'AGT' 15th Anniversary Special Leads NBC to an Easy Ratings Victory

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'AGT' 15th Anniversary Special Leads NBC to an Easy Ratings Victory

by Jennifer Maas and Tony Maglio | August 5, 2020 @ 8:56 AM

"World of Dance" also didn't disappoint against a lot of repeats

NBC scored an easy Tuesday ratings win with its "America's Got Talent" 15th anniversary special. The preliminary Nielsen returns for the "AGT" celebration combined with a solid performance from "World of Dance" to give NBC a significant edge over the other broadcast networks, which aired mainly repeats.

NBC was first in ratings with a 0.8 rating/5 share in the 18-49 demographic and in total viewers with an average of 5.4 million, according to preliminary numbers. At 8 p.m., the "America's Got Talent" 15th anniversary special had a 0.8/5 and 6.1 million viewers. "World of Dance" at 10 earned a 0.7/4 and 3.9 million viewers.

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CBS and Univision tied for second in ratings, both with a 0.4/3. CBS was second in viewers with 4 million and Univision was fourth with 1.3 million.

For CBS, following back-to-back drama repeats, the "John Lewis: Celebrating a Hero" special received a 0.3/2 and 3 million viewers.

Also Read: 'Ellen' Ratings Hit All-Time Low Last Month Amid Reports of Toxic Workplace Culture

ABC, Fox and Telemundo tied for fourth in ratings, each with a 0.3/2. ABC was third in viewers with 1.8 million, Fox was fifth with 1.1 million, and Telemundo was sixth with 980,000.

For ABC, following four comedy reruns, "What Would You Do?" at 10 p.m. got a 0.3/2 and 2.1 million viewers.

The CW was seventh in ratings with a 0.1/1 and in viewers with 623,000. At 8, "DC's Stargirl" settled for a 0.2/1 and 841,000 viewers. At 9, "Tell Me a Story" managed a 0.1/1 and 406,000 viewers.

18 New Summer TV Shows Ranked by Premiere Viewers, From 'Tough as Nails' to 'United We Fall' (Photos)

With all due respect to "America's Got Talent," summer is not exactly the time when Nielsen ratings threaten to fall off the charts -- at least, not the top of the charts. And when it comes to new series, a summer slot isn't generally a vote of confidence from the network.

Due to coronavirus-forced production shutdowns, Summer 2020 has been an especially soft season. Click through our gallery to see how 18 freshman broadcast television shows -- some acquisitions -- fared in total viewers for their premieres this summer.

Also Read: 2020-2021 TV Season: Every Broadcast Show Canceled, Renewed and Ordered – So Far
ABC/Fox/CBS/The CW
Rank: 18 Show: "Taskmaster"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 212,000

*Network debut of U.K. series
The CW
Rank: 17 Show: "Being Reuben"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 242,000 *Network debut of U.K. series
The CW
Rank: 16 Show: "Fridge Wars"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 398,000

*Network debut of Canadian series
The CW
Rank: 15 Show: "Tell Me a Story"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 434,000

*Network debut of CBS All Access series
CBS All Access
Rank: 14 Show: "Killer Camp"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 483,000

*Network debut of U.K. series
The CW
Rank: 13 Show: "Dead Pixels"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 506,000

*Network debut of U.K. series
The CW
Rank: 12 Show: "Coroner"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 715,000

*Network debut of Canadian series
The CW
Rank: 11 Show: "Labor of Love" Net: Fox Total Viewers: 891,000

Also Read: How ‘Labor of Love’ Producers Found Kristy Katzmann Her Perfect Man/Sperm Donor
Fox
Rank: 10 Show: "DC's Stargirl"* Net: The CW Total Viewers: 1.224 million *Network debut of DC Universe series

Also Read: The CW Shuffles ‘Stargirl’ Debut, ‘In the Dark’ Return to Fill Scheduling Holes Due to Production Shutdown
The CW
Rank: 9 Show: "Celebrity Watch Party" Net: Fox Total Viewers: 1.785 million
Fox
Rank: 8 Show: "The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons - Ever!" Net: ABC Total Viewers: 2.412 million
ABC
Rank: 7 Show: "Cannonball"* Net: NBC Total Viewers: 2.655

*Network debut of USA Network series
NBC
Rank: 6 Show: "The Genetic Detective" Net: ABC Total Viewers: 3.264 million
ABC
Rank: 5 Show: "Tough as Nails" Net: CBS Total Viewers: 4.096 million
CBS
Rank: 4 Show: "Don't" Net: ABC Total Viewers: 4.178 million
ABC
Rank: 3 Show: "United We Fall" Net: ABC Total Viewers: 4.235 million
ABC
Rank: 2 Show: "Ultimate Tag" Net: Fox Total Viewers: 4.351 million
Fox
Rank: 1 Show: "Game On!" Net: CBS Total Viewers: 4.437 million
CBS

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Nielsen sheets cooled off as the months warmed up

With all due respect to "America's Got Talent," summer is not exactly the time when Nielsen ratings threaten to fall off the charts -- at least, not the top of the charts. And when it comes to new series, a summer slot isn't generally a vote of confidence from the network.

Due to coronavirus-forced production shutdowns, Summer 2020 has been an especially soft season. Click through our gallery to see how 18 freshman broadcast television shows -- some acquisitions -- fared in total viewers for their premieres this summer.

Also Read: 2020-2021 TV Season: Every Broadcast Show Canceled, Renewed and Ordered – So Far

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