TV Ratings: 'NCIS' milestone helps CBS win Tuesday, as ABC's 'River' launch dwindles

Michael Jackson Bump only lasts one week for 'Glee'

By Daniel Fienberg Wednesday, Feb 8, 2012 11:57 AM

Eloise Mumford of "The River"

Credit: ABC

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Fast National ratings for Tuesday, February 7, 2012.

The 200th episode of "NCIS" delivered a big audience to CBS and helped the network dominate Tuesday night overall and pull out a slim win among young viewers, as "Raising Hope" prevented FOX from claiming the key demo.

Meanwhile, ABC's premiere of "The River" got off to a solid start, but the two-hour launch dropped viewers with each half-hour, though it still managed to win the 10 p.m. hour among young viewers.

Among adults 18-49, CBS won the night with a 3.1 rating, edging out FOX's 3.0 rating in the key demographic. ABC averaged a 2.4 rating for third, beating the 2.0 rating for NBC. The CW averaged a 0.6 rating for the night.

Overall, CBS won the night comfortably, averaging 16.21 million viewers and a 10.1 rating/16 share. ABC was a distant second with a 4.7/7 and 7.63 million viewers, beating the 4.1/6 and 6.76 million viewers for FOX. NBC was fourth with a 3.7/6 and 5.78 million viewers. The CW averaged a 0.8/1 and 1.255 million viewers.

[Univision averaged 3.78 million viewers and a 1.5 rating among adults 18-49 for Tuesday night.]

8 p.m. - "NCIS" ruled the 8 p.m. hour with 20.82 million viewers and a 4.1 rating among adults 18-49, on the high side in viewers. ABC was second overall with 7.86 million viewers for two episodes of "Last Man Standing," finishing third with a 2.4 key demo rating. After a one-week Michael Jackson bump, FOX's "Glee" came back to Earth with 7.72 million viewers and a 3.2 key demo rating. NBC's "The Biggest Loser" averaged 5.97 million viewers and a 2.1 key demo rating for fourth. On The CW, "90210" averaged 1.36 million viewers and a 0.7 key demo rating.

9 p.m. - CBS stayed in first for the 9 p.m. hour with 16.12 million viewers for "NCIS: Los Angeles," which also won the hour among adults 18-49 with a 3.1 rating. ABC's "The River" premiere averaged nearly 8.2 million viewers in its first hour and finished third with a 2.5 key demo rating. NBC's "The Biggest Loser" was third overall for the hour with 6.74 million viewers and fourth with a 2.4 key demo rating, both up from last week. FOX's "New Girl" (6.92 million and a 3.5 key demo rating) and "Raising Hope" (4.67 million and a 2.2 key demo rating) were fourth overall and second in the key demo. On The CW, "Ringer" averaged only 1.15 million viewers and a 0.5 key demo rating, down from last week's 2012 return.

10 p.m. - "Unforgettable" won the 10 p.m. hour overall for CBS with 11.7 million viewers, but finished second with a 2.2 key demo rating. ABC's "The River" dropped to 6.82 million viewers and a 2.3 key demo rating (including 6.45 million and a 2.2 key demo in its last half-hour). The second week will obviously be important for the supernatural drama. NBC's "Parenthood" had a low week with 4.64 million viewers and a 1.6 key demo rating.

All ratings information comes from preliminary Fast National Nielsen data, which includes live and same-day DVR viewing. All numbers are subject to change.

Daniel Fienberg
Executive Editor

A long-time member of the TCA Board and a longer-time blogger of "American Idol," Dan Fienberg writes about TV, except for when he writes about movies or sometimes writes about the Red Sox. But never music. He would sound stupid talking about music.

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War Chief Shake Zula

The River deserves the ratings it got. Sepinwall's review is way off base, and I'm beginning to think he has genre blindness when it comes to Spielberg.
February 8, 2012 at 1:04PM EST Reply to Comment
- War Chief Shake Zula - I liked "The River" too. And his review isn't "off base." You disagree with it. Many people disagree with it. That's fine.
  
  -Daniel
  February 8, 2012 at 1:26PM EST
- Bunk Genre blindness? Give me a break. Alan is one of the most impartial reviewers around. As far as the show goes, I thought The River was fairly cheesy, and I'm really not a fan of "Teri Bauer," but it's hard to judge a show after the first hour or two. I typically give a show I'm interested in at least four episodes before I jump, giving the cast a little time to settle into their characters.
  February 9, 2012 at 1:46AM EST

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TV Ratings: 'NCIS' milestone helps CBS win Tuesday, as ABC's 'River' launch dwindles

Michael Jackson Bump only lasts one week for 'Glee'