American Idol: 2011-12 TV Season Ratings (Thurs)

Here are the Thursday ratings for American Idol; the TV show that seeks to find the next singing sensation. The popular reality competition is hosted Ryan Seacrest and judged by Randy Jackson, Steven Tyler, and Jennifer Lopez. The 11th season of American Idol typically airs Wednesday and Thursday nights on the FOX network.

These are the TV show’s ratings for the Thursday episodes of the 2011-12 season. The ratings are the best way to tell if American Idol will be cancelled or renewed for season 12. Of course, there seems little chance that the blockbuster series will end any time soon but all hit shows eventually lose steam. Check out our FOX ratings report card to see how this show’s numbers compare with the others on the network.

These figures will be updated as the weeks progress so be sure to bookmark and return to this page:

Thursday, 02/16/12
5.1 in the demo (-12% episode-to-episode change) with 16.71 million; tied for first at 8pm, first 8:30-10pm.
Season average: 5.52 in the demo with 17.48 million.
Demo average rank: #2 of 7 non-scripted TV shows on the network (Fall 2011 – Spring 2012).

Thursday, 02/09/12
5.8 in the demo (+6% episode-to-episode change) with 18.13 million; first in the timeslot.
Season average: 5.63 in the demo with 17.68 million.
Demo average rank: #2 of 7 non-scripted TV shows on the network (Fall 2011 – Spring 2012).

Thursday, 02/02/12
5.5 in the demo (0% episode-to-episode change) with 17.41 million; tied for first at 8pm, first at 8:30pm.
Season average: 5.57 in the demo with 17.52 million.
Demo average rank: #2 of 7 non-scripted TV shows on the network (Fall 2011 – Spring 2012).

Thursday, 1/26/12
5.5 in the demo (-4% episode-to-episode change) with 17.14 million; tied for first at 8pm, first at 8:30pm.
Season average: 5.60 in the demo with 17.58 million.
Demo average rank: #2 of 7 non-scripted TV shows on the network (Fall 2011 – Spring 2012).

Thursday, 1/19/12
5.7 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 18.02 million total viewers; first in the timeslot.
Season average: 5.70 in the demo with 18.02 million.
Demo average rank: #2 of 7 non-scripted TV shows on the network (Fall 2011 – Spring 2012).

Idol is still a huge hit but the Thursday debut was way down year-to-year in the ratings. It dropped 28% in the demo (vs a 7.8 rating) and 23% in total viewership (vs 22.90 million). This was the biggest drop in the show’s history.

Reference point: The Thursday editions of the 2010-11 season averaged a 6.8 rating in the 18-49 demographic and 21.82 million viewers.

Note: These ratings are collected by the Nielsen company and are the final national numbers. These are different from the fast affiliate numbers which are just estimates of the actual ratings and are reported on by most other outlets. The final nationals are typically released within 24 hours of the programming or, in the case of weekends and holidays, a couple days later.

What do you think? Do you like the American idol TV series? Are you still interested? Do you wish that it would be cancelled?

Image courtesy FOX.

More about: American Idol, American Idol: canceled or renewed?, American Idol: ratings

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