Week 30: ABC takes second-place to Fox

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ABC Builds its Overall Audience Year to Year for the 4th Time in 5 Weeks.


Jumping 11% Week to Week, ABC Ranks No. 2 in Adults 18-49, Claiming 6 of the Top 20 TV Shows and Placing 2 of the Top 5.

Winning All 6 Half-Hours, ABC Tops Monday Night for the 5th Consecutive Week.

In its Monday Slot, “Dancing” Outdelivers 2nd-Place Fox by 13.4 Million Viewers And by 80% in Adults 18-49, Taking ABC to the Top Spot for the 8th Straight Week.

Finishing No. 1 at 10pm for its 5th Consecutive First-Run Telecast, ABC’s “Castle” Outperforms CBS’ “Hawaii Five-0” by Best-Ever Margins in Viewers and Young Adults.

Surging by 1.2 Million Viewers, ABC is Up Year to Year for the 4th Tuesday in a Row.

ABC’s “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution” Opens Season 2 with the Series’ 2nd-Most-Watched Regular Telecast, Building Solidly on its Year-Ago Finale.

The Most-Watched TV Show in its Time Period for the 3rd Straight Week, ABC’s “DWTS Results Show” Continues to Post Year-Over-Year Increases.

Up Week to Week and Improving its Time Slot Year to Year, ABC’s “Body of Proof” Beats CBS’ and NBC’s Original Dramas in the Hour for the 3rd Week Running.

ABC Builds its Wednesday Audience Year Over Year for the 15th Time in 17 Weeks.

Returning to First-Run, ABC’s “Modern Family” Qualifies as Wednesday’s No. 1 Scripted TV Show in Adults 18-49 for its 19th Consecutive Original.

In Tuesday’s 9:30pm Half-Hour, ABC’s Premiere of “Happy Endings” Beats Week 2 of Fox’s “Idol”-fueled “Breaking In” in Adults 18-49 and Adults 18-34.

In its Regular 10pm Slot, ABC’s “Happy Endings” Defeats CBS’ “Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior” in Adults 18-34, Hitting a 1-1/2 Year High in the Half-Hour.

ABC’s Spring “Wipeout” Dominates NBC’s Comedies on Thursday from 8-9pm.

Surging Week to Week to Season-Highs, ABC’s “Shark Tank” Produces the Net’s Top Results in its Time Slot with Regular Programming in More than 1 Year.

ABC is the No. 1 Broadcast Net on Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Adults 18-49.

WEEK NO. 30:   ADULTS 18-49        TOTAL VIEWERS
              No.1  FOX 2.6   No.1 CBS     9,230,000
              No.2  ABC 2.1   No.2 FOX     7,910,000
              No.3  CBS 2.0   No.3 ABC     7,840,000
              No.4  NBC 1.6   No.4 NBC     5,170,000
              No.5  CW  0.7   No.5 CW      1,540,000

WEEK No. 30:
Surging week to week by 11% (2.1/6 vs. 1.9/5), ABC took second place to Fox during the week of April 11, 2011 among Adults 18-49, beating CBS by 5% (2.0/6) and NBC by 31% (1.6/5). 
 
ABC’s first week of its 3-hour Wednesday comedy block (which included 1 repeat) outdelivered NBC’s established all-original 3-hour comedy block on Thursday by 1.7 million viewers (6.4 million vs. 4.7 million) and by 5% in Adults 18-49 (2.3/6 vs. 2.2/6).  Competitively, ABC’s block faced mostly original programming on the other nets, while NBC’s block faced mostly repeat programming.  Additionally during the week, ABC’s Wednesday comedies from 8:00-10:00 p.m. topped CBS’ long-running 2-hour Monday block in both Total Viewers (7.0 million vs. 6.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.5/7 vs. 2.3/6). 

Continuing its year-over-year momentum, for the 4th time in 5 weeks ABC built its overall audience from the year-ago week (7.84 million vs. 7.77 million on w/o 4/12/10).

