or


[12/17/18 - 08:26 AM]
Sunday's Broadcast Ratings: NBC, "Sunday Night Football" Take Top Honors
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 13 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks last night (12/16/18):

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

NBC (7:30-11pm) (14.811 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.5, #1) continued its reign on Sunday with its mix of "Football Night in America #1" (5.987 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.4, #6), "Football Night in America #2" (10.170 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 2.9, #4), "Football Night in America #3" (13.675 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 4.1, #3) and "Sunday Night Football" (15.967 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 4.9, #2).

Second place then went to CBS (11.145 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.0, #2) with its lineup of "NFL Overrun" (25.726 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 6.3, #1), "60 Minutes" (14.159 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.4, #5), "God Friended Me" (8.419 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T7), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (6.843 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #9) and a repeat "FBI" (4.592 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T10).

Next up was FOX (4.189 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.1, #3) and its telecast of "2018 Miss Universe" (4.189 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.1, #T7).

Meanwhile, ABC (4.197 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.7, #4) offered up its annual broadcast of "The Sound of Music" (4.197 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.7, #T10).

And finally, The CW (0.625 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 0.2, #5) closed out the night with its special "iHeartRadio Jingle Ball 2018" (0.684 million viewers, #12; adults 18-49: 0.2, #12) and "Discontinued" (0.445 million viewers, #13; adults 18-49: 0.1, #13).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+166.67% - 60 Minutes
+52.63% - Football Night in America #2
+37.50% - God Friended Me
0.00% - NCIS: Los Angeles
-6.67% - Football Night in America #1
-6.82% - Football Night in America #3
-7.55% - Sunday Night Football

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
0.00% - God Friended Me (vs. Wisdom of the Crowd)
0.00% - NCIS: Los Angeles
-3.33% - Football Night in America #2
-4.65% - Football Night in America #3
-5.77% - Sunday Night Football
-14.29% - 60 Minutes
-17.65% - Football Night in America #1
-26.67% - 2018 Miss Universe (vs. A Christmas Story Live!)


Here are the highlights of the 11 ad-sustained programs that aired in primetime on the broadcast networks one year ago (12/17/17):

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

NBC (15.393 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 4.8, #1) was still the network to beat on Sunday with its usual mix of "Football Night in America #1" (6.238 million viewers, #8; adults 18-49: 1.7, #6), "Football Night in America #2" (10.018 million viewers, #5; adults 18-49: 3.0, #4), "Football Night in America #3" (13.977 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 4.3, #3) and "Sunday Night Football" (16.751 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 5.2, #2).

CBS (11.579 million viewers, #2; adults 18-49: 2.1, #2) then was the silver draw with its combination of "NFL Overrun" (27.974 million viewers, #1; adults 18-49: 6.9, #1), "60 Minutes" (15.004 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 2.8, #5), "Wisdom of the Crowd" (7.331 million viewers, #6; adults 18-49: 1.1, #8), "NCIS: Los Angeles" (7.035 million viewers, #7; adults 18-49: 0.9, #9) and "Madam Secretary" (5.920 million viewers, #9; adults 18-49: 0.7, #11).

Next up was FOX (4.481 million viewers, #4; adults 18-49: 1.5, #3) with its presentation of "A Christmas Story Live!" (4.481 million viewers, #11; adults 18-49: 1.5, #7).

And finally, ABC (4.538 million viewers, #3; adults 18-49: 0.8, #4) rounded out the night with its annual telecast of "The Sound of Music" (4.538 million viewers, #10; adults 18-49: 0.8, #10).

