Fox’s “American Idol” was the runaway winner in Thursday night’s ratings, leading the network to an easy victory in both total viewers and the 18-49 demo, TVbytheNumbers.com reported.

For the night, Fox averaged a 5.8 rating in adults 18-49, well ahead of NBC (2.5 average rating), CBS (2.1) and ABC (1.6). Fox was also well out in front in total viewers, averaging 17.2 million to CBS’s 9.6 million, ABC’s 5.2 million and NBC’s 5.2 million.

At 8 p.m. "Idol" collected a 7.6 in the 18-49 demo for the hour, while ABC’s "Winter Wipeout" had a 2.4 in the same demo and a fresh "$#*! My Dad Says" on CBS at 8:30 logged a 2.3 in the 18-49 demo. NBC’s "Community" and "Perfect Couples" had a 2.2 average rating and a 1.7, respectively, in the 18-49 demo for the hour. CW’s "Vampire Diaries" netted a 1.6 in the same demo.

At 9 p.m. NBC’s "The Office" and "Parks & Recreation" rated a 4.0 average and a 3.0, respectively, in the 18-49 demographic, just ahead of Fox’s "Bones," which had a 3.9 in the same demo for the hour. CW’s "Nikita" had a 1.1 in the 18-49 demographic for the hour.

At 10 p.m. "30 Rock" and "Outsourced" averaged a 2.4 rating and a 1.9, respectively, in the 18-49 demographic, going up against reruns.