Rankings:  ABC claimed 6 of the Top 20 TV programs in Adults 18-49, placing 2 in the Top 5:  “Dancing with the Stars” – No. 3, “Modern Family” – No. 5, “DWTS Results” – No. 11, “Castle” – No. 13, “Happy Endings SP-4/13” – No. 15 and “Desperate Housewives” – No. 16.  In fact ABC’s “Happy Endings” emerged as TV’s No. 1 new comedy in Adults 18-49, outdelivering Week 2 of Fox’s “Idol”-driven “Breaking In” by 8% in the same time period. The Net claimed 3 of the Top 10 most-watched television programs overall:   “DWTS” – No. 3, “DWTS Results” – No. 5 and “Castle” – No. 8.  In addition, ABC’s “Body of Proof” stood as the week’s most-watched freshman series.  For the 2nd time in 3 weeks, ABC’s “20/20” qualified as the week’s No. 1 newsmagazine in Adults 18-49. 
 
Monday
ABC registered as the dominant No. 1 network on Monday night, more than doubling No. 2 CBS’ mostly original lineup in Total Viewers (+132% – 18.1 million vs. 7.8 million) and outdelivering second-place Fox’s original dramas (“House’s” 150th episode/”The Chicago Code”) by 60% in Adults 18-49 (4.0/11 vs. 2.5/7).  NBC also aired an original lineup, with “Chuck” and the 2-hour return of “Law & Order: Los Angeles.”  The Network won all 6 half-hours on Monday evening in viewers and young adults. 

ABC qualified as Monday’s most-watched network for the 5th week in a row and led the night in Adults 18-49 for the 4th time in 5 weeks. 

“Dancing with the Stars” (8:00-10:01 p.m.)
In its 2-hour time period, ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” towered over each of its half-hours in viewers and young adults, while building its numbers throughout its broadcast.  Monday’s No. 1 TV show in viewers and young adults, ABC’s “DWTS” ran as the night’s most-watched program overall for the 4th consecutive week.  The veteran ABC unscripted series beat out second-place Fox in its time period by 13.4 million viewers (20.9 million vs. 7.5 million) and by 80% in Adults 18-49 (4.5/12 vs. 2.5/7).  Despite facing original competition on CBS, Fox and NBC, “DWTS'” numbers soared by 3.3 million viewers (19.1 million to 22.4 million) and by 28% in Adults 18-49 (3.9/12 to 5.0/12) from its first half-hour to its final half-hour.

It was ABC’s 8th straight week to finish No. 1 in the time slot in both Total Viewers and Adults 18-49.   

“Castle” (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
ABC’s “Castle” turned in an impressive victory in the 10 o’clock hour, beating CBS’ “Hawaii Five-0” for the 2nd straight original telecast and by best-ever margins in both Total Viewers (+2.8 million – 12.3 million to 9.5 million) and Adults 18-49 (+20% – 3.0/8 vs. 2.5/7).  In Total Viewers and Adults 18-49, “Castle” ranked as the No. 1 regular program in its time period for its 5th consecutive first-run telecast.  In fact it was the 2nd most-watched television program on the night, behind only “DWTS,” qualifying as the evening’s No. 1 scripted series. 

ABC’s “Castle” grew week to week by in both Total Viewers (+7% – 12.3 million vs. 11.5 million) and Adults 18-49 (+7% – 3.0/8 vs. 2.8/7).

Tuesday
With the 2nd-season premiere of “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution,” “DWTS Results Show” and “Body of Proof,” ABC (10.8 million) finished as the 2nd-most-watched network on Tuesday night to CBS, outdrawing NBC by 4.1 million viewers (6.7 million) and Fox by 7.3 million viewers (3.5 million).

Building year to year for the 4th consecutive Tuesday, the Net grew its audience from the same night last year by 1.2 million viewers (9.6 million on 4/13/10) over an all-original schedule (“DWTS Results”/”Lost”/”V”). 

“Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
From 8:00-9:00 p.m. against CBS’ top-rated “NCIS” and the first hour of NBC’s 2-hour “The Biggest Loser: Couples,” ABC’s Season 2 opener of “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution” improved over its Season 1 average (4.9 million) by 10% in Total Viewers and built over its year-ago April season finale (on 4/23/10) by 1.4 million viewers (5.4 million vs. 4.0 million) and by 15% in Adults 18-49 (1.5/5 vs. 1.3/4).  In addition, the ABC unscripted series grew its Adult 18-49 audience from its first half-hour to its second half-hour by 14% (1.4/5 to 1.6/5). 

“Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution” produced the series’ 2nd-most-watched regular telecast, behind only its first-season premiere (on 3/26/10).

“DWTS Results Show” (9:00-10:01 p.m.)
ABC’s “DWTS Results Show” finished as the most-watched (16.0 million) TV show in the 9 o’clock hour for the 3rd consecutive week.  In addition, the ABC dancing results program registered as Tuesday’s No. 1 TV show across all key Women demos (W18-34/W18-49/W25-54). Boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard was the third celebrity to be eliminated from the show this season. 

“DWTS Results Show” continued to generate year-over-year increases, building by 18% in Total Viewers and by 11% in Adults 18-49 over the same night last year (13.6 million and 2.8/8 on 4/13/10).

“Body of Proof” (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
In the 10 o’clock hour against established first-run dramas on CBS (“The Good Wife”) and NBC (“Parenthood”), ABC’s “Body of Proof” ranked No. 1 for the 3rd week in a row in Total Viewers (11.1 million) and key Adults: AD18-49 (2.5/7) and AD25-54 (3.4/8).  In fact ABC’s “Body of Proof” outdelivered CBS’ “The Good Wife” (+25% – 2.0/5) and NBC’s “Parenthood” (+19% – 2.1/5) by strong margins among Adults 18-49.

Increasing its lead-in retention out of “DWTS Results” for the 2nd week running (81% vs. 75% the prior week), “Body of Proof” grew its Adult 18-49 audience week to week (+4%).  The show was also up week to week in Adults 18-34 (+15%) and with key Women: W18-34 (+11%) and W18-49 (+6%)

The new drama improved the hour year to year for ABC by 5.5 million viewers, by 14% in Adults 18-49 and by 31% in Adults 25-54, over the year-ago night with an original “V” coming out of an original “Lost ” (“V” on 4/13/10 = 5.6 million, 2.2/6 and 2.6/7).

Wednesday
Up against Fox with a 90-minute “Idol” into Week 2 of the comedy “Breaking In” on Wednesday night, ABC ranked No. 2 in Adults 18-34, beating CBS’ all-original lineup by 11% (2.0/6 vs. 1.8/6). 

ABC was up over the same Wednesday last year in Total Viewers (6.4 million vs. 6.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.3/6 vs. 2.2/7), which was a night with an identical mix of original and repeat programming (5 of 6 half-hours).  In fact the Net built its overall Wednesday audience year over year for the 15th time in the last 17 weeks.

The Net equaled a 9-week Wednesday high among Adults 18-49 – since 2/9/11.

“The Middle” (8:00-8:30 p.m.)
On its first original telecast in 3 weeks, against the first hour of Fox’s “American Idol” and CBS’ “Survivor: Redemption Island” at 8:00 p.m., ABC’s “The Middle” soared over NBC’s original “Minute to Win It” (1.8/6 vs. 0.8/3), more than doubling the NBC game show’s Adult 18-49 delivery.

“Better with You” (8:30-9:00 p.m.)
In its first broadcast since the beginning of March (3/2/11), ABC’s “Better with You” also bested NBC’s “Minute to Win It” by wide margins at 8:30 p.m., leading the NBC gamer by 1.3 million viewers (4.8 million vs. 3.5 million) and by 50% in Adults 18-49 (1.5/4 vs. 1.0/3). 

“Modern Family” (9:00-9:31 p.m.)
On its first original airing in 3 weeks up against the third half-hour of “Idol” at 9:00 p.m., ABC’s “Modern Family” ran a strong No. 2 in its slot with Adults 18-49, beating out CBS’ “Criminal Minds” by 18% (3.9/10 vs. 3.3/8) and finishing as Wednesday’s No. 1 scripted TV show for its 19th straight first-run broadcast this season.

