'Idol' Still Holds Sway, ABC, NBC Thursday Tanks

AmericanIdol

Fox's "American Idol" may be down from a year ago -- but it continues to upset the Thursday night apple cart, as well as gain separation from its competitors. 

ABC -- which used to be top dog on Thursday a year ago -- took another beating, for example. Every one of its Thursday night shows hit another round of season lows --- "Winter Wipeout" down 14% to a Nielsen 1.9/6 from a 2.1 rating. "Grey Anatomy" off the same amount to a 3.7/10 from a 3.9 rating, while "Private Practice" is down 8% to a 2.4/7 from a 2.7 number.

NBC went south -- and one better than ABC -- witnessing its lowest regularly original programmed night of the season.

"The Office" was down 6% to a 3.3/9 from a 3.6; "Parks & Recreation" sank 8% to a 2.3/6 from a 2.6; "30 Rock" was off 13% to 2.0/6 from a 2.3; "Outsourced" crumbled 12% to a 1.5/4 from a 1.7; and "Perfect Couples" was down 13% to a 1.4/4 from a 1.6. Only "Community" was able to maintain its number versus a week ago, at 1.8/5. That said, these results tie season-lows, as well.

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Fox's "Idol" is now down around two full percentage points for its results show that ran on Wednesdays. Thursday's results left it with a 7.6/22, for example. Week-to-week, however, the most recent "Idol" result show was actually up a bit from a 7.3 rating.

Only CBS was able to give Fox somewhat of a fight.

While "The Big Bang Theory" and "$#*! My Dad Says" were down around 5% to a 3.7/11 and a 2.6/8, respectively, "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and "The Mentalist" both grew a little from the week before. "CSI" was at a 2.9/8; and "The Mentalist," a 3.0/9.

CW continues to have mixed results for its Thursday night. "Vampire Diaries" was strong again with a 2.0/6 in its key women 18-34 numbers -- ranking second, right behind "Idol" for the night. It also gained in total viewers and 18-49 numbers. "Nikita" did a bit better than a week ago -- up in total viewers to 2.1 million and in 18-34 and 18-49 data, each at a 0.8/2. But its key women 18-34 results still suffer, posting the same 1.0/3 as a week ago.

For the night among key 18-49 viewers, Fox scored a 5.5/15, followed by CBS at a 3.0/8, and ABC at a 2.7/8. Univision was tied with NBC, each with a 2.1/6; and CW at a 1.1/3. Fox also won among younger 18-34 viewers, with a 4.3/13. Univision was next at a 2.4/8, followed by NBC at a 2.4/7, ABC at a 2.2/7, CBS at a 1.8/5, and CW at a 1.2/4.

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