ratings

The Dallas Mavericks took a 3-2 lead in the NBA finals last night, giving ABC a big lead over the competition as it more than doubled No. 2 Fox’s rating. Dallas’ 112-103 victory averaged a 6.3 adults 18-49 rating from 9 to 11 p.m., up 17% over a 5.4 for last year’s game five between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics.

America’s Got Talent continued its hot streak last night in its Wednesday night debut, boosting NBC into a tie for first place with Fox, the only other Big Four network with original episodes. Talent averaged a 3.6 adults 18-49 rating from 9 to 11 p.m., its best non-finale showing on a Wednesday since 2006 and up 24% over last year’s Wednesday debut.

With close games and popular players, this year’s Miami Heat-Dallas Mavericks NBA finals on ABC are on pace to be the highest rated since 2004, outpacing even last year’s Los Angeles Lakers-Boston Celtics matchup. Through four games, the series is averaging 15.54 million total viewers, according to Nielsen, up 20,000 over last year. Among adults 18-49, the series is averaging a 6.4 rating, up 0.1 from last year.

The courtroom leader delivers her biggest ratings since May 1999. Other strong performers included Judge Joe Brown, Oprah, Dr. Phil, Swift Justice, Entertainment Tonight, Family Feud and Two and a Half Men.

Opposite another highly rated NBA finals game, NBC’s The Voice and America’s Got Talent held up well in their second week together. NBC averaged a 4.2 adults 18-49 rating for the two programs, down from last week but still easily the night’s highest-rated non-sports shows. In fact, they’ll probably be the week’s highest-rated non-sports shows as well.

The first three games of the NBA Finals between the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks were more popular with viewers than any of pro basketball’s ultimate series since 2004. Those games led ABC to a victory in Nielsen’s weekly primetime ratings competition.

Just as in the regular season, ABC will be the network to beat this summer on Mondays. ABC dominated the competition last night with The Bachelorette and week two of Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition, continuing the winning streak that began while Dancing with the Stars was airing on Mondays during the regular season. ABC averaged a 2.4 adults 18-49 rating and 7 share in primetime last night, 60% ahead of No. 2 Fox, which averaged a 1.5/4.

Another close game between the Miami Heat and Dallas Mavericks boosted ABC to No. 1 in primetime. The Heat took a 2-1 series lead with last night’s 88-86 victory, which produced the second-best game three ratings in the past seven years. The contest averaged an 11.1 household rating, according to Nielsen metered-market ratings, trailing last year’s game three between the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics by 0.4 ratings points.

The Dallas Mavericks tied up the NBA finals 1-1 last night after a dramatic rally from 15 points down in the fourth quarter, boosting ABC to an easy Thursday night victory. The game averaged a 10.5 metered-market household rating, down from a 10.9 for last year’s game two between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers. But it was the second-highest-rated game two in the past seven years, behind only last year’s contest.

So You Think You Can Dance continued its strong start to the season with its first Wednesday episode last night. Dance averaged a 3.0 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m., up 7% over its Wednesday premiere last year. That follows Thursday’s season premiere, which grew 7% over last year to a 3.2. Last night’s show also jumped 14% in total viewers compared to last year, to 8.4 million.

CBS finished the 2010-11 season last week as the nation’s most-watched television network for the eighth time in nine years. Fox won its seventh season in a row among the 18-to-49-year-old demographic closely watched by advertisers. The country’s favorite TV show was Fox’s American Idol for the eighth straight season.

The genre gets another boost from the former California governor’s troubles. Court shows also do well in the week ending May 22 as does the season’s rookie champion, Swift Justice with Nancy Grace.

It looks as though NBC’s America’s Got Talent and The Voice are a very on-key combination on Tuesday nights. Talent had its best-ever premiere among total viewers and lead-out Voice hit a series high in viewers despite airing against tough competition from ABC’s NBA finals. Talent averaged 15 million viewers from 8 to 10 p.m., up 21% from last year, when it faced the premieres of Wipeout and Hell’s Kitchen.

