Fast National ratings for Tuesday, April 13, 2011.
Whenever “American Idol” has a shocking elimination, people always wonder if one disappointing result is going to be enough to sour the audience. If that question was asked after last week’s Pia Toscano ouster, the answer appears, as usual, to be “No.”
FOX’s resilient talent show dominated the 8 p.m. hour and performed well enough in its final half-hour (up from last week) to carry the network despite a second week drop for “Breaking In.”
In other ratings news, it was an OK premiere for ABC’s “Happy Endings” and a strong enough finale for “Shedding for the Wedding” that we have no choice but to assume The CW had sport-based pre-emptions in some markets. [Note that The CW sent out a pleased ratings release, suggesting that folks may just have been excited to see which couples lost the most weight.]
For the night, FOX averaged a 6.0 rating among adults 18-49, doubling up the 3.0 rating for CBS in the coveted demographic. ABC’s 2.3 rating and the 1.2 rating for NBC followed, while The CW was fifth with a 0.8 rating.
Overall, FOX averaged an estimated 18.89 million viewers to go with a 10.6 rating/17 share. CBS was a distant second with a 7.2/11 and 11.305 million viewers, still well ahead of the 4.1/6 and 6.35 million viewers for ABC and NBC’s 2.5/4 and 4 million viewers. The CW was fifth with a 1.2/2 and 1.82 million viewers.
8 p.m. – The first hour of “American Idol” delivered 21.28 million viewers and a 6.7 rating among adults 18-49, only a negligible drop for FOX. CBS’ “Survivor: Redemption Island” averaged 10.75 million viewers and a 2.9 key demo rating in second. New episodes of “The Middle” (6.1 million and a 1.8 demo rating) and “Better with You” (4.92 million and a 1.5 demo rating) were third for ABC, beating the 3.68 million viewers for NBC’s “Minute to Win It.” The CW’s “America’s Next Top Model” had its best audience in a month with 2.25 million and tied with NBC with a 1.0 demo rating.
9 p.m. – FOX stayed in first in the 9 p.m. hour with “American Idol” (24.6 million and an 8.0 demo rating) and “Breaking In” (8.4 million and a 2.8 demo rating). [Despite a better lead-in, “Breaking In” was off by 0.7 in the key demo and just under 1.5 million viewers from last week’s Fast Nationals.] CBS was second for the hour with 13.26 million viewers and a 3.4 demo rating for “Criminal Minds.” ABC’s “Modern Family” (9.53 million and a 3.8 demo rating) and the premiere of “Happy Endings” (7.27 million viewers and a 2.7 rating) were third. NBC’s repeat of “Minute to Win It” was fourth with 3.48 million viewers. On The CW, the finale of “Shedding for the Wedding” drew the series’ biggest audience yet with 1.39 million viewers and a 0.6 demo rating.
10 p.m. – Without any competition, CBS’ “Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior” ruled the 10 p.m. hour with 9.905 million viewers and a 2.0 demo rating. ABC was second with the time period premiere of “Happy Endings” (5.72 million and a 2.3 demo) and a repeat of “Modern Family” (4.59 million and a 1.8 demo). NBC’s “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” was third with 4.84 million viewers.
All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.