A number of shows fell to series lows against the Olympics last week, including "Grey's Anatomy," "Desperate Housewives" and "American Idol." But Spanish-language programs have done pretty well against the Games.
Univision had two big nights last week in which it placed second and third among all broadcasters in adults 18-34, while Telemundo aired the second-most-watched show in network history in the 8 p.m. hour.
The series finale of Univision's telenovela "Sortilegio" boosted the network to No. 3 on Wednesday night, drawing 2.1 million adults 18-34 and 3.7 million adults 18-49, according to Nielsen, and becoming the fifth-most-watched novela in network history.
One night later, Univision's "Premio Lo Nuestro a la Música Latina” awards boosted the network to No. 2 for the night in 18-34s, behind only NBC's Olympic coverage, albeit opposite a lot of repeats.
"Premio" averaged 1.8 million 18-34s and 2.1 million 18-49s, pushing Univision to fourth place for the night in that demo despite declines compared to last year's show.
Meanwhile, the premiere of the new novela "El Clon" on Spanish-language rival Telemundo last Tuesday became the second-most-watched program ever on the network in the 8 p.m. timeslot, drawing 1.4 million total viewers and 770,000 18-49s.
There are likely several reasons for the strong numbers for the Univision and Telemundo shows, and the first is pretty obvious.
Though many Hispanics speak both English and Spanish, some prefer Spanish-language programming, and some only speak Spanish. Thus they're more likely to stick with these channels even when the Olympics are on.
Secondly, the other networks have not been airing much counterprogramming to the Olympics, most notably CBS or the CW, the latter of which targets the same adults 18-34 demographic that Univision does well with.
So for those looking for an Olympic alternative, Univision and Telemundo were easy choices.
Finally, even when the Olympics are on, viewers will still tune in to big events, such as premieres, finales and awards shows, on other networks.
Quite simply, Univision and Telemundo scheduled smartly, taking chances on event programming opposite the Olympics that would have drawn good numbers no matter when they aired.
***
In broadcast ratings for the week ended Feb. 21:
Among adults 18-49, NBC was first with a 6.7 average rating and an 18 share, followed by Fox at 3.2/9, ABC at 2.1/6, CBS at 2.0/5, Univision at 1.5/4, CW at 0.6/2, Telemundo and Telefutura at 0.4/1, Ion at 0.3/1 and Azteca at 0.1/0.
Top five English-language Big Five shows (18-49s): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 9.2; 2. NBC’s “Winter Olympics Wednesday” 9.0; 3. NBC’s “Winter Olympics Saturday” 7.4; 4. NBC’s “Winter Olympics Monday” 7.1; Tie-5. NBC’s “Winter Olympics Thursday” and Fox’s “American Idol-Wednesday” 7.0.
Show on the rise: “The Cleveland Show” Fox, Sunday 8:30 p.m. Even against the Olympics the animated comedy rose 17 percent week-to-week among 18-49s, from a 2.4 rating to a 2.8.
Show on the decline: “The Deep End” ABC, Thursday 8 p.m. The drama tumbled 27 percent week-to-week among 18-49s, from a 1.5 rating to a series-low 1.1.