The first three rounds of the NHL playoffs did very well on cable and broadcast, seeing increases over last year and even setting a few records. So you’d expect that the Stanley Cup finals, which begin tonight at 8 p.m. on NBC, would see equally strong ratings. Unfortunately for NBC, that may not be the case, due to simple geography. One of the finals teams is the Vancouver Canucks, and Nielsen’s measurements only include U.S. markets. Therefore the viewership in Vancouver, which is bound to be very high, won’t count toward the U.S. ratings.

The summer’s new shows have begun to debut, and it looks as though ABC already has a mild hit in Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition. The latest in the long-running franchise averaged a 2.3 adults 18-49 rating in the 10 p.m. timeslot in its premiere last night, becoming ABC’s best new summer debut since August 2009. Weight was the No. 1 show on broadcast last night, and it even grew from its lead-in, the long-established reality show The Bachelorette, which averaged a 2.1 from 8 to 10 p.m.

The two-hour premiere of So You Think You Can Dance delivered Fox an easy ratings win on Thursday night against a broadcast slate rife with reruns. Dance averaged a 3.2 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 9.1 million viewers overall. That was up 7% compared to last season’s debut for the highest-rated premiere in three years and the most-watched debut in four years.

Univision will finish the 2010-11 TV season as the fastest-growing broadcast network among persons 18 to 49. The Spanish-language media leader, lifted by novelas, reality series and awards shws, has averaged 1.9 million persons 18 to 49 in primetime this season, which ends officially on May 26, according to Nielsen data. That was up 8% from the 2009-10 season.

Wednesday’s finale of The Oprah Winfrey Show was the highest-rated episode in more than 17 years, according to preliminary Nielsen numers. The episode delivered a 13.3 household rating in the nation’s metered markets. It was the highest number since February 1994.

For the first time in five years, the season finale of Fox’s smash American Idol grew compared to the previous year among adults 18-49. The show also hit a season high among total viewers as Scott McCreery beat out Lauren Alaina in the all-teenager final on the final night of the regular season. Idol averaged an 8.9 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m., up 9% over last year and the first time since 2006 that the show has seen year-to-year growth for its season ender. The show also drew 28.2 million total viewers, a season high.

On one of the most competitive nights on broadcast in recent memory, unscripted shows ruled the evening, with ABC, Fox and NBC programs all earning strong ratings. Fox rose to No. 1 on the night on the strength of American Idol, the night’s highest-rated show with a 6.2 adults 18-49 rating at 8 p.m. That was down 7% from a 6.7 for last year’s penultimate episode.

For the seventh consecutive year, Fox has closed the season as the top-rated broadcast network among the ad-coveted 18-49 demographic, while CBS was the most-watched network for the eighth time in nine years.

The No. 1 courtroom once again leads all syndicated fare in the week ending May 15, growing 3% from the previous frame.

Part one of the two-part season finale of ABC’s reality show Dancing with the Stars drew strong ratings last night, though not quite as strong as the comparable show last fall. Stars averaged a 4.6 adults 18-49 rating at 8 p.m., easily the highest-rated show of the night. It was down 6% from a 4.9 last fall, not bad considering that show had controversy magnet Bristol Palin.

The fifth season finale of Univision’s Nuestra Belleza Latina reality series, which crowned Miami’s Nastassja Bolivar as Neustra Belleza Latina 2011, drew 4.9 million total viewers, up 23% from last season’s finale. It topped CBS and NBC in the adults 18-34 demo on Sunday for third place and Univision ranked fourth, over CBS, in the adults 18-49 demo.

The Billboard Music Awards drew solid ratings last night, strong enough to lift ABC to No. 1 past other networks airing season finales. Billboard averaged a 2.9 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 11 p.m., boosting ABC to a 2.6 rating and 7 share for the night, 18% ahead of second-place Fox’s 2.2/6. The Billboard awards hadn’t aired on broadcast since a 2006 showing on Fox, and they were up a bit, 7%, over that most recent showing.

