Surprise, surprise: Last Wednesday’s American Idol finale was the top-rated show of the week, drawing a healthy 28.8 million viewers to the showdown that saw Kris Allen triumph over Adam Lambert. However, the night was still down 9 percent from the previous season’s finale, which pulled in 31.7 million viewers. The Tuesday night performance episode drew 23.8 million viewers and took the No. 2 spot for the week.
Of course, ABC’s Dancing With the Stars followed Idol, with the final results show (which crowned Olympian Shawn Johnson the season’s winner) ending up at No. 3 with 20.3 million viewers (a 200,000-viewer increase from a year ago) and the Monday performance show clocking in at No. 4 with 19.2 million viewers.
Nos. 5-12 on the chart were all CBS shows, from the season finale of The Mentalist at No. 5 (16.8 million viewers) to a repeat of CSI at No. 12 (9.9 million viewers). Several other finales on CBS, all scripted, fell in between.
Of note in the rest of the Top 20 was the premiere of Fox’s heavily promoted Glee, which showed up at No. 14 with 9.6 million viewers. While that’s not a bad number, the show’s ratings were seen as disappointing, since Glee lost 60 percent of it’s lead-in audience from Idol. The season 5 premiere of Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance showed up right after Glee, at No. 15, with 8.8 million viewers — a 1 percent bump over last season’s premiere. The full Top 20 — with total viewership numbers — is after the jump.
1. American Idol Wednesday | Fox | 28.8 million
2. American Idol Tuesday | Fox | 23.8 million
3. Dancing With the Stars Tuesday | ABC | 20.3 million
4. Dancing With the Stars Monday | ABC | 19.2 million
5. The Mentalist | CBS | 16.8 million
6. NCIS | CBS | 16.8 million
7. Two and a Half Men | CBS | 16.2 million
8. CSI: Miami | CBS | 14.2 million
9. Criminal Minds | CBS | 14.0 million
10. Rules of Engagement | CBS | 12.9 million
11. Without a Trace | CBS | 11.2 million
12. CSI (R) | CBS | 9.9 million
13. 24 | Fox | 9.6 million
14. Glee | Fox | 9.6 million
15. So You Think You Can Dance | Fox | 8.8 million
16. How I Met Your Mother | CBS | 8.7 million
17. NBA Playoffs: Los Angeles at Denver | ABC | 8.7 million
18. The Bachelorette | ABC | 8.7 million
19. 60 Minutes (R) | CBS | 8.1 million
20. Dancing with the Stars (R) | ABC | 7.6 million
More recent ratings news from EW:
Tuesday: CBS dominates while ‘Mental’ and ‘Hitched or Ditched’ debut
‘Jon & Kate Plus 8′ season 5 premiere shatters TLC records
Thursday: Fox wins with ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ return
Wednesday: ‘American Idol’ Ratings: Lambert/Allen can’t compete with Archuleta/Cook
Tuesday: ‘Idol’ + ‘Dancing’ does not = ‘Glee’
Monday: ‘Dancing with the Stars’ wins, ‘The Bachelorette’ comes up roses
1. American Idol Wednesday | Fox | 28.8 million
2. American Idol Tuesday | Fox | 23.8 million
3. Dancing With the Stars Tuesday | ABC | 20.3 million
4. Dancing With the Stars Monday | ABC | 19.2 million
5. The Mentalist | CBS | 16.8 million
6. NCIS | CBS | 16.8 million
7. Two and a Half Men | CBS | 16.2 million
8. CSI: Miami | CBS | 14.2 million
9. Criminal Minds | CBS | 14.0 million
10. Rules of Engagement | CBS | 12.9 million
11. Without a Trace | CBS | 11.2 million
12. CSI (R) | CBS | 9.9 million
13. 24 | Fox | 9.6 million
14. Glee | Fox | 9.6 million
15. So You Think You Can Dance | Fox | 8.8 million
16. How I Met Your Mother | CBS | 8.7 million
17. NBA Playoffs: Los Angeles at Denver | ABC | 8.7 million
18. The Bachelorette | ABC | 8.7 million
19. 60 Minutes (R) | CBS | 8.1 million
20. Dancing with the Stars (R) | ABC | 7.6 million
More recent ratings news from EW:
Tuesday: CBS dominates while ‘Mental’ and ‘Hitched or Ditched’ debut
‘Jon & Kate Plus 8′ season 5 premiere shatters TLC records
Thursday: Fox wins with ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ return
Wednesday: ‘American Idol’ Ratings: Lambert/Allen can’t compete with Archuleta/Cook
Tuesday: ‘Idol’ + ‘Dancing’ does not = ‘Glee’
Monday: ‘Dancing with the Stars’ wins, ‘The Bachelorette’ comes up roses
THE WINNER OF AI IS ALWAYS FROM A RED STATE…
Great to see Glee make it to the top 20. Hopefully it can do that during the fall.
http://tvdonewright.com/2009/05/27/dexter-adds-john-lithgow-for-a-killer-role/
Perhaps for the last year.
The hottest celeb scenes at http://www.actressscene.com
My guess for the ratings being down is that more people go to viewing parties- especially for the finale. I had viewing parties at my house every week all season long- anywhere from 1- 3 other households during the season, and about 6 households during the finale. I can’t be the only one. I think since the voting numbers were up, that seems to be the most logical explanation.
I totally don’t mean this in a negative way, but I think more “red state” viewers find this type of show attractive. I like certain elements, and I certainly enjoyed Adam Lambert this year, but I think the show appeals to a more “middle of the road” audience. There isn’t a thing in the world wrong with that. I would guess more people in red states enjoy Top 40, formulaic music. Plenty of blue state folks like Top 40, middle of the road music as well, but I think (and this isn’t scientific) you tend to find more liberal musical tastes where you see more liberal political views. Just my opinion, not saying it is fact. Again, nothing wrong with either POV, I simply think it’s a show that appeals to red states. Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, Christina Agulera, Justin Timberlake, Barry Manilow, Jim Nabors, Zamfir, Yanni – Nipsy Russell – okay, not Nipsey Russell – Dan Fogelberg, not Paul Westerberg. These are the artists I think of when I think “red state.
Oh, and I think the ratings are down because the ratings for TV in general are down. TV competes with DVD rentals, game rentals and game systems, the Internet, computers in general (hey, when you can watch as many shows and movies on web sites for free as you can these days, it is bound to make a dent). Idol is still far and away the Superbowl of all TV shows. Ratings may be down, but Idol still makes Fox money hand over fist, it’s a cash cow. It’s mind boggling.
I think Glee lost audience because people who watched American Idol were way to focus on voting to watch the new comedy show.
Only adults enter here —http://www.she16.com/
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WE on the west coast heard from east coast friends about the outcome and did not watch.
some just used DVRs and so didn’t count.
LAST YEAR 64 MILLION VOTES
this year down 40 million viewers
BUT GOT 100 MILLION VOTES.
just sayin’.
Tell us something we don’t already know….
-TL
http://grittywriter.wordpress.com/
I have voted for contestants in every American Idol season. However, this is the LAST TIME I will be voting unless Fox and the American Idol franchise change the AI voting system. With the advent of “voting parties” and Power Voting, my vote no longer counts.
The prize can no longer be expected to go to the person America thinks is the best singer, but to the person who has the largest speed voting fan base, is the best organized, the best funded, or has the best corporate sponsor. This whole contest has become about selling AT&T cell phones and text messaging packages. Money, money, money, so vote sheep, vote.
WHAT A RIP OFF.