“Modern Family” built on its year-ago night performance in both Total Viewers (+8% – 9.6 million vs. 8.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (+5% – 3.9/10 vs. 3.7/10).

“Happy Endings” (9:31-10:00 p.m.)
In the 9:30 p.m. half-hour, ABC’s special premiere of “Happy Endings” outperformed Week 2 of Fox’s “Idol”-fueled “Breaking In” by 8% among Adults 18-49 (2.8/7 vs. 2.6/7), while ranking No. 1 in the time period with Adults 18-34 and Men 18-34.  In fact despite the Fox comedy’s big lead-in advantage, ABC’s “Happy Endings” beat out “Breaking In” by 25% with Adults 18-34 (2.5/7 vs. 2.0/6) and by 40% in Men 18-34 (2.1/6 vs. 1.5/5). 

In Total Viewers (7.3 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.8/7), ABC’s “Happy Endings” posted the Net’s best numbers in the half-hour since the beginning of February – since 2/9/11. 

The new comedy also improved the time period from the same night last year (5.8 million and 2.5/7) in Total Viewers (+26%) and Adults 18-49 (+14%).

“Happy Endings” (10:00-10:30 p.m.)
Exhibiting solid lead-in retention at 10:00 p.m. in its regular half-hour, a second episode of ABC’s “Happy Endings” ranked No. 1 in Adults 18-34, beating CBS’ original “Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior” by 25% (2.0/6 vs. 1.6/5).  The ABC freshman comedy also led the CBS freshman drama with Men 18-34 and Women 18-34, by 45% and 14%, respectively.

“Happy Endings” generated ABC’s top Adult 18-49 number in the half-hour in 13 weeks and its highest Adult 18-34 number with regular programming in more than 1-1/2 years – since 1/12/11 and 9/30/09, respectively.

The freshman comedy also produced big year-over-year gains for ABC in the half-hour in Adults 18-49 (+35%), up sharply over original drama programming on the same night last year (2.3/6 vs. 1.7/5 for “Ugly Betty”).

Thursday
With 1 original and 2 repeat programs, ABC posted gains week to week in both Total Viewers (+13% – 4.4 million vs. 3.9 million) and Adults 18-49 (+8% – 1.3/4 vs. 1.2/4) opposite an “Idol”-led Fox and NBC’s all-original lineup.

“Wipeout” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
From 8:00-9:00 p.m. against Fox’s “American Idol,” ABC’s Spring “Wipeout” finished second in the hour in Adults 18-49, topping NBC’s original comedies, including the highly promoted series premiere of “The Paul Reiser Show,” by 2.8 million viewers (6.2 million vs. 3.4 million) and by 46% among Adults 18-49 (1.9/6 vs. 1.3/4).  “Wipeout” also ranked No. 2 to “Idol” in the hour among Adults 18-34 (tie), Men 18-49, Women 18-49 and Teens 12-17, outdelivering NBC’s comedy block by solid margins. 
Despite facing “Idol” in the time period this year, the ABC unscripted series generated double-digit year-to-year gains in the hour with Total Viewers (+24%) and Adults 18-49 (+36%), over an original episode of “FlashForward” on the year-ago evening (5.0 million and 1.4/5 on 4/15/10).

ABC was the only major net to build audience in the hour against “Idol,” gaining 10% in overall viewers (5.9 million to 6.5 million) and 24% in young adults (1.7/6 vs. 2.1/6) from its first half-hour to its second half-hour.
 
Friday
ABC ranked No. 1 on Friday among Adults 18-49 (1.5/5), turning in its strongest performance on the night in more than 3 months – since 1/7/11.
 
“Shark Tank” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
Surging week to week in Total Viewers (+13% – 5.3 million vs. 4.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (+25% – 1.5/5 vs. 1.2/4) to a season-high performance, ABC’s “Shark Tank” recorded the Net’s best results in the hour with regular programming in over 1 year – since 2/5/10. In young adults, the ABC unscripted series topped CBS’ “Chaos” by 50% (1.5/5 vs. 1.0/3) and the season premiere of NBC’s “Friday Night Lights” by 67% (1.5/5 vs. 0.9/3).

