TV ratings: ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ down as NBC and CBS split Tuesday

On a night that saw declines for most shows, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” fell again in the ratings Tuesday, though not as much as last week, according to early numbers from Nielsen.

The ABC series, an offshoot of Joss Whedon’s blockbuster “The Avengers,” drew about 7.72 million viewers and a rating of 2.8 in the key 18-49 age group demographic, down 15% from last week’s episode, which itself fell about 30% from its strong debut the week before.

A ratings point equals roughly 1.3 million viewers. Like many of the popular new network shows “S.H.I.E.L.D.” has been getting a big lift from people watching the episodes through digital video recorders and video on-demand in the three days after they first air.

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CBS, with “NCIS,” NCIS: Los Angeles” and “Person of Interest,” was the most-watched network overall in prime time, while NBC, with “The Voice” and “Chicago Fire,” had the highest ratings in the key demographic.

The blind auditions are over on “The Voice,” NBC’s singing competition, which means Tuesday night’s episode was a recap of what’s happened on the show so far. Still, the telecast won Tuesday night in the advertiser desired 18-49 demographic with a rating of 2.9, understandably down from last week. It was down 3% from the comparable recap a year ago. More than 10 million people watched.

“Chicago Fire” followed with 7.58 million viewers and a 2.2 rating, down 15% from last week.

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CBS’ “NCIS” had the biggest audience of any telecast, with 17.9 million people watching, though its demo rating decreased 23% from last week to a 2.7, lower than “S.H.I.E.L.D.’s.” “NCIS: Los Angeles” and “Person of Interest” were both down slightly in the 18-49 group.

Other than “S.H.I.E.L.D.,” ABC aired new episodes of “The Goldbergs,” which fell 9% to a 2.0, and “Trophy Wife,” which was flat with last week’s 1.4.

Fox’s Tuesday comedy lineup, which has struggled so far this year, had an uptick this week.

“Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” the cop comedy with Andy Samberg, increased its demographic rating 7% to a 1.5 and got 3.4 million viewers, and “New Girl” increased 11% to a 2.1 and brought in an audience of 4 million. “The Mindy Project,” however, slid 7% to a 1.4.

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ryan.faughnder@latimes.com