WEEKLY PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK Ranked on Households
Week Ending February 21
Network
Households
People 2+
Adults 18-49
Rtg%
(000)
Shr
Rtg%
(000)
Shr
Rtg%
(000)
Shr
NBC
14.1
16230
23
8.5
24750
21
6.7
8830
18
FOX
5.0
5760
8
3.0
8680
7
3.2
4200
9
CBS
4.9
5670
8
2.7
7750
7
2.0
2610
5
ABC
4.0
4590
6
2.1
6270
5
2.1
2820
6
UNI
1.9
2240
3
1.3
3860
3
1.5
2020
4
CW
0.9
1050
1
0.5
1420
1
0.6
810
2
ION
0.7
770
1
0.3
1010
1
0.3
380
1
TF
0.5
590
1
0.4
1030
1
0.4
570
1
TEL
0.5
590
1
0.3
990
1
0.4
580
1
AZA
0.1
110
0
0.1
170
0
0.1
100
0
*Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 149 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research
SEASON-TO-DATE PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK Ranked on Households
Week Ending February 21
Network
Households
People 2+
Adults 18-49
Rtg%
(000)
Shr
Rtg%
(000)
Shr
Rtg%
(000)
Shr
CBS
7.5
8580
12
4.2
12330
11
3.3
4400
9
FOX
5.8
6660
9
3.4
9930
8
3.7
4820
10
ABC
5.4
6220
9
2.9
8610
7
2.7
3540
7
NBC
5.3
6080
9
3.0
8680
8
2.9
3760
8
UNI
1.8
2070
3
1.2
3530
3
1.4
1800
4
CW
1.3
1520
2
0.7
2020
2
0.9
1240
3
ION
0.7
770
1
0.4
1030
1
0.3
400
1
TEL
0.5
610
1
0.4
1050
1
0.5
630
1
TF
0.5
540
1
0.3
970
1
0.4
560
1
AZA
0.1
140
0
0.1
210
0
0.1
120
0
*Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 149 million homes
Note: Season-to-date estimates are a weighted average of pre-TSV and Live+SD data.
Source: Nielsen Media Research
TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST Ranked on Households
Week Ending February 21
#
PROGRAMS
Net
HOUSEHOLDS
PERSONS 2+
Rtg%
Shr
(000)
#
Rtg%
(000)
1
WNTR OLYM WED PRIME 1(S)
NBC
16.7
27
19215
1
10.1
29416
2
WNTR OLYM SAT PRIME 2(S)
NBC
14.7
26
16894
2
9.1
26668
3
WNTR OLYM THU PRIME 1(S)
NBC
14.5
24
16649
4
8.5
24782
4
WNTR OLYM MON PRIME 1(S)
NBC
14.2
22
16300
3
8.6
25224
5
WNTR OLYM FRI PRIME 1(S)
NBC
13.4
23
15407
6
8.0
23304
6
WNTR OLYM SUN PRIME 2(S)
NBC
13.2
21
15206
6
8.0
23294
7
AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY
FOX
13.1
20
15015
5
8.2
23922
8
WNTR OLYM TUE PRIME 1(S)
NBC
12.2
19
13979
8
7.0
20330
9
AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY
FOX
10.6
16
12134
9
6.4
18629
10
UNDERCOVER BOSS
CBS
8.0
12
9189
10
4.7
13763
11
NCIS
CBS
7.6
11
8713
12
4.0
11656
12
BACHELOR, THE
ABC
7.3
11
8378
13
3.9
11532
13
60 MINUTES
CBS
7.2
12
8281
13
3.9
11360
14
SURVIVOR: HEROES-VILLAINS
CBS
6.9
11
7888
11
4.1
11972
14
DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES
ABC
6.9
10
7873
15
3.7
10924
16
TWO AND A HALF MEN
CBS
6.7
10
7643
16
3.6
10614
17
GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM
ABC
6.6
10
7563
17
3.5
10273
18
BIG BANG THEORY, THE
