'Survivor' finale
sees a boost in viewers
Averages a 4.4 rating in 18-49s, up 5 percent
By Toni Fitzgerald
Dec 21, 2009
The expected coronation of Russell Hantz, the self-declared best player to ever compete on "Survivor," was derailed by the mild-mannered Natalie White in a shocking jury decision last night that boosted ratings for the long-running CBS reality show.
The season finale of "Survivor: Samoa" averaged a 4.4 adults 18-49 rating, according to Nielsen overnights, up 5 percent from a 4.2 for last spring's ender and flat to the fall 2008 finale.
The show, which aired from 8 to 10 p.m., averaged 14.1 million total viewers, up 10 percent from last spring's "Survivor: Tocantins."
Blogs are abuzz this morning over the Samoa tribal council's decision to award the $1 million prize to White, who admitted that she kept her head down and tried not to make any waves en route to making the final three.
Hantz, on the other hand, made plenty of waves, knocking out fellow competitors left and right and engineering his ideal final three (doctor Mick Trimming placed third).
The council's vote is seen more as a referendum on Hantz's polarizing tactics than approval for White's strategy, but it has many fans enraged nonetheless.
Opines EW.com's Dalton Ross, "I'm going to make sure that I am absolutely clear about this: Natalie winning over Russell is the worst jury vote in the history of 'Survivor.'"
The controversy also gave viewership for the "Survivor Reunion" special that aired at 10 p.m. a slight boost, up 3 percent over last year, to a 3.9 18-49 rating.
Meanwhile, NBC was first for the night among 18-49s with a 4.5 average overnight rating and a 12 share. Fox was second at 4.4/12, CBS third at 3.8/10, ABC fourth at 1.7/5 and Univision fifth at 1.0/3.
As a reminder, all ratings are based on live-plus-same-day DVR playback. Seven-day DVR data won’t be available for several weeks. Thirty-three percent of Nielsen households have DVRs.
Also, ratings for Fox’s football overrun and NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” are approximate as fast nationals measure timeslot and not actual program data.
Fox led at 7 p.m. with a 7.0 for NFL overrun and “The OT” postgame show, followed by CBS with a 2.4 for “60 Minutes.” NBC was third with a 2.1 for “Football Night in America,” ABC fourth with a 1.7 for a repeat of “America’s Funniest Home Videos” and Univision fifth with a 0.7 for the first half of the movie “Zurdo.”
NBC took the lead at 8 p.m. with a 4.7 for football pregame and the start of “Sunday Night Football,” while CBS remained second with a 4.2 for the first hour of “Survivor.” Fox was third with a 3.3 for repeats of “The Simpsons” and “The Cleveland Show,” ABC fourth with a 1.8 for the first half of “The Santa Clause 3” and Univision fifth with a 0.9 for the second half of “Zurdo.”
At 9 p.m. NBC was first with a 5.5 for football, with CBS second with a 4.5 for more “Survivor.” Fox was third with a 2.8 for repeats of “Family Guy” and “American Dad,” ABC fourth with a 2.1 for more “Santa Clause 3” and Univision fifth with a 1.0 for the first hour of the movie “La Misma Luna.”
NBC was first at 10 p.m. with a 5.9 for more football, followed by CBS with a 3.9 for the “Survivor” reunion show. Univision was third with a 1.3 for the end of “La Misma Luna” and ABC fourth with a 1.2 for a repeat of “Desperate Housewives.”
Among households, NBC led the night with a 7.9 average overnight rating and a 13 share. CBS was second at 7.6/12, Fox third at 6.3/10, ABC fourth at 3.6/6 and Univision fifth at 1.2/2.
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