saturday with its regular season finales to "NBA Countdown" (1.860 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T6) and "NBA Saturday Primetime on ABC" (2.451 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T1).

NBC (2.737 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.6, #2) then was a close second with its mix of "Will & Grace" (1.884 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T9), "Superstore" (1.996 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.5, #5), "Dateline Saturday Night Mystery" (3.426 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T1) and a vintage "Saturday Night Live" (2.845 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T1).

Next up was CBS (3.546 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.4, #3) with its trio of "Ransom" (2.715 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T6), a repeat "NCIS" (3.362 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T6) and "48 Hours" (4.561 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.6, #4).

And finally, encores of "MasterChef Junior" (1.139 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T9) and "Showtime at the Apollo" (1.307 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T9) on FOX (1.223 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.3, #4) rounded out the night.

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

· The April 7 telecast of "Saturday Night Live," hosted by Chadwick Boseman with musical guest Cardi B, has averaged a 4.6 rating, 11 share in "live plus same day" household results from the 56 local markets metered by Nielsen Media Research and a 2.0/10 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

· These are the highest "Saturday Night Live" figures in both measures since Feb. 3 (4.6 in metered-market households, 2.0 in 18-49 in the local people meters with host Natalie Portman and musical guest Dua Lipa). "SNL" last scored higher with the Jan. 27 edition (4.9 in households, 2.3 in 18-49 with host Will Ferrell and musical guest Chris Stapleton).

· "Saturday Night Live" is the #1 show of the night on the Big 4 networks in both metered-market households and 18-49 in the local people meters, topping in both measures all primetime programs on those nets, including ABC's Thunder-Rockets NBA coverage.

· "Saturday Night Live" outrated the night's #2 Big 4 program in metered-market households by a +44% margin (4.6 vs. 3.2 for CBS's 10 p.m. telecast of "48 Hours") and the #2 show in 18-49 in the local people meters by +122% (2.0 vs. 0.9 for the Thunder-Rockets game).

· Last night's telecast is up +2% versus "SNL's" year-ago April average for originals in metered-market households (4.6 vs. 4.5).

Source: Nielsen Media Research





  [april 2019]  
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
[01/09/26 - 08:47 AM]
ESPN's Second Most-Watched NBA Regular Season Ever
Through 21 games, the NBA on ESPN networks is averaging 2.6M viewers, up 35 percent from last season.

[01/08/26 - 02:00 PM]
ESPN Networks Deliver Record-Breaking Viewership for 2025-26 FCS Playoffs and Championship
The 2026 FCS Championship Game averaged 2.3 million viewers on ESPN, ranking as the third-best FCS Championship audience ever.

[01/08/26 - 01:17 PM]
ABC News' "Nightline" Ranks No. 1 in All Key Demos
In fact, "Nightline" is ranking No. 1 in Adults 25-54 and Adults 18-49 for the 3rd straight year.

[01/08/26 - 01:16 PM]
ABC News' Primetime Special "The Year: 2025" Earns Nearly 4 Million Total Viewers - Growing by Double Digits Over Last Year in Multiplatform Viewing
The 15th annual year-end special earned 3.857 million Total Viewers, growing impressively over last year's performance by +37% (vs. 2.818 million), after three days of viewing on ABC, Disney+, Hulu and digital platforms.

[01/07/26 - 12:32 PM]
Bowl Season on ESPN Networks Delivers Strongest Audience Since 2015-16
ABC delivered its largest non CFP bowl audience in 12 years, averaging 6.2 million viewers across six games.

[01/07/26 - 09:29 AM]
In 2025, Fans Power ESPN and "ESPN on ABC" to Its Most-Watched Year in Over a Decade
ESPN networks increased industry-leading sports share to 35 percent, up from 31 percent in 2024.

[01/06/26 - 03:18 PM]
FOX NFL Rings in Best Regular Season Since 2015
The regular season averaged 19.633 million viewers for the network.

[01/06/26 - 03:00 PM]
Record-Setting Season as "Sunday Night Football" on NBC and Peacock Averages 23.5 Million Viewers & Paces as Primetime's #1 Show for Unprecedented 15th Consecutive Year
"Sunday Night Football" averaged a Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 23.5 million viewers for the 2025 season.

[01/06/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of December 29 - "Stranger Things 5" Concludes Right Side Up at No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
At No. 2 on the English TV list with 12.7 million views is the new Harlan Coben mystery series "Run Away," centered on a father desperate for clues about his missing daughter while a string of related murders heightens the urgency to find her.

[01/05/26 - 02:34 PM]
2025-26 College Football Playoff Quarterfinals on ESPN Score 19.3 Million Average Viewers; CFP Up YOY Through Two Rounds
The Rose Bowl (Indiana vs. Alabama) topped all coverage with 23.9 million viewers on average.

[01/05/26 - 01:30 PM]
Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" Delivers Record-Breaking Performance in 2025 Across Linear and Social
In addition, the award-winning franchise landed the #1 spot among cable late-night series on Mondays in 2025 among P18-34 and P18-49.

[01/05/26 - 09:49 AM]
Prime Video Delivers "Thursday Night Football's" Most-Watched Season Ever
The 2025 season averaged 15.33 million viewers throughout its 15-game campaign, marking a +16% increase over the 2024 season and the third-consecutive year of double-digit, year-over-year viewership growth.

[01/02/26 - 03:45 PM]
"Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" Rises to Four Year High Reaching 30 Million Total Viewers at Midnight
The telecast averaged 18.8 million total viewers in the 11:30pm-12:30am hour alone.

[01/02/26 - 09:49 AM]
FOX NFL's Week 17 "America's Game of the Week" Comes Out on Top with 28.8 Million Viewers
The Eagles-Bills close finish marked FOX's second most-watched telecast of the regular season.

[12/31/25 - 12:46 PM]
NFL Christmas Gameday on Netflix Scores Again With the Lions-Vikings Becoming the Most-Streamed NFL Game in US History
Said coverage averaged 27.5 million viewers in the US, with US viewership peaking at over 30 million viewers.