CBS
6.2
9
7096
17
3.5
10086
19
NCIS: LOS ANGELES
CBS
5.9
9
6816
20
3.1
9132
20
MENTALIST, THE-9PM SPCL(S)
CBS
5.7
9
6541
22
3.0
8811
20
LOST
ABC
5.7
8
6594
19
3.4
9819
22
COLD CASE
CBS
5.6
9
6490
22
3.0
8814
23
CSI:
MIAMI
CBS
5.5
9
6278
24
2.9
8384
24
CSI 10PM-SPECIAL(S)
CBS
5.3
9
6114
26
2.7
7957
24
BROTHERS & SISTERS
ABC
5.3
9
6098
26
2.7
7852
Source: Nielsen Media Research
TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST Adults 18-49
Week Ending February 21
Rank
Program
Net
Rtg%
(000)
1
AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY
FOX
9.2
12099
2
WNTR OLYM WED PRIME 1(S)
NBC
9.0
11893
3
WNTR OLYM SAT PRIME 2(S)
NBC
7.4
9716
4
WNTR OLYM MON PRIME 1(S)
NBC
7.1
9380
5
WNTR OLYM THU PRIME 1(S)
NBC
7.0
9217
5
AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY
FOX
7.0
9154
7
WNTR OLYM SUN PRIME 2(S)
NBC
5.9
7740
8
WNTR OLYM TUE PRIME 1(S)
NBC
5.5
7247
9
WNTR OLYM FRI PRIME 1(S)
NBC
5.4
7139
10
UNDERCOVER BOSS
CBS
4.8
6367
11
LOST
ABC
4.5
5924
12
BACHELOR, THE
ABC
4.1
5333
13
SURVIVOR: HEROES-VILLAINS
CBS
3.9
5179
14
DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES
ABC
3.7
4851
14
GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM
ABC
3.7
4892
16
BIG BANG THEORY, THE
CBS
3.6
4742
17
TWO AND A HALF MEN
CBS
3.3
4379
18
FAMILY GUY
FOX
3.2
4158
19
SIMPSONS
FOX
2.9
3863
19
AMAZING RACE 16
CBS
2.9
3763
21
CLEVELAND
FOX
2.8
3669
21
SORTILEGIO WED
UNI
2.8
3682
21
24
FOX
2.8
3662
21
AMERICAN DAD
FOX
2.8
3670
21
PRIVATE PRACTICE
ABC
2.8
3649
Source: Nielsen Media Research
SPANISH-LANGUAGE TELEVISION (WEEKLY COLLAPSED) Ranked on Households
Week Ending February 14
#
PROGRAMS
Net
Rtg
P2+ (000)
1
SORTILEGIO M-F
UNI
22.7
5293
2
EN NOMBRE DEL AMOR M-F
UNI
18.1
3971
3
MUJERES ASESINAS 2 THU
UNI
16.9
3779
4
HASTA DINERO SEPARE M-F
UNI
16.5
3907
5
AQUI Y AHORA TUE
UNI
14.9
3093
6
DON FRANCISCO PRESENTA WE
UNI
14.5
2809
7
CRISTINA MON
UNI
14.4
2832
8
SABADO GIGANTE SAT
UNI
11.4
2319
9
ROSADE GUADALUPE THU-FRI
UNI
11.2
2453
10
CINE ESPECIAL SUN 8PM
UNI
10.0
2334
11
IMAGENES DE IMPACTO SUN
UNI
9.4
2069
12
FAMILIA P. LUCHE SAT
UNI
8.3
1848
13
MAS SABE EL DIABLO M-F
TEL
7.7
1678
14
HORA PICO SUN
UNI
6.0
1258
15
FIESTA DE PELICULA THR
TF
5.8
1188
16
CAPO, EL M-F
TF
5.7
1276
17
CINE DE LAS ESTREL SUN
TF
5.6
1644
18
PERRO AMOR M-F
TEL
4.6
1033
19
VECINOS M-F
TF
4.5
1089
20
AMORES Q' MTAN TIJERA2/14(S)-02/14/2010
TF
4.4
1004
20
CINE DE LAS ESTRELLAS M-F
TF
4.4
964
22
SN TTS NO HAY PARAISO M
TEL
4.2
979
23
FUTBOL ESTELAR
TEL
3.8
817
23
CINE DE IMPACTO II
TEL
3.8
924
23
12 CORAZONES M-F
TEL
3.8
795
Source: Nielsen Media Research
HISPANIC ENGLISH-LANGUAGE VIEWING Ranked on Households
Week Ending February 14
