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Onetime Ratings Juggernaut ‘American Idol’ Notches an All-Time Performance Low

May 1, 2014  •  Post A Comment

CBS took a win in the prime-time ratings Wednesday night as Fox's "American Idol," once the dominant show on broadcast TV, continued to suffer viewer erosion, based on Nielsen overnights for the key 18-49 demo.

TVbytheNumbers.com reports that CBS's "Survivor" again beat "Idol" in head-to-head competition, with "Survivor" drawing a 2.2 average rating in the 8 p.m. hour in viewers 18-49 — down 4% from a week earlier — while Fox's two-hour "Idol" fell 14% to a 1.8 average, an all-time low for an "Idol" performance show.

CBS also scored a 2.2 average in 18-49 for "Criminal Minds," off 4% from its most recent original episode and equaling a series low. "CSI" climbed 6% to a 1.8.

Third-place NBC was pre-empted for NBA playoff coverage in Portland, meaning its results are subject to more than the usual adjustments. In preliminary returns, "Revolution" rose 8% from its most recent installment to register a 1.4 average in the 18-49 demo and "Chicago PD" — with a crossover story line from "Chicago Fire" — was up 19% with a 1.9, while "Law & Order: SVU" fell 14% to a 1.8.

ABC had Wednesday's top-rated show on broadcast prime in "Modern Family," even as the show notched a season low. "Family" fell 20% from a week ago to a 2.8 average in 18-49.

The rest of the ABC lineup was also down: "The Middle" fell 5% from last week to a 1.8 average in viewers 18-49; "Suburgatory" equaled its series low with a 1.4, off 18%; "Mixology" dropped 13% to a 1.3; and "Nashville" returned with a 20% drop from its most recent original, registering a series-low 1.2 average.

For prime time overall, CBS topped Wednesday night with a 2.1 average rating in 18-49, followed by Fox (1.8 average), NBC (1.7), ABC (1.6) and Univision (1.1). CBS also won total viewers, averaging 9.9 million to lead Fox (8.6 million), NBC (6.0 million), ABC (5.5 million) and Univision (2.9 million).

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