With a herd of celebrity guests, The Office‘s ratings rebounded from a two-week decline following Steve Carell’s exit last month. The season finale of the NBC comedy was last night’s top scripted show, impressive considering The Big Bang Theory and Grey’s Anatomy both aired their season-enders last night as well, and finished behind only Fox’s American Idol on the night. Office averaged a 3.8 adults 18-49 rating for the one-hour episode at 9 p.m., up 18% over last week’s 3.2 and 12 percent better than last year’s finale.

With just one week until the winner of American Idol is crowned, the Fox reality show is heating up. Its ratings rose for the second straight week as the show expanded from 90 minutes to two hours last night, giving Fox an easy victory on the night. Idol averaged a 7.2 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m., up 4% over last week’s 6.9 rating as the top three remaining contenders performed.

It’s amazing what not having to face American Idol can do for a show’s ratings. The season finale of CBS’s NCIS grew 15% last night compared to last year, when it faced Idol, which has since moved from Tuesday to Wednesday. NCIS averaged a 3.8 adults 18-49 rating at 8 p.m., and also beat the other hit show in the timeslot, Fox’s Glee, which averaged a 3.5. CBS’s other dramas also saw their season finales grow compared to last year.

The two airings of Fox’s contest were the most-watched programs in primetime television last week. It’s a familiar role for the show, which has held up well in the ratings despite losing Simon Cowell and adding Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler as judges.

Dancing with the Stars‘ ratings heated up for last night’s semifinal performance as a number of broadcast shows saw their numbers climb on an evening full of season finales. Dancing was the night’s top-rated show with a 4.4 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m., up from a 4.2 last week and leading ABC to an easy victory on the night, 52% ahead of No. 2 Fox.

The two-hour Survivor finale averaged a 4.0 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m., down 2% from last fall’s finale, which averaged a 4.1. The Survivor reunion show that followed averaged a 3.5, up slightly from a 3.4 for last fall’s reunion special. It propelled CBS to an easy victory on the night opposite the seventh-season finale of ABC’s Desperate Housewives, which slid 25% from last year, from a 4.0 to a 3.0.

With just two weeks to go in the regular TV broadcast season — and right before the upfront TV presentations — Fox is tracking to take another crown in the still important 18-49 ratings race. The only broadcast net to show gains is Spanish-language Univision, which is up 8.6% to a 1.5 rating.

Viewers seem to be drifting away from The Office without Steve Carell, although it remains NBC’s highest-rated show on Thursday night. Office averaged a 3.2 adults 18-49 rating last night at 9 p.m., down 9% from the previous week and off 24% from the episode two weeks ago, when Carell exited to a three-month high. Office still tied for the No. 3 show of the night overall with CBS’s The Big Bang Theory behind Fox’s American Idol and Bones.

Audiences went gaga for pop culture phenom Lady Gaga last night. She helped boost ratings as a mentor on Fox’s American Idol, and a Gaga-themed episode of ABC’s Modern Family saw its numbers grow, too. Idol was the night’s top show with a 6.9 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 9:30 p.m., up 5% from last week and 1% better than the equivalent night a year ago.

After growing in week two, NBC’s The Voice took a tumble in week three when it pulled back from two hours to one. Voice was still easily the night’s No. 1 show, and it completely dominated its 10 p.m. timeslot. But it may have lost some viewers who did not realize it started at 10 rather than 9. Voice averaged a 4.6 adults 18-49 rating, down 19% from a 5.7 last week from 9 to 11.

The network’s new talent show, had an audience of 12.6 million viewers for its second episode last week. That was up 7% from its premiere, making it the first new series on the four biggest broadcast networks this season to have more viewers for its second week than it did the first.

William and Kate drive ratings for most entertainment newsmags up from the week before as the May sweep gets underway.

60 Minutes landed a big scoop with President Barack Obama’s first interview after the killing of Osama bin Laden, and it delivered a big audience. 60 Minutes averaged 13.8 million total viewers at 7 p.m. last night, up 29% over the 10.7 million who tuned in last week.
The interview was easily Sunday night’s most-watched show on broadcast, with the No. 2 program, ABC’s Desperate Housewives, drawing about 4 million fewer viewers.

40.6 million people watched the speech on broadcast networks, while 17.3 million tuned in on cable networks