Fast National ratings for Monday, August 25, 2014.
Airing on an atypical Monday in August, the Primetime Emmy Awards delivered primetime-winning numbers for NBC, despite the repetitive nature of the big winners.
Per NBC, fast nationals for the Emmys telecast were down from last year's show, which benefited from an inflated NFL lead-in, but they were up from the 2012 telecast. In fact, NBC is claiming that these were the second highest ratings Emmys in preliminary metered market ratings in the past eight years.
We will, of course, have more accurate figures later, but if Seth Meyers' claim that these were the first Monday Emmys since 1976 was correct, then we're confident saying this was the highest rated Monday Emmys telecast since 1976.
The Emmys had only limited impact on the competition. FOX's “MasterChef” dropped in viewers but was flat in the key demo, while “Hotel Hell” maybe even rose a hair in the demo. ABC's “Mistresses” was up week-to-week and CBS' “Under the Dome” posted only a small drop. On The CW, “America's Next Top Model” was down, but only a hair.
On to the numbers…
Among adults 18-49, NBC averaged a 3.8 rating for Monday night, easily tops in the key demographic. FOX averaged a 1.8 key demo rating, followed by ABC's 1.2 key demo rating and the 1.1 key demo rating for CBS. The CW averaged a 0.4 key demo rating.
Overall, NBC averaged an estimated 13.78 million viewers and an 8.7 rating/15 share for Monday primetime, far ahead of the 5.035 million viewers and 3.3/5 for CBS. FOX was third with 4.62 million viewers and a 2.8/5, followed by ABC's 4.155 million viewers and 2.9/5. The CW averaged a 0.7/1 and 1.16 million viewers.
8 p.m. – The start of NBC's Emmys telecast averaged 13.66 million viewers and a 3.6 rating among adults 18-49 in the 8 p.m. hour, which gets complicated when you remember that by 8 p.m. the Emmys were over for much of the country. FOX's “MasterChef” averaged 5.34 million viewers and a 2.0 key demo rating for a clear second. ABC's “Bachelor in Paradise” was third with 4.65 million viewers and a 1.2 key demo rating, topping the 3.94 million viewers and 1.0 key demo rating for CBS' repeats of “2 Broke Girls” and “Mom.” The CW's two “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” repeats averaged 1.25 million viewers and a 0.4 key demo rating.
9 p.m. – The Emmys peaked in the 9 p.m. hour with 14.57 million viewers and a 4.0 rating among adults 18-49 for NBC. ABC's “Bachelor in Paradise” averaged 4.64 million viewers for second and a 1.3 key demo rating for third. CBS' repeats of “Mike & Molly” and “Two and a Half Men” finished third with 4.57 million viewers and fourth with a 1.0 key demo rating, compared to the 3.9 million viewers and 1.6 key demo rating for FOX's “Hotel Hell.” The CW's “America's Next Top Model” averaged 1.08 million viewers and a 0.4 key demo rating.
10 p.m. – NBC closed primetime in first with 13.11 million viewers and a 3.7 rating among adults 18-49 for the Emmys. CBS' “Under the Dome” was a distant second with 6.59 million viewers and a 1.4 key demo rating. ABC's “Mistresses” averaged 3.17 million viewers and a 0.9 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.