Martha Raddatz’s interview of John Bolton delivered on all the hype — at least, it did in TV ratings. The ABC News event was Sunday’s highest-rated show, paving the way for ABC to take No. 1 in the key demo for last night’s primetime, despite a weaker performance from the network’s John Legend-hosted Father’s Day special, “A Bigger Love.”
ABC was first in ratings with a 0.5 rating/3 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic and in total viewers with an average of 4 million, according to preliminary numbers. Following a repeat, “John Legend and Family: A Bigger Love Father’s Day” at 8 p.m. settled for a 0.4/3 and 3.3 million viewers. At 9, ABC News’ Bolton interview, “The Room Where It Happened,” earned a 0.7/5 and 6.1 million viewers. An encore followed.
CBS and NBC tied for second in ratings, both with a 0.3/2. CBS was second in total viewers with 3.8 million, NBC was third with 1.8 million.
For CBS, “60 Minutes” at 7 posted a 0.6/4 and 7 million viewers. From 8-10, the “United We Sing: A Grammy Tribute to the Unsung Heroes” special managed a 0.2/1 and 2.8 million viewers. A drama encore followed.
For NBC, “Hollywood Game Night” at 7 had a 0.3/2 and 1.7 million viewers.
Univision and Fox tied for fourth in ratings, each with a 0.2. Univision had a 2 share and was fourth in total viewers with 840,000. Fox had a 1 share and was fifth in total viewers with 751,000, airing only reruns.
Telemundo and The CW tied for sixth in ratings, both with a 0.1. Telemundo had a 1 share and was sixth in total viewers with 503,000. The CW had a 0 share and was seventh in total viewers with 387,000, airing all repeats.
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.
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.