A steady "American Idol" pushed Fox to an overall win Wednesday night, while ABC's "Don't Trust the B---- in Apt. 23" jumped in the ratings and NBC's "Betty White's Off Their Rockers" stumbled, according to preliminary numbers.
Fox took first place in ratings and total viewers, airing "Idol" throughout its entire primetime. From 8 to 10 p.m., "Idol" had a 4.6 rating/13 share in the advertiser-coveted 18-49 demographic, and 16.3 million total viewers.
CBS took second place in ratings and total viewers with an average 2.6/7 and 10.1 million. "Survivor" at 8 was down slightly from last week, earning a 2.5/8 in the demo -- a series low excluding specials -- and 9.2 million total viewers. "Criminal Minds" at 9 returned from a three-week break to pull even with its last original, posting a 3.0/8 in the demo and 11.4 million total viewers. "CSI" also returned after three weeks, dipping slightly to tie a series low in the demo with a 2.3/6 and 9.7 million.
ABC came in third in ratings and total viewers with an average 2.4/7 and 7 million. "The Middle" at 8 slipped somewhat from its last original three weeks ago to hit a season low of 2.0/7 and 6.6 million total viewers. "Suburgatory" at 8:30 was even with its last original two weeks ago, tying a series low of 2.0/6 in the demo with 5.8 million total viewers. "Modern Family" at 9 saw a very modest dip from two weeks ago, hitting a season low of 4.0/11 and 10 million total viewers. (Which is pretty fantastic for a low.) With an original lead-in this week, "Don't Trust the B---- in Apt. 3" enjoyed a 20 percent bump over last week, taking a 2.4/6 and 5.9 million total viewers. "Revenge" at 10 ran even with last week to tie a series low of 2.1/6, with 7 million total viewers.
NBC took fourth place in ratings and total viewers with an average 1.4/4 and 5.2 million. "Betty White's Off Their Rockers" at 8 slid 24 percent to a 1.3/4 in the demo and had 5 million total viewers. A second episode at 8:30 posted a 1.4/4 and 4.9 million total viewers. "Rock Center With Brian Williams" at 9 jumped grew 11 percent from last week with a 1.0/3 and had 4.2 million total viewers, while "Law & Order: SVU" at 10 increased modestly for a 1.8/5 and 6.5 million total viewers.
