TV Ratings: 'Idol,' 'Dancing' finales let FOX, ABC split Tuesday

Fast National ratings for Tuesday, May 24, 2011.

 

Airing on a Tuesday, rather than a Wednesday, the first part of the "American Idol" finale took a bit of a ratings dip, but still dominated the 8 p.m. hour, leading into a strong performance for the "Glee" finale. But it was ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" finale that stood as Tuesday's most-watched show and helped the network win the night in that measurement.

 

Meanwhile, NBC got good numbers for its "Biggest Loser" finale, while "The Voice" held up against the "Dancing with the Stars" onslaught about as well as the network could have hoped.

 

Among adults 18-49, FOX averaged a 5.4 rating for the night, easily out-distancing the 3.7 rating for ABC and 3.3 rating for NBC in the coveted demographic. CBS' 1.7 rating was fourth, far ahead of the 0.2 rating for The CW.

 

Overall, though, ABC averaged an estimated 17.41 million viewers and an 11.0 rating/17 share. FOX was second with a 9.1/14 and 16.03 million viewers. CBS finished a distant third with a 5.9/9 and 9.29 million viewers, topping NBC's 4.9/8 and 8.24 million viewers. The CW averaged 673,000 viewers and a 0.5/1.

 

8 p.m. - FOX's "American Idol" dominated the 8 p.m. hour with 19.96 million viewers and a 6.2 rating among adults 18-49. [Naysayers will point out that the 8 p.m. hour of last Wednesday's performance episode averaged nearly 2 million more viewers and half-a-ratings-point more in the key demo, but we'd note that airing on an off-schedule night in a more competitive time slot probably explains that drop reasonably.] ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" recap show averaged 10.29 million viewers, nipping the 10.24 million viewers for CBS' "NCIS" repeat. NBC's "Biggest Loser" finale was fourth with 7.34 million viewers and second with a 2.7 rating in the key demo. The CW's "One Tree Hill" averaged 636,000 viewers.

9 p.m. - The first hour of ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" finale stormed into first for the 9 p.m. hour with 19.92 million viewers and took a strong second with a 4.2 rating among adults 18-49. FOX's "Glee" finale" held onto 12.1 million viewers and a 4.6 demo rating from its "Idol" lead-in. CBS was third with 9.27 million viewers for "NCIS: Los Angeles." NBC's "Biggest Loser" finale concluded with 8.83 million viewers and finished third for the hour with a 3.4 demo rating. The CW's "Hellcats" repeat averaged 710,000 viewers.

 

10 p.m. - "Dancing with the Stars" improved to 22.02 million viewers and a 4.8 demo rating in the 10 p.m. hour for ABC. NBC's "The Voice" averaged 8.55 million viewers and a 3.8 demo rating (off from nearly 9.9 million and a 4.5 demo last week against much less direct reality competition). CBS' repeat of "NCIS" was third with 8.365 million viewers.