TV Ratings : NBC Crushes the Competition

Thanks to the Summer Olympics, NBC dominated the ratings for the week that ended Sunday. With the Olympics accounting for the week’s top seven shows, NBC averaged a 20.2 rating, according to figures released Tuesday by the A.C. Nielsen Co. (More on NBC’s ratings on F7.) With CBS second at 8.2, the 12-point victory margin was the network’s largest ever. It was also NBC’s best week since Oct. 20-26, 1986, when it averaged a 21.8 rating, bolstered by four World Series games. ABC was third in the current report at 7.5 and Fox fourth at 6.0. The top-rated non-Olympics program was ABC’s “Roseanne,” No. 8 with a 13.9 rating and 22 share.

* CBS placed “Raven” on its fall schedule Tuesday, after the action series maintained a streak of winning its 9-10 p.m. Wednesday time slot against regularly scheduled programs. “Raven” was No. 25 for the week and will air on Saturdays at 9 p.m. this fall.

Points Share 1. “Summer Olympics” (Thurs.) (NBC) 22.3 40 2. “Summer Olympics” (Tues.) (NBC) 20.5 37 3. “Summer Olympics” (Mon.) (NBC) 19.7 36 4. “Summer Olympics” (Sat.) (NBC) 18.9 35 5. “Summer Olympics” (Sun.) (NBC) 18.3 39 * “Raven” (CBS) 8.5 14

(Each rating point represents 921,000 homes. Share is the percentage of viewing audience.)