Fast National ratings for Thursday, August 14, 2014.
NBC got a big bump for the season finale of “Last Comic Standing,” but still couldn't top CBS, which rode a strong “Big Brother” performance to Thursday wins in all measures.
FOX's “Gang Related” finale was also up from last week, though last week's numbers were depressed by NFL preemptions and “Gang Related” was closer to flat with recent regular airings.
And over on ABC, “The Quest” dropped a little in the key demo, “NY Med” was flat and “Rookie Blue” was up a hair. Since ABC had the NFL preseason preemption in Chicago, adjust expectations accordingly. [NBC had the NFL preemption in Jacksonville, but… come on. That's not causing a big impact. Sorry, Jaguars fans.]
On to the numbers…
Among adults 18-49, CBS averaged a 1.4 rating for Thursday night, tops in the key demographic. NBC was a close second with a 1.3 key demo rating, topping ABC's 0.9 key demo rating. FOX's 0.6 key demo rating and the 0.2 key demo rating for The CW followed.
Overall, CBS averaged an estimated 5.48 million viewers and a 3.5 rating/6 share for Thursday primetime. NBC averaged 4.51 million viewers and a 2.9/5, compared to the 3.0/5 and 4.45 million viewers for ABC for the night. FOX averaged 2.04 million viewers and a 1.3/2, followed by The CW's 527,000 viewers and 0.3/1.
8 p.m. – CBS started primetime in first with 6.82 million viewers and a 1.4 rating among adults 18-49 for repeats of “The Big Bang Theory” and “Mom.” NBC's “Hollywood Game Night” repeat was well back in second with 3.79 million viewers and finished second with a 1.0 key demo rating, ahead of the 2.76 million viewers and 0.6 key demo rating for “The Quest” on ABC. FOX's “Sleepy Hollow” repeat averaged 1.73 million viewers and a 0.4 key demo rating, followed by the 540,000 viewers and 0.2 key demo rating for The CW's “Vampire Diaries” repeat.
9 p.m. – “Big Brother” kept CBS on top with 6.39 million viewers and a 2.2 rating among adults 18-49 in the 9 p.m. hour. ABC's “Rookie Blue” was second with 5.06 million viewers and third with a 1.0 key demo rating. The first part of NBC's “Last Comic Standing” was third with 4.62 million viewers and second with a 1.3 key demo rating, beating the 2.36 million viewers and 0.7 key demo rating for FOX's “Gang Related.” A repeat of “The Originals” averaged 515,000 viewers and a 0.2 key demo rating on The CW.
10 p.m. – “NY Med” led the 10 p.m. hour overall with 5.52 million viewers and finished second with a 0.9 rating among adults 18-49 for ABC. NBC's “Last Comic Standing” was second with 5.12 million viewers and led with a 1.5 key demo rating. CBS' “Elementary” repeat averaged 3.24 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change, particularly in the case of live events.