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Easter Night Ratings: CBS Wins Prime Time With Unusual Lineup

Apr 17, 2017  •  Post A Comment

CBS had a big night against its broadcast competition on Sunday, riding an unusual programming lineup to wins in both total viewers and the key 18-49 demo.

The network aired the two-hour special “Stayin’ Alive:  A Grammy Salute to the Music of the Bee Gees” from 8-10 p.m., and the program came in as the most viewed and highest rated broadcast program of the night, based on Nielsen Live+Same Day figures.

The Bee Gees tribute chalked up 10.26 million total viewers in preliminary figures, by far the most of any broadcast program Sunday night. While CBS’s own “60 Minutes” delivered 8.02 million at 7 p.m., the closest the competition came was NBC’s “Little Big Shots” repeat with 5.19 million at 8 p.m.

CBS, which treated all prime-time programs on the night as specials due to the Easter holiday, noted that “60 Minutes” also delivered one of the best 18-49 demo numbers of the night, a 0.9 average rating, which matched NBC’s 9 p.m. broadcast of “Chicago Justice,” and “60 Minutes” had a strong 1.3 average rating in adults 25-54.

The Bee Gees special delivered a 2.0 average in the 25-54 demo for CBS. The network compared the results to the December 2015 broadcast of “Sinatra 100:  An All-Star Grammy Concert,” noting that “Stayin’ Alive” was up +17% in viewers, +50% in A18-49 and +67% in A25-54 from the Sinatra program.

CBS wrapped up Sunday prime with an airing of “Elementary” at 10 p.m., which finished first in the time slot in total viewers with 4.48 million, ahead of NBC’s “Shades of Blue” (4.04 million) and ABC’s “American Crime” (1.82 million). “Elementary” settled for second in the time slot in the 18-49 demo with a 0.6 average rating, trailing “Shades of Blue’s” 0.7 and ahead of “American Crime’s” 0.4.

CBS noted that it was first for the night in viewers (8.26m), A18-49 (1.0) and A25-54 (1.6). In total viewers, NBC trailed with an average of 4.45 million for the night, followed by ABC with 2.49 million and Fox with 1.14 million. CBS’s 1.0 average rating in 18-49 topped NBC’s 0.8 average, ABC’s 0.6 and Fox’s 0.4.

One Comment

  1. This concert was electrifying OMG

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