And the Oscar Does Not Go to ABC

SUNDAY 2/26/17

What follows are the metered market household results by half-hour for Sunday, Feb. 26:

Household Rating/Share
ABC: 17.9/29, CBS: 3.2/ 5, NBC: 2.1/ 3, Fox: 1.1/ 2

Percent Change from the Year-Ago Evening:
Fox: +10, NBC: + 5, CBS: – 3, ABC: – 7

Ratings Breakdown:
It was all about the “Academy Awards” on ABC, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, of course. The 89th annual festivities averaged an estimated 21.4 rating/37 share in the household overnights from 8:30 p.m. – 12:15 a.m. ET (peaking in the 9:30 p.m. half hour at a 22.6/34). Comparably, that was nine percent below the 23.4/26 in the household overnights on the year-ago evening and the lowest for any Oscars telecast since 2008 (20.8/32 on 2/24/08 when “No Country for Old Men” was named Best Picture).

Last year, that 23.4 rating in the overnights translated into an eight year low at 34.42 million viewers (based on the live plus same day data). With that in mind, last night’s Oscars could land in the vicinity of 31.3 million viewers, which could make it the least viewed Oscars telecast since Nielsen began monitoring the telecast in the 1970s. Or, more likely, it could again be the lowest since 2008 (when 32.01 million viewers tuned in). The final tallies will not be available tomorrow, but there will be updates later today pending the fast national data.
What follows are the household overnight results for Sunday, Feb. 26 complete with the breakdown by half-hour:

7:00 p.m.
ABC – “Oscars Opening Ceremony: Live from the Red Carpet”: 8.5/15 (#1)
CBS – “60 Minutes”: 4.5/ 8 (#2)
NBC – “Dateline” (R): 3.0/ 5 (#3)
Fox – “Son of Zorn” (R): 1.3/ 2 (#4)

7:30 p.m.
ABC – “Oscars Opening Ceremony: Live from the Red Carpet”: 10.7/18 (#1)
CBS – “60 Minutes”: 4.4/ 7 (#2)
NBC – “Dateline” (R): 3.2/ 5 (#3)
Fox – “The Simpsons” (R): 0.9/ 2 (#4)

8:00 p.m.
ABC – “Oscars Opening Ceremony: Live from the Red Carpet”: 14.2/23 (#1)
CBS – “60 Minutes”: 3.6/ 6 (#2t)
NBC – “Dateline” (R): 3.6/ 6 (#2t)
Fox – “The Simpsons” (R): 1.1/ 2 (#4)

8:30 p.m.
ABC – “The 89th Annual Academy Awards”: 21.3/33 (#1)
CBS – “60 Minutes”: 3..2/ 5 (#3)
NBC – “Dateline” (R): 3.4/ 5 (#2)
Fox – “The Simpsons” (R): 1.1/ 2 (#4)

9:00 p.m.
ABC – “The 89th Annual Academy Awards”: 22.5/34 (#1)
CBS – “NCIS: Los Angeles” (R): 2.7/ 4 (#2)
NBC – Movie: Neighbors (R): 1.2/ 2 (#3t)
Fox – “Family Guy” (R): 1.2/ 2 (#3t)

9:30 p.m.
ABC – “The 89th Annual Academy Awards”: 22.6/34 (#1)
CBS – “NCIS: Los Angeles” (R): 2.6/ 4 (#2)
NBC – Movie: Neighbors (R): 0.9/ 1 (#4)
Fox – “Family Guy” (R): 1.2/ 2 (#3)

10:00 p.m.
ABC – “The 89th Annual Academy Awards”: 22.0/34 (#1)
CBS – “NCIS: Los Angeles” (R): 2.5/ 4 (#2)
NBC – Movie: Neighbors (R): 0.8/ 1 (#3)

10:30 p.m.
ABC – “The 89th Annual Academy Awards”: 21.5/35 (#1)
CBS – “NCIS: Los Angeles” (R): 2.5/ 4 (#2)
NBC – Movie: Neighbors (R): 0.8/ 1 (#3)

Source: Nielsen Media Research