Fast National ratings for Thursday, February 17, 2011.
A heavily promoted return appearance by Justin Bieber only gave “CSI” a tiny week-to-week bump and that improvement wasn’t nearly enough to carry CBS over FOX, which actually got a small bump from the evening’s installment of “American Idol.”
For the night, FOX averaged a 5.4 rating among adults 18-49, far ahead of CBS’ 3.0 rating and ABC’s 2.7 rating in the key demographic. NBC was fourth with a 2.0 rating, beating the 1.1 rating for The CW.
Overall, FOX averaged an estimated 15.95 million viewers to go with a 9.0 rating/15 share, topping CBS’ strong 8.0/13 and 13.11 million viewers. ABC was well back in third with a 5.0/8 and 7.75 million viewers, nearly doubling NBC’s 2.5/4 and 4.21 million viewers. The CW was fifth with 2.57 million viewers and a 1.5/3.
8 p.m. – FOX dominated the 8 p.m. hour with 21.94 million viewers and a 7.5 rating among adults 18-49 for “American Idol,” both numbers up from last Thursday. CBS was second with “The Big Bang Theory” (12.48 million viewers and a 3.7 demo rating) and the season finale of “$#*! My Dad Says” (9.78 million viewers and a 2.6 demo rating). ABC’s “Wipeout” was far behind in third with 6.19 million viewers and a 1.9 demo rating. NBC was fourth with “Community” (4.16 million viewers and a 1.8 demo) and “Perfect Couples” (3.05 million and a 1.4 demo). The CW’s “The Vampire Diaries” averaged 3.01 million viewers and a 1.4 demo, both up from last week.
9 p.m. – CBS moved into first in the 9 p.m. hour as the return of Justin Bieber brought “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” to 13.27 million viewers, winning the hour, and to a 2.9 demo rating, third for the hour. [Digging deeper into the “CSI” numbers lest we malign Bieber Fever too much: Yes, Bieber led to a 0.1 ratings point boost among adults 18-49. However, among women 12-17, “CSI” went from a 1.2 rating last week to a 2.5 rating this week, as CBS appears to have actually won the hour for that particular demo. Among boys 12-17, “CSI” did a 0.8 rating last week and a 1.4 rating this week. Among women 18-24, “CSI” went from a 1.3 rating last week to a 1.9 rating last night. So there you go…] ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” was second overall with 10.2 million viewers and won the hour in the key demo with a 3.7 rating, though both numbers show continued declines. FOX’s “Bones” was a close third with 9.95 million viewers and a solid second with a 3.3 demo rating. NBC stayed fourth with a low-rated “The Office” (6.41 million and a 3.3 rating) and “Parks & Recreation” (4.39 million viewers and a 2.3 demo). The CW’s “Nikita” averaged 2.14 million viewers and a 1.8 demo rating in fifth.
10 p.m. – “The Mentalist” closed strong for CBS with 14.94 million viewers and a 3.0 demo rating, but slightly up from last week. ABC’s “Private Practice” averaged 6.85 million viewers and a 2.4 demo rating. NBC trailed again with “30 Rock” (4.06 million and a 2.0 demo) and “Outsourced” (3.21 million and a 1.5 demo.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.