It’s been a year since Terri Schiavo’s death, and the debate over the seriously ill’s right to die that her case aroused, and people are still quite interested in the topic.
 
Last night’s NBC’s “Dateline,” which featured an interview with Schiavo’s husband, Michael, averaged 9.5 million total viewers, a 23 percent boost over the 7.7 million the Sunday news show has averaged so far this season, according to Nielsen overnights. The show also averaged a 2.2 overnight rating among viewers 18-49, up 16 percent from its 1.9 season average.
 
“Dateline” was second among total viewers in the 7 p.m. timeslot, trailing only CBS’s NCAA basketball overrun. It finished third among 18-49s.
 
Schiavo appeared in an interview with “Today’s” Matt Lauer, pushing his new book “Terri: The Truth.” In it, he details the first moments when his wife’s health took a turn for the worse.
 
He told Lauer: “She said, ‘Goodnight. I love you,’ and we both went back to sleep. And somewhere around 5 a.m., I heard a thud, a loud bang. I looked over and I noticed Terri wasn’t in bed.  So, I ran out in the hall and there was Terri laying on the ground.”
 
Among households, “Dateline” posted a 6.7 overnight rating last night, up 26 percent from the 5.3 it has averaged season-to-date.

Meanwhile, ABC led the night among 18-49s with a 5.8 average rating and a 14 share despite airing mostly repeats. CBS was second at 3.8/10, Fox third at 3.3/8, NBC fourth at 2.5/6, Univision fifth at 2.0/5 and WB sixth at 0.9/2.
 
At 7 p.m. CBS led with a 4.3 rating for basketball overrun and the first 15 minutes of “60 Minutes.” ABC was second with a 2.7 for “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” NBC third with its 2.2 for “Dateline” and Fox fourth with a 2.1 for “Malcolm in the Middle” (1.7) and “King of the Hill” (2.5). Univision was fifth that hour with a 1.2 for “Hora Pico” and WB sixth with a 0.8 for an hour of “Reba” repeats.
 
ABC took the lead for good at 8 p.m. with a 4.9 for a repeat of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” CBS was second with a 4.6 for “60 Minutes” and the beginning of “Cold Case,” Fox third with a 4.5 for “The Simpsons” (5.1) and “The War at Home” (3.9), and NBC fourth with a 2.2 for “The West Wing.” Univision was fifth with a 2.0 for its first hour of “Bailando por un Sueño” and WB sixth with a 1.1 for a repeat of “Charmed.”
 
At 9 p.m. ABC led again with an 8.8 for “Desperate Housewives,” the night’s top-rated show among 18-49s. CBS finished second again with a 3.5 for “Cold Case” and the beginning of a “CSI” rerun, with Fox third with a 3.4 for “Family Guy” (4.3) and “Free Ride” (2.6), NBC fourth with a 2.6 for “Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” Univision fifth with a 2.3 for its second hour of “Bailando” and WB sixth with a 0.8 for another “Charmed” repeat.
 
ABC finished the night in the lead with a 6.7 rating at 10 p.m. for a repeat of “Grey’s Anatomy.” NBC was second with a 3.0 for “Crossing Jordan,” CBS third with a 2.9 for the end of its “CSI” rerun and the start of a repeat of “Without a Trace” and Univision fourth with a 2.4 for its last hour of “Bailando.”
 
Among households, ABC led the night with a 9.1 average rating and a 14 share. CBS was second at 8.8/14, NBC third at 6.2/10, Fox fourth at 3.9/6, Univision fifth at 2.1/3 and WB sixth at 1.5/2.