or


[05/07/18 - 08:26 AM]
Sunday's Broadcast Ratings: ABC Holds Onto Demo Crown with "American Idol"
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 17 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (5/6/18):

ABC (6.164 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.3, #1) held onto the demo crown on Sunday with its mix of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (5.527 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.1, #2), "American Idol" (7.870 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.6, #1) and "Deception" (3.391 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7).

CBS (7.375 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T2) however claimed the most-watched network with its mix of "60 Minutes" (8.913 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T5), "Instinct" (6.975 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (7.695 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #T5) and "Madam Secretary" (5.921 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T14).

Next up was FOX (1.656 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T2) and its combination of a repeat "Bob's Burgers" (1.034 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 0.4, #17) alongside originals from "Bob's Burgers" (1.515 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7), "The Simpsons" (2.098 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3), "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" (1.654 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7) and "Family Guy" (1.928 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T3) plus the season finale of "The Last Man on Earth" (1.708 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T7).

And finally, NBC (2.741 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.5, #4) closed out the evening with new episodes of "Dateline NBC" (3.167 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T12), "Genius Junior" (2.790 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T14), a second "Genius Junior" (2.749 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T12) and "Timeless" (2.259 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.5, #T14).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+16.67% - Instinct
+14.29% - NCIS: Los Angeles
0.00% - 60 Minutes
0.00% - Genius Junior
0.00% - The Simpsons
0.00% - The Last Man on Earth
-8.33% - America's Funniest Home Videos
-10.00% - Family Guy
-11.11% - American Idol
-12.50% - Deception
-12.50% - Bob's Burgers
-14.29% - Dateline NBC
-16.67% - Madam Secretary
-16.67% - Timeless
-22.22% - Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+88.24% - American Idol (vs. Once Upon a Time/The Last 100 Days of Diana)
+28.57% - Family Guy (vs. The Last Man on Earth)
+20.00% - Dateline NBC (vs. Little Big Shots (Repeat))
+16.67% - Brooklyn Nine-Nine (vs. Making History)
+14.29% - NCIS: Los Angeles (vs. Madam Secretary)
+10.00% - America's Funniest Home Videos
0.00% - The Last Man on Earth
-10.00% - The Simpsons
-11.11% - 60 Minutes
-16.67% - Madam Secretary (vs. Elementary)
-22.22% - Deception (vs. The Last 100 Days of Diana)
-22.22% - Bob's Burgers
-28.57% - Timeless (vs. Shades of Blue)
-30.00% - Instinct (vs. NCIS: Los Angeles)
-40.00% - Genius Junior - 9:00 (vs. Chicago Justice)
-58.33% - Genius Junior - 8:00 (vs. Little Big Shots)


Here are the highlights of the 17 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (5/7/17):

NBC (5.266 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1) and ABC (5.177 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T1) shared the demo crown on another modest Sunday as the latter served up new episodes of "America's Funniest Home Videos" (5.012 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T2) and "Once Upon a Time" (2.840 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 0.8, #9) plus the two-hour special "The Last 100 Days of Diana" (6.428 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T6).

The Peacock then offered up its lineup of a "Little Big Shots" (3.849 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.5, #17) repeat plus new episodes from "Little Big Shots" (7.849 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 1.2, #1), "Chicago Justice" (5.261 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T2) and "Shades of Blue" (4.106 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T10).

Next up was CBS (7.524 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.8, #3) with originals from "60 Minutes" (9.353 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T6), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (8.994 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T2), "Madam Secretary" (7.493 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T10) and "Elementary" (4.256 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T14).

And finally, a repeat "Bob's Burgers" (1.720 million viewers, #16; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T14) led into new episodes of "Bob's Burgers" (2.030 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.9, #T6), "The Simpsons" (2.277 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 1.0, #T2), "Making History" (1.488 million viewers, #17; adults 18-49: 0.6, #T14), "The Last Man on Earth" (1.773 million viewers, #15; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T10) and the season finale of "The Last Man on Earth" (1.792 million viewers, #14; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T10) on FOX (1.847 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+28.57% - Bob's Burgers
+20.00% - Elementary
+12.50% - 60 Minutes
0.00% - NCIS: Los Angeles
0.00% - Chicago Justice
0.00% - The Simpsons
0.00% - Madam Secretary
0.00% - Making History
-9.09% - America's Funniest Home Videos
-11.11% - Once Upon a Time
-12.50% - Shades of Blue
-12.50% - The Last Man on Earth
-20.00% - Little Big Shots

