or


[09/13/20 - 03:30 PM]
Saturday's Broadcast Ratings: "Saturday Night Football" Returns on Top for ABC
By The Futon Critic Staff (TFC)

Primetime Preliminary Fast National Nielsen Data
(includes all DVR playback through 3:00 am)

Here are the highlights of the six ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (9/12/20):

[Note: Fast affiliate ratings are inaccurate for live sports.]

ABC (2.994 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.7, #1) pulled in front thanks to the return of "Saturday Night Football" (2.994 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.7, #1).

NBC (1.463 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.4, #2) had to settle for second with its coverage of "NHL Playoffs: Vegas at Dallas" (1.463 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.4, #2).

Next up was FOX (1.312 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.3, #3) and its weekly presentation of "MLB on FOX" (1.312 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.3, #3).

And finally, CBS (1.695 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.2, #4) closed out the night with its mix of "NCIS: Los Angeles" (1.993 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T4), "Love Island: More to Love" (0.849 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.1, #6) and the season premiere of "48 Hours" (2.242 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.2, #T4).

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

TBA


Here are the highlights of the six ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (9/14/19):

ABC (3.439 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #1) held onto the top spot on Saturday with its coverage of "Saturday Night College Football" (3.439 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #1).

FOX (2.477 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #2) then took home the silver with its own "CFB on FOX" (2.477 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #2) coverage.

Next up was CBS (3.116 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.4, #3) with a repeat "NCIS" (2.749 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T5) followed by the two-hour season premiere of "48 Hours" (3.299 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T3).

And finally, repeats of "America's Got Talent" (1.769 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 0.3, #T5) and "Dateline Saturday Night Mystery" (2.207 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.4, #T3) rouned out the night on NBC (1.915 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.3, #4).

In late-night metered market ratings (via NBC's press release):

· A Sept. 14 encore telecast of "Saturday Night Live," with host John Mulaney and musical guest Thomas Rhett, has averaged a 2.3 rating, 7 share in "live plus same day" household results from the 56 local markets metered by Nielsen Media Research and a 0.6/4 in adults 18-49 in the 25 markets with local people meters.

· The 2.3 in metered-market households ranks as the show's highest overnight rating since June 29 (2.3 for an encore hosted by Don Cheadle with musical guest Gary Clark Jr.) and the 0.6 in 18-49 matches the "SNL" high since June 1 (0.7 for a rebroadcast with host Emma Thompson and musical guest Jonas Brothers).

· The Sept. 14 "Saturday Night Live" encore ranks as the #2 show of the night on the Big 4 networks in adults 18-49 in the local people meters, topping all primetime programs on those nets for the night except ABC's Clemson-Syracuse college football telecast.

Source: Nielsen Media Research





  [october 2026]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
    


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)





most recent ratings | view all posts
[10/01/26 - 02:39 PM]
NHL on ESPN Opens Season with Year-Over-Year Viewership Growth
The Panthers-Hurricanes matchup averaged 859,000 viewers, up 16% from a year ago.

[10/01/26 - 02:18 PM]
Tuesday's Red Sox-Yankees on NBC & Peacock Is Most-Watched Game 1 Among MLB Wild Card or Division Series Since 2006
Coverage averaged 7.3 million viewers on NBC and Peacock.

[10/01/26 - 08:35 AM]
"Live with Kelly and Mark" Kicks Off Season 39 with Best Premiere Week in Three Years
"Live" has now ranked as the No. 1 talk show in syndication for 189 consecutive weeks (more than three years) across all key measures.

[09/30/26 - 04:44 PM]
"Dancing with the Stars" Sails to 7 Million Total Viewers on "Yacht Rock Night"
At 10 p.m., "R.J. Decker" hit a season high in early Live+Same Day Panel Only numbers with 3.20 million Total Viewers.

[09/30/26 - 03:27 PM]
Eagles-Bears on "Monday Night Football" Records 22.6 Million Viewers
Said audience marks the second largest Week 3 crowd in the ESPN era (since 2006).

[09/30/26 - 01:00 PM]
Historic "Big Brother" Season Hits 14.8 Billion Minutes Viewed, Up +9% from Last Year
The summer staple also saw year-over-year audience growth, averaging 5.1 million viewers in seven-day multiplatform viewing, up +8% from last summer, while ranking as the summer's most social program across all television programs (excluding sports).

[09/30/26 - 12:50 PM]
ABC's Tuesday Night Kicks Off Strong as "Dancing with the Stars" and Sophomore Drama "R.J. Decker" Each Score 10 Million Total Audience
Sophomore drama "R.J. Decker" earned a total cross-platform audience of 9.61 million, based on viewing over seven days across Hulu, Hulu on Disney+ and linear encores.

[09/30/26 - 11:01 AM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of September 21
"Neagley," "Reacher," "Sterling Point," "Off Campus," and "El Juicio" led all original series worldwide.

[09/29/26 - 03:28 PM]
FOX Sports Hits Home Run with Best MLB on FOX Regular Season Since '21 - No. 1 Among All Networks
Regular season coverage on FOX averaged 2.35 million viewers, up +15% vs. '25.

[09/29/26 - 03:12 PM]
FOX NFL Delivers Most-Watched Early Window of the Day on Any Network in Week 3
17,898,000 viewers tuned-in to FOX's 1:00 PM ET window.

[09/29/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of September 21 - "Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story" Takes the No. 1 Spot for a Second Week
"Unabomber" premiered in the top spot on the English film list, gathering 16.4 million views.

[09/29/26 - 12:00 PM]
USA Sports Delivers Viewership Records and Milestones in Inaugural Season of WNBA Coverage Ahead of WNBA Finals on USA Network This October
USA Sports averaged 525,000 viewers across its 48 regular-season games - the most national games of any broadcaster - up 25% vs. 2025 WNBA cable average viewership.

[09/29/26 - 09:50 AM]
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" Finishes 2025-2026 Season with Largest Overall Audience in Eight Years and Strongest Adults 18-49 in Four Years
In the final week of the 2025-2026 season, "Jimmy Kimmel Live" ranked No. 1 in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.

[09/28/26 - 02:45 PM]
The "VMAs" Scores 8.4 Million Viewers, Up +51% from Last Year, and Hits 11-Year Viewership High
The telecast peaked with over 15 million viewers across CBS and MTV in the opening act, which featured Madonna's first "VMAs" performance in 23 years, including a show-opening medley with Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX.

[09/25/26 - 10:51 AM]
Cartman, Kenny, Stan, Kyle and "South America's" Season 29 Premiere Delivers 4.2 Million Multiplatform U.S. Viewers Across Comedy Central and Paramount+
The season premiere on Comedy Central outperformed last season's premiere by double digits on persons 18-49 rating and share and was the #1 non-sports cable telecast for the week with persons 18-49.