Fast National ratings for Thursday, March 14, 2013.
On a low-rated Thursday night, “The Big Bang Theory” helped CBS nearly sweep primetime in all key measures, with only “Two and a Half Men” dropping its half-hour to “American Idol.”
Meanwhile, The CW’s “Vampire Diaries” returned after a couple weeks away to top “Community” among young viewers, while “Parks and Recreation” and “Person of Interest” were among the shows getting slight bumps.
In fact, “Community” will be approaching series lows among young viewers, as will “American Idol,” “Two and a Half Men,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “The Office.”
[Two notes: Just because the Daylight Savings Time Effect hasn’t been a major factor this week doesn’t mean it isn’t still a real thing. TV usage among adults 18-49 was down by 9 percent in the 8 p.m. hour. Also, CBS’ numbers may be slightly impacted by college basketball-based preemptions in roughly 3 percent of the country.]
Among adults 18-49, CBS averaged a 3.1 rating for Thursday primetime, beating FOX’s 2.5 rating in the key demographic. ABC was third with a 1.7 key demo rating, while NBC’s 1.2 rating and The CW’s 0.8 key demo rating followed.
Overall, CBS averaged an estimated 13.37 million viewers and an 8.3 rating/14 share for Thursday night, with FOX’s 5.2/8 and 8.54 million viewers a distant second. ABC was third with a 3.8/6 and 5.63 million viewers. NBC’s 3.15 million viewers and 2.1/3 still led the 2.015 million viewers and 1.2/2 for The CW.
[Univision averaged 3.45 million viewers and a 1.4 rating among adults 18-49 for Thursday night.]
8 p.m. – CBS won the 8 p.m. hour with a season low for “The Big Bang Theory” (15.71 million and a 4.5 key demo rating) and “Two and a Half Men” (12.4 million and a 3.3 key demo rating). FOX’s “American Idol” averaged 11.63 million viewers and a 3.0 rating among adults 18-49 for the hour, beating “Men” in viewers and tying in the demo for the half-hour. ABC was far back in third with 4.49 million viewers and a 1.3 key demo rating for a repeat of “Shark Tank.” NBC followed with “Community” (2.61 million viewers and a 1.0 key demo) and “Parks and Recreation” (3.01 million and a 1.6 key demo). The CW’s “The Vampire Diaries” averaged 2.49 million viewers and a 1.1 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – “Person of Interest” averaged 14.57 million viewers and a 2.9 rating among adults 18-49 to win the 9 p.m. hour for CBS. ABC aired a new “Grey’s Anatomy” in the middle of a pair of repeats and averaged only 8.015 million viewers and a 2.6 key demo rating. FOX’s “Glee” averaged 5.46 million viewers and a 2.0 key demo rating in third. On NBC, “The Office” (3.55 million and a 1.9 key demo) and “1600 Penn” (2.29 million and a 1.0 key demo) finished fourth. The CW’s “Beauty and the Beast” averaged 1.54 million viewers and a 0.5 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – “Elementary” cruised to a 10 p.m. win for CBS with 11.49 million viewers and a 2.4 rating among adults 18-49. ABC’s repeat of “Scandal” averaged 4.28 million viewers and a 1.2 key demo rating compared to the 3.72 million viewers and 0.9 key demo rating for NBC’s repeat of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.”
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.