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+50.00% - Bob's Burgers (vs. The Simpsons (Repeat))
+33.33% - Chicago Justice (vs. The Carmichael Show/Crowded)
+12.50% - The Last 100 Days of Diana (vs. The Family/Quantico)
0.00% - NCIS: Los Angeles (vs. Madam Secretary)
-7.69% - Little Big Shots
-9.09% - The Simpsons
-10.00% - 60 Minutes
-14.29% - Elementary
-16.67% - America's Funniest Home Videos
-22.22% - The Last Man on Earth - 9:30 -30.00% - Shades of Blue (vs. Dateline NBC)
-33.33% - Once Upon a Time
-40.00% - Making History (vs. Bob's Burgers)
-41.67% - Madam Secretary (vs. The Good Wife)
-46.15% - The Last Man on Earth - 9:00 (vs. Family Guy)

Source: Nielsen Media Research





  [may 2018]  
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
[06/09/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of June 1 - "Office Romance" Sneaks to No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
Plus: "Michael Jackson: The Verdict" has grabbed viewers' attention, landing at No. 1 on the English TV list with 17.8 million views.

[06/09/26 - 10:29 AM]
May Continues ESPN Studio Shows' Year-Long Viewership Success
Combined, all ESPN studio shows were up 27 percent in viewership over May of 2025 and up 11% year-over-year (YOY) among younger viewers in the Persons ages 18-49 demographic.

[06/09/26 - 10:01 AM]
ESPN Delivers Most-Watched NCAA DI Women's College World Series on Record
The WCWS Finals, featuring Texas and Texas Tech, averaged 2.2 million viewers as the Longhorns claimed their second-straight national championship in the two-game series.

[06/08/26 - 09:03 AM]
ESPN Scores Second Most-Watched WCWS Finals on Record; Game 2 Delivers Most-Watched College Softball Game Ever
Game 2 averaged 2.5 million viewers across ESPN/ESPNU, delivering the most-watched college softball game on record.

[06/05/26 - 02:00 PM]
ABC's Most-Watched NBA Finals Game 1 Since 2018 with Average Audience of Nearly 17M Viewers (16.93M)
Game 1 peaked with nearly 20M viewers (19.63M) at 11 p.m. ET.

[06/05/26 - 01:23 PM]
ABC News Is No. 1 in Total Viewers on Sunday Morning, Friday Evening and in Late-Night
"20/20" stood as Friday's No. 1 program on broadcast and the No. 2 program on all of broadcast and cable in all key target demos on May 29.

[06/04/26 - 03:03 PM]
"The Mystery of Richard Simmons - A Diane Sawyer Special" Soars Over 10 Million Total Multiplatform Viewers Across ABC, Disney+ and Hulu
On its encore telecast on Monday, "The Mystery of Richard Simmons - A Diane Sawyer Special" averaged 2.704 million Total Viewers and ranked as the night's No. 1 program on broadcast.

[06/03/26 - 11:01 AM]
"Saturday Night Live" Season 51 Was #1 Among All Broadcast Comedy Series in the 18-49 Demo and #2 Among All Entertainment Series
The most-watched telecast of the season across all platforms was 10.1 million viewers on December 20 with host Ariana Grande and musical guest Cher.

[06/03/26 - 07:00 AM]
Fans Power UFL on ESPN to Significant Viewership Growth Across 10-Week Regular Season
ABC alone accounted for eight of the top 10 most-watched games.

[06/03/26 - 06:00 AM]
TNT Sports Caps Its Most Watched NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs with Its Most Watched Conference Final Ever
The record-setting series helped propel TNT Sports' overall coverage of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs to an average of 1.4 million viewers across TNT, TBS, truTV and HBO Max, up 50% from 2025 through the Conference Final.

[06/02/26 - 04:06 PM]
NBC and Peacock Deliver Most-Watched Conference Finals Game Since 2016 with 15.9 Million Viewers for Spurs-Thunder Game 7 on Saturday Night
Across 28 playoff games, NBC Sports' presentation of the 2026 NBA Playoffs averaged 7.2 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, up 72% versus comparable coverage last season.

[06/02/26 - 02:36 PM]
ESPN's WCWS Viewership Success Continues
Texas Tech-UCLA averaged 2.0 million viewers, with a peak of 2.6 million.

[06/02/26 - 02:13 PM]
FOX IndyCar Continues Ratings Growth with Strong Detroit Performance
Through eight races, IndyCar on FOX is averaging 2,241,000 viewers, up +12% from 2025 (2,007,000).

[06/02/26 - 02:00 PM]
FOX MLB's "Baseball Night in America" Delivers Most-Watched Baseball Telecast of the Week
2,322,000 viewers tuned-in to FOX for a two-game slate highlighted by the Cubs' 6-1 victory over the Cardinals in most of the country.

[06/02/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of May 25 - "The Boroughs" Makes Itself at Home at No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
Plus: "Nemesis" stole away with the No. 2 spot on the list, commanding 5.9 million views.