Ratings: ‘American Idol’ and Fox Win Night as Several Shows Hit Lows

‘Suburgatory,’ ‘Criminal Minds,’ ‘Whitney,’ ‘Chelsea,’ and ‘Rock Center’ all hit or tie series lows

"American Idol" powered Fox to an easy win in ratings and total viewers on a Wednesday night when seven shows hit or tied series or season lows, according to preliminary numbers.

"Idol" and Fox averaged a 5.3 rating/15 share in the advertiser-treasured 18-49 demographic and 17.9 million total viewers during the top 12 finalists performance show that aired from 8-10 p.m.

CBS was second in ratings and total viewers, averaging a 2.8/8 and 11.1 million. "Survivor: One World" at 8 had a 2.9/9 and 10.3 million. "Criminal Minds" at 9 hit an all-time ratings low with a 2.8/7 — down 10 percent from its last original episode two weeks ago — and had 11.3 million total viewers. (Its numbers matched the network's overall numbers almost exactly.) "CSI" at 10 had a 2.7/8 and 11.5 million total viewers. 

ABC was third in ratings and total viewers, averaging a 2.2/6 and 6.4 million. At 8, "The Middle" had a season low rating of 2.1/7, and 7 million total viewers. It was down 19 percent in the demo. At 8:30, "Suburgatory" hit a series low 2.1/6 and had 6.3 million total viewers. "Modern Family" at 9 had a 4.4/12 and 10.5 million. It was the second-highest-rated and fourth-most-watched show of the night, despite hitting its season low. At 9:30, "Happy Endings" had a 2.4/6 and 5.5 million. It was up 20 percent from last week's season low in the demo. At 10, the ABC News special "Revenge for Real" had a 1.2/3 and 4.5 million total viewers.

NBC was fourth in ratings and total viewers, averaging a paltry .8/2 and 2.9 million. It was handily beaten by Univision, which averaged a 1.4/4 rating and 3.4 million viewers across the night.

At 8, NBC's "Whitney" tied its series low of 1.4/5, and had 4 million total viewers. "Are You There, Chelsea?" at 8:30 had a series-low 1.0/3 and 2.9 million. A "Law & Order: SVU" rerun aired at 9. At 10, "Rock Center With Brian Williams" tied its series low .6/2 and had 2.6 million total viewers.

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