Grammy Awards draw 39.9 million viewers Ceremony on CBS is second-most-watched ever By Toni Fitzgerald Feb 13, 2012 Share | The unexpected death of Whitney Houston Saturday boosted CBS's Grammy Awards to the second-largest audience in the ceremony's history as the industry paid tribute to the late singer. Last night's show averaged 39.9 million total viewers from 8 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., according to Nielsen, the most since 1984, when a record 51.7 million tuned in to watch Michael Jackson win eight Grammys for "Thriller." The ceremony also drew a 14.1 adults 18-49 rating, the best for the show since 1990. In both total viewers and 18-49s, this year's Grammys outdrew last year's Academy Awards, usually the most-watched awards ceremony on TV. Last year's Oscars averaged 37.9 million viewers and an 11.8 rating. Last night's show surpassed the 1985 Grammys for No. 2 on the all-time list just four years after the ceremony fell to a new low. The Grammys drew just 17.2 million viewers in 2008, as album sales slumped. But over the past two years ratings began to revive. A tribute to the late Jackson goosed viewership for the 2010 show, and last year the revival continued with a number of hot acts performing, including Eminem and Lady Gaga. Last year's show drew 26.7 million total viewers, the best in 10 years until last night's show. Most of the credit for this year's Grammys ratings surge sadly goes to Houston, whose shocking death dominated the headlines in the 24 hours before the ceremony. The show's producers scrambled to prepare a tribute to Houston, a six-time Grammy winner. What they came up with has become an instant classic: Jennifer Hudson singing Houston's signature song, "I Will Always Love You." "Jennifer Hudson tribute to Whitney Houston" has been the No. 1 search term on Google all day long. Houston was the main draw, but she was not the only one. Last night also marked the first performance for Adele since undergoing throat surgery, and she did beautifully. Her album, last year's best-selling CD, also won six awards last night. ***

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Toni Fitzgerald is a staff writer for Media Life.	© 2012 Media Life Magazine