Quick Take for Wednesday, March 24, 2010 (Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings)

ABC Posts its Best Wednesday in 6 Weeks in Viewers and Young Adults

ABC's Repeat "Modern Family" is the No. 1 Scripted Show at 8pm With Young Adults, Beating NBC's Original "Mercy" by 38%

The No. 1 Regular Show at 8:30pm in Viewers and Young Adults, "The Middle" Marks its Strongest Results Since Early February

Jumping from its Lead-in Against Fox's "American Idol," "Modern Family" is Wednesday's No. 1 Scripted TV Show for its 6th Straight Original Airing

Growing for its 2nd Straight Original Telecast with Viewers and Young Adults, "Cougar Town" is the No. 1 Scripted TV Show at 9:30pm Among Adults 18-49

ABC's "Ugly Betty" Achieves a Season-High Rating Among Adults 18-49

Wednesday Night (8:00-11:00 p.m.)

In Total Viewers (6.3 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.3/7), ABC turned in its strongest Wednesday in 6 weeks � since 2/10/10.

"Modern Family-WED 8PM" (8:00-8:30 p.m.)

Opposite CBS' special airing of "Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains" at 8:00 p.m., ABC's replay "Modern Family" registered as the No. 1 scripted show in the half-hour among Adults 18-49 (1.8/6), beating NBC's original "Mercy" 38% (1.3/4) and tying Fox's original "Human Target" (1.8/6).

"The Middle" (8:30-9:00 p.m.)

Surging from its lead-in at 8:30 p.m., ABC's "The Middle" stood as the No. 1 regular program in its time slot with viewers (7.2 million) and young adults (2.4/7). In Adults 18-49, "The Middle" outdelivered NBC's "Mercy" by 71% (1.4/4) and Fox's "Human Target" by 9% (2.2/6). In fact among young Adults, the ABC freshman comedy has been the highest-rated scripted show in its half-hour on 7 of its last 8 original telecasts.

� In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, "The Middle" pulled its highest numbers in 6 weeks � since 2/10/10.

"Modern Family" (9:00-9:30 p.m.)

Opposite Fox's "American Idol" at 9:00 p.m., ABC's "Modern Family" built on its lead-in by 50% to finish as the No. 1 scripted show in its time slot for its 5th week in a row among Adults 18-49 (3.6/10).

� "Modern Family" qualified as Wednesday's No. 1 scripted TV show in young Adults (AD18-34/AD18-49) for its 6th straight original broadcast.

� "Modern Family" drew its biggest audience (9.1 million) in 6 weeks � since 2/10/10.

"Cougar Town" (9:30-10:00 p.m.)

Airing against a surging "American Idol," ABC freshman "Cougar Town" stood as the No. 1 scripted show at 9:30 p.m. among Adults 18-49 (2.6/7).

� Posting its 2nd consecutive original telecast of growth, "Cougar Town" marked its best performance in 6 weeks with Total Viewers (6.3 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.6/7) � since 2/10/10.

"Ugly Betty" (10:00-11:00 p.m.)

Ranking No. 2 in the 10 o'clock hour among Adults 18-49 (1.7/5), ABC's "Ugly Betty" posted a season-high rating in the key young Adult sales demo.

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 36% currently, from 30% at the same point in 2009. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Source: Nielsen Media Research (Fast Affiliate, Live + Same Day Ratings), 3/24/10.