Primetime Ratings: Knight Rider Debut Can’t Speed NBC
CBS takes Wednesday night on strength of Criminal Minds , CSI: NY .
By Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 9/25/2008 11:33:00 AM
NBC’s much-hyped premiere of Knight Rider was unable to connect with viewers in the 8 p.m. hour, finishing third in the 18-34 demo behind Fox’s Bones and ABC’s Dancing with the Stars results show.
Knight Rider earned a 2.3/7 share and 6.7 million viewers, while Bones received a 2.9/9 and 9.1 million viewers and Dancing garnered a 3.2/10 with 14.4 million viewers. CBS earned a 2.2 rating/6 share with two sitcoms, The New Adventures of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried.
All three of the networks got a ratings bump at the 9 p.m. hour, with President Bush delivering a speech on the economy. Following the speech, CBS picked up the pace, earning a 4.2 rating/1 share with Criminal Minds, while ABC’s David Blaine special earned a 2.8/7, narrowly beating America’s Got Talent on NBC with a 2.7/7.
The 10 p.m. hour belonged to CBS, as well, with CSI: NY earning a 3.9/11, followed by Lipstick Jungle on NBC with a 2.5/7 and the finale to Blaine’s special on ABC garnering a 2.5/7.
For the night, the crime procedurals gave CBS a win with a 3.5 rating/10 share, while Dancing and David Blaine gave ABC a second-place finish with a 2.9/8. Knight Rider and America’s Got Talent left NBC with a 2.5/7, with Til Death and Bones delivering Fox a 2.3/ 6. The CW, with America’s Next Top Model and a rerun of 90210, earned a 1.6/ 4 for primetime.
