Fast National ratings for Tuesday, March 13, 2012.
It was another night of post-Spring Forward ratings drops, with “New Girl,” “The River” and even an “NCIS” repeat among the offerings taking big falls. While CBS still dominated overall, the declines led to a three-way logjam among young viewers.
The night was so sluggish that even though NBC’s “Fashion Star” got off to a fairly dismal start, it still won the 10 p.m. hour among young viewers, giving NBC a reason to pretend to smile.
[Reminder: In the aftermath of Sunday morning’s time change, most primetime early-evening numbers will likely be lower-than-usual this week, a peculiar phenomenon that occurs every year.]
Among adults 18-49, NBC joined CBS and FOX atop the heap with a 1.8 rating, a three-way tie for the key demographic. ABC averaged a 1.4 rating, followed by The CW’s 0.5 key demo rating.
Overall, though, CBS had first place all to itself with 10.42 million viewers and a 6.7 rating/11 share for Tuesday primetime. NBC was a distant second with 5.45 million viewers, nipping the 5.44 million for ABC. FOX was fourth with a 2.6/4 and 4.23 million viewers, while The CW averaged a 0.8/1 and 1.16 million viewers.
8 p.m. – CBS started primetime in first with 12.71 million viewers and a 2.1 rating among adults 18-49 for an “NCIS” repeat. NBC was second with 6.08 million viewers and a 1.9 key demo rating for “The Biggest Loser.” ABC was third overall and fourth in the key demo with a “Last Man Standing” repeat (5.42 million viewers and a 1.3 key demo) and a new “Cougar Town” (4.41 million viewers and a 1.4 key demo). [“Cougar Town” was one of the early evening shows least impacted by the Spring Forward drop and may even have risen a hair in total viewers.] FOX was fourth overall and third in the key demo with “Raising Hope” (4.29 million viewers and a 1.8 key demo) and “I Hate My Teenage Daughter” (3.52 million and a 1.3 key demo). The CW’s “90210” averaged 1.22 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – A repeat of “NCIS: Los Angeles” kept CBS in first overall with 11.29 million viewers, but the network slipped to second with a 1.9 rating among adults 18-49 in the 9 p.m. hour. NBC was second overall and tied for second in the key demo with “The Biggest Loser” (6.9 million and a 2.2 key demo) and “Fashion Star” (4.69 million and a 1.6 key demo). FOX won the hour among young viewers, but finished third overall with “New Girl” (5.68 million viewers and a 2.7 key demo rating) and “Breaking In” (3.47 million and a 1.5 key demo). ABC’s “The River” averaged 4.13 million viewers and a 1.3 key demo rating in fourth. On The CW, “Ringer” pulled in 1.1 million viewers and a 0.4 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – ABC grabbed first overall for the 10 p.m. hour with 7.28 million viewers for a new “Body of Proof,” which finished second with a 1.4 rating among adults 18-49. CBS’ repeat of “Unforgettable” was a close second with 7.27 million viewers and a close third with a 1.3 key demo rating. NBC’s “Fashion Star” was far back in third overall with 4.49 million viewers and won the hour with a 1.6 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.