From 8-9pm, “Ugly Betty” Holds Second to “Survivor” in Viewers and for the 2nd Week in a Row and Takes First Place in its Time Period Among Young Women

During the Final Half-Hour of the Evening, ABC News’ “Vote 2008: Vice Presidential Analysis” Outdraws Post-Debate Analysis on NBC and CBS

Please Note: All ratings are approximate in the time-period based Fast Affiliate Ratings, due to the live-nature of the VP Debate with a 6:00 p.m. start in the Pacific and a 9:00 p.m. start in the East, and are subject to change with the release of the National Ratings this afternoon. Additionally, numbers for the actual Vice Presidential Debate from 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET (approx). were “sustained” and are scheduled to be reported separately by Nielsen later today.

“Ugly Betty” (8:00-9:00 p.m.)
From 8:00-9:00 p.m. ABC’s “Ugly Betty” held second to “Survivor: Gabon” in Total Viewers (8.6 million). For the 2nd week in a row, “Betty” ranked No. 1 in its time period with Women 18-34 (3.4/10).

“Vote 2008: Vice Presidential Analysis THU” (10:30-11:00 p.m.)
Based on Nielsen’s preliminary “Fast Affiliate” time period averages from 10:30-11:00 p.m. ET (numbers subject to adjustment in the National Ratings later today), ABC News was once again the top draw with post-debate coverage. ABC’s “Vote 2008: Vice Presidential Analysis THU” (9.2 million), outdrew post-debate analysis on both NBC (8.8 million) and CBS (7.9 million).

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 28% currently, from 20% at the same point in 2007. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.