Building audience throughout its broadcast, “Shark Tank” grew by 10% in Total Viewers (5.0 million to 5.5 million) and by a sharp 31% in Adults 18-49 (1.3/5 to 1.7/6) from its first half-hour to its second half-hour.
 
“Primetime: What Would You Do?” (9:00-10:00 p.m.)
ABC’s “Primetime: What Would You Do?” beat its newsmagazine competition in the 9 o’clock hour, NBC’s “Dateline,” by 8% in Adults 18-49 (1.4/4 vs. 1.3/4).  In fact “Primetime: What Would You Do?” led its broadcast rivals in the time slot in both Adults 18-49 (tie) and Women 18-49 (1.7/5-tie).
 
“20/20” (10:00-11:00 p.m.)
For the 2nd time in 3 weeks, ABC’s “20/20” finished No. 1 in the 10 o’clock hour among Adults 18-49 (1.5/5-tie). “20/20” featured Juju Chang’s exclusive interview with former Chicago Bears star player Shaun Gayle, who spoke for the first time about the murder of his pregnant girlfriend and unborn child, gunned down at close range in 2007 by a woman who was secretly obsessed with him. 

Saturday
With the rebroadcast of Disney’s “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest,” ABC ran as the No. 1 broadcaster on Saturday night in Adults 18-49 (1.0/3), beating CBS by 25% (0.8/3), NBC by 25% (0.8/3) and Fox by 67% (0.6/2).  In fact, “Dead Man’s Chest” stood as the No. 1 regular program in all 3 hours of the night in young adults.

Sunday
ABC stood as the No. 1 broadcast net on Palm Sunday among Adults 18-49 (2.0/6), tying CBS’ all-original schedule, while beating Fox’s mix of repeats and originals by 5% (1.9/5) and NBC’s all-original lineup by 11% (1.8/5).  

Growing week to week in Total Viewers (7.4 million vs. 7.2 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.0/6 vs. 1.9/5), ABC marked its strongest Sunday with regular programming on the evening in 6 weeks – since 3/6/11.  
  
“America’s Funniest Home Videos” (7:00-8:00 p.m.)
During the 7 o’clock hour, ABC’s “America’s Funniest Home Videos” ran as the No. 1 regular program in Adults 18-49, beating runner-up CBS’ “60 Minutes” by 14% (1.6/5 vs. 1.4/5). 

“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
On its first telecast in 8 weeks, ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” built on its lead-in at 8:00 p.m. by double-digit percentages among viewers (+19%) and young adults (+25%), finishing as the 2nd-most-watched TV show overall (7.6 million) in the hour to CBS’ “Amazing Race XVIII.”  The broad-appealing ABC unscripted series also took second place from 8:00-9:00 p.m. with key Women (W18-49/W25-54) and held the No. 2 broadcast position with young Adults (AD18-34/AD18-49).   Also in the hour, ABC’s return of “Home Edition” topped NBC’s competing “America’s Next Great Restaurant” by 3.8 million viewers (7.6 million vs. 3.8 million) and by 67% in Adults 18-49 (2.0/6 vs. 1.2/3).
 
“Desperate Housewives” (9:00-10:01 p.m.)
On its first telecast in 2 weeks, “Desperate Housewives” finished as the most-watched TV show in the 9 o’clock hour (9.1 million).  Among Adults 18-49, ABC’s “Housewives” topped CBS original “Undercover Boss” by an impressive 35% (2.7/7 vs. 2.0/5).  

“Brothers &  Sisters” (10:01-11:00 p.m.)
During the 10 o’clock hour, ABC’s “Brothers & Sisters” ranked as the No. 1 drama among Women 18-34, beating CBS’ “CSI: Miami” by 6% (1.8/5 vs. 1.7/5). 

(Source: ABC – The Nielsen Company (National, Live+ Same Day Program Ratings), week of 4/11/11, unless stated otherwise)