NBC: CAN’T WIN FOR WINNING

Preseason football and two episodes of America’s Got Talent on NBC topped the Nielsen ratings list for last week, but they weren’t enough to beat CBS’s repeat hits and its twelfth edition of Big Brother. The voyeuristic reality series didn’t even make the top ten among total viewers, but all three episodes landed in the top ten among adults 18-49, winning its time period in that demo on Wednesday and Thursday, but placing second to football on Sunday despite drawing more viewers on that day than it did on the previous two. Also scoring strongly for CBS were repeats of NCIS, 60 Minutes, Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, and NCIS: Los Angeles. ABC squeaked into the top ten with its reality game show Wipeout, which landed at No. 10 on Nielsen’s list of total viewers and No 1 among adults 18-49. For the week, CBS once again led with a 4.2 rating and an 8 share. ABC was in second place with a 3.6/7, followed by NBC with a 3.4/6. Fox trailed with a 3.1/6. Among the nightly newscasts, NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams again led rivals with an average 7.42 million viewers trailed by ABC World News with Diane Sawyer with 6.51 million. The CBS Evening News, meanwhile, tied its record low with 4.89 million.

The top ten shows of the week according to Nielsen Research:
1. NFL Pre-season, NBC, 6.7/12; 2. America’s Got Talent (Tuesday), NBC, 6.1/10; 3. America’s Got Talent (Wednesday) NBC, 6.0/10; 4. NCIS, CBS, 5.8/10; 5. 60 Minutes, CBS, 5.5/10; 6. NFL Pre-Season Pre-Game, NBC, 5.3/10; 6. Two and a Half Men, CBS, 5.3/9; 8. The Big Bang Theory, CBS, 5.1/8; 9. NCIS: Los Angeles, CBS, 5.0/8; 10. Wipeout (Tuesday), ABC, 4.7/8.