Fast National ratings for Wednesday, April 2, 2014.
“Survivor: Cagayan” and “Criminal Minds” both beat “American Idol” in key measures and helped CBS win Wednesday night both overall and among young viewers.
“Idol” was actually flat week-to-week in Fast Nationals, while “Survivor” was down a hair, but last week was the first time the “Survivor” margin-of-victory from Fast Nationals held up over “Idol” in Finals. Given the history of tightening in Finals, there's a strong possibility FOX could end up tied for the night in the key demo, but we'll have to wait and see.
For the most part it was a sluggish Wednesday, though there were small gains for “Suburgatory,” “Nashville,” “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” and “Chicago PD,” while “Modern Family,” “Mixology,” “Arrow” and “The 100” were among the shows in decline.
On to the numbers…
Among adults 18-49, CBS averaged a 2.2 rating for Wednesday night, nipping the 2.1 rating for FOX in the key demographic. ABC was a close third with a 1.9 key demo rating, followed by the 1.5 key demo rating for NBC. The CW averaged a 0.7 key demo rating for the night.
Overall, CBS had a bit of a cushion with 9.86 million viewers and a 6.2 rating/10 share for Wednesday, topping the 8.77 million viewers and 5.6/9 for FOX. There was a gap to ABC's 5.98 million viewers and 3.9/6, which was closely followed by the 3.5/6 and 5.32 million viewers for NBC. The CW averaged 2.12 million viewers and a 1.4/2 for the night.
8 p.m. – CBS started primetime in first with 9.55 million viewers and a 2.2 rating among adults 18-49 for “Survivor: Cagayan,” which beat the 8.32 million viewers and 2.0 key demo rating for FOX's “American Idol.” ABC was third with “The Middle” (7.12 million and a 1.9 key demo rating) and “Surburgatory” (5.21 million and 1.6 key demo rating), a which were far closer together than they were last week. NBC's “Revolution” averaged 4.41 million viewers and a 1.3 key demo rating. On The CW, “Arrow” averaged 2.34 million viewers and a 0.8 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – “Criminal Minds” led the 9 p.m. hour with 10.37 million viewers and a 2.5 rating among adults 18-49. FOX's “American Idol” was second for the hour with 9.215 million viewers and finished third with a 2.2 key demo rating. ABC was second in the key demo and third overall for the hour with “Modern Family” (8.775 million and a night-best 3.2 key demo) and “Mixology” (4.395 million and a 1.6 key demo), though obviously “Mixology” finished behind “Idol” in the demo for its half-hour. NBC's “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” was fourth with 5.82 million viewers and a 1.7 key demo rating. On The CW, “The 100” had its second straight week of small declines and averaged 1.9 million viewers and a 0.6 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” closed primetime in first for CBS with 9.66 million viewers and a 1.9 rating among adults 18-49. The race for second was closer than normal with “Chicago PD” averaging 5.73 million viewers and a 1.6 key demo rating, edging out the 5.175 million viewers and 1.5 key demo rating for ABC's “Nashville.”
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.