Week-to-week changes (adults 18-49):
+154.55% - 60 Minutes
+76.47% - Football Night in America #2
+57.14% - Wisdom of the Crowd
+26.47% - Football Night in America #3
+21.43% - Football Night in America #1
+12.50% - NCIS: Los Angeles
+6.12% - Sunday Night Football
0.00% - Madam Secretary

Year-to-year changes (adults 18-49):
+150.00% - A Christmas Story Live! (vs. Various)
0.00% - 60 Minutes
-18.18% - NCIS: Los Angeles (vs. Madam Secretary)
-18.92% - Football Night in America #2
-19.05% - Football Night in America #1
-21.43% - Wisdom of the Crowd (vs. NCIS: Los Angeles)
-21.82% - Football Night in America #3
-22.22% - Madam Secretary (vs. Elementary)
-25.71% - Sunday Night Football

Source: Nielsen Media Research





  [december 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
[09/01/26 - 04:00 PM]
2026 Little League Baseball World Series Delivered Largest Audience Since 2015
The Championship Game between CuraƧao and Henderson, Nevada, averaged 2.9M viewers on ABC, up 21% year over year.

[09/01/26 - 03:16 PM]
FOX IndyCar Continues Viewership Momentum
950,000 viewers watched Arrow McLaren driver Pato O'Ward deliver the first of two victories from the Milwaukee Mile Sunday on FOX.

[09/01/26 - 03:01 PM]
FOX Saturday Baseball Is No. 1 Among All Networks
3,161,000 viewers tuned-in for a two-game slate highlighted by the Yankees' 9-2 win over the Red Sox in most of the country.

[09/01/26 - 02:54 PM]
ESPN Delivers Top Games in College Football's Week 0
4.9 million viewers tuned into the North Carolina Tar Heels defeat the TCU Horned Frogs in Dublin, Ireland.

[09/01/26 - 02:28 PM]
Players Era Volleyball Showcase Serves Second Most-Watched Volleyball Telecast Ever on FOX
1,040,000 viewers watched Nebraska beat Texas Sunday afternoon on FOX.

[08/26/26 - 12:01 PM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of August 17
"Reacher," "Sterling Point," "Ride or Die," "Off Campus," and "The Traitors" led all original series worldwide.

[08/26/26 - 08:00 AM]
Fever-Sky on "Sunday Night Basketball" on NBC and Peacock Is the Most-Watched WNBA Regular-Season Game Since Opening Weekend of League's Inaugural 1997 Season
The game peaked at 3.82 million viewers.

[08/25/26 - 03:10 PM]
ESPN Delivered Its Second Most-Watched MLB Little League Classic Ever!
The audience peaked at 2.2 million viewers during the 9:45 p.m. ET quarter-hour.

[08/25/26 - 03:03 PM]
FOX Saturday Baseball Stays Hot with 3,079,000 Viewers, Most-Watched MLB Telecast of the Week on Any Network
The network's coverage reached a peak audience of 3,779,000 viewers from 9:45 - 10 PM ET.

[08/25/26 - 02:20 PM]
FOX Sports Scores Landslide Win with Freedom 250
Coverage reached a peak viewership of 3,482,000 viewers from 2:30-2:45 PM ET.

[08/25/26 - 12:58 PM]
"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" Dominates During Show's Summer Run - Jumping Over Last Year's Average by +9%
The series also stands as Wednesday's No. 1 primetime program among Total Viewers in each of its five weeks.

[08/25/26 - 12:01 PM]
Netflix Top 10: Week of August 17 - "Outer Banks" Strikes Gold at No. 1 in This Week's Top 10
"My Brilliant Career" traversed the Australian bush to land at No. 2 on the English TV list with 4.7 million views.

[08/21/26 - 01:01 PM]
ABC News Ranks No. 1 in Total Viewers Across Friday Night and Late-Night
"20/20" turned in double-digit gains year to year in all key target demos.

[08/20/26 - 02:11 PM]
"Lanterns" Debuts Among HBO Max's Biggest Series Premieres with 9.3M Global Viewers
The light shines bright.

[08/19/26 - 12:01 PM]
Top 10 Most-Watched Prime Original Films & Series for the Week of August 10
"Reacher," "Sterling Point," "Off Campus," "The Traitors," and "Elle" led all original series worldwide.