Summer Olympics coverage dominated the weekly Nielsen rankings for broadcast networks. Only three days of Olympics was in the mix (from last Monday through this past Sunday) and all three broadcasts made the top 3, with the opening ceremonies on Friday drawing the most viewers, and the coverage on Sunday night having the most 18-49 year olds. NBC also took the fourth spot with America’s Got Talent. The peacocks scored again with a special edition of AGT taking the 12th spot on the list.
CBS’ Two and a Half Men edged out the finale of So You Think You Can Dance, and as usual, CBS’ Monday night line-up of repeats fared very well in general with every show in the lineup making the top 20. The Tuesday edition of Big Brother fared well, but we may not see BB on the list next week, what with the top seven spots being taken up with Olympics coverage.
The season finale of Nashville Star came in at number 20, giving NBC both the first and last show on this list. We’re in what will be a short-lived “Summer of NBC”. CBS’s Flashpoint the only new, scripted drama making the list. We only saw the top 26 programs in the 18-49 demo, so if you don’t see a ranking it merely means the show was not among the top 26 programs in that demographic for the week.
Wipeout isn’t actually sinking – at least not yet. While not listed as a repeat, the episode in the eighth slot was a recap show.
Nielsen Top Twenty Shows by viewers for the week ending 08/10/08:
| Rank | Shows | Net | HH RATING (LIVE+SD) | HH SHARE (LIVE+SD) | # OF HOMES (LIVE+SD) (000) | # Viewers (LIVE+SD) (000) | 18-49 Rank |
| 1 | SUM OLYM OPEN CEREM(S) | NBC | 18.8 | 34 | 21,216 | 34,891 | 2 |
| 2 | SUM OLYM SUN PRIME 1(S) | NBC | 18.1 | 31 | 20,409 | 32,256 | 1 |
| 3 | SUM OLYM SAT PRIME 1(S) | NBC | 13.9 | 27 | 15,680 | 24,082 | 3 |
| 4 | AMERICA’S GOT TALENT | NBC | 7.7 | 13 | 8,686 | 12,611 | 4 |
| 5 | TWO AND A HALF MEN (R) | CBS | 6.5 | 11 | 7,359 | 9,979 | 7 |
| 6 | SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-THU | FOX | 5.9 | 10 | 6,632 | 9,693 | 5 |
| 7 | CRIMINAL MINDS (R) | CBS | 6.0 | 10 | 6,725 | 9,109 | 19 |
| 8 | SO YOU THINK CN DANCE-WED | FOX | 5.5 | 10 | 6,183 | 8,960 | 6 |
| 9 | NCIS (R) | CBS | 5.9 | 10 | 6,669 | 8,703 | |
| 10 | CSI: MIAMI (R) | CBS | 5.5 | 10 | 6,195 | 7,891 | 14 |
| 11 | OLD CHRISTINE (R) | CBS | 5.1 | 8 | 5,739 | 7,599 | 10 |
| 12 | AMERICA’S GOT TALENT 8/7(S) | NBC | 4.8 | 8 | 5,394 | 7,567 | 11 |
| 13 | WIPEOUT | ABC | 4.3 | 8 | 4,806 | 7,337 | 8 |
| 14 | CSI: NY (R) | CBS | 4.7 | 8 | 5,311 | 7,028 | |
| 15 | BIG BROTHER 10-TUE | CBS | 4.2 | 7 | 4,749 | 6,445 | 9 |
| 16 | HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER (R) | CBS | 4.3 | 7 | 4,821 | 6,362 | 12 |
| 17 | 60 MINUTES (R) | CBS | 4.3 | 8 | 4,831 | 6,320 | |
| 18 | BIG BANG THEORY, THE (R) | CBS | 4.2 | 8 | 4,713 | 6,299 | 13 |
| 19 | FLASHPOINT | CBS | 4.3 | 8 | 4,834 | 6,256 | |
| 20 | NASHVILLE STAR | NBC | 3.8 | 7 | 4,289 | 6,212 |
Nielsen Ratings Data: ©2008 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved
All numbers above based on live plus same day DVR viewing.
