48 Hours TV Show on CBS: Ratings (Cancel or Season 31?)

This is the 48 Hours TV show’s 30th season on CBS. After beginning as a 1986 CBS News documentary, 48 Hours on Crack Street, it kicked off its first season as a regular primetime TV series on January 19, 1988. Despite falling ratings, we probably don’t have to wonder whether 48 Hours will be cancelled or renewed for season 31. Still, we’ll keep an eye on the ratings just in case, so stay tuned.

Touted by CBS as, “The best in experimental journalism,” 48 Hours generally takes a deep dive into stories regarding the law, crime and justice. Correspondents in its 30th season include regulars Erin Moriarty, Peter Van Sant, Maureen Maher, Richard Schlesinger, and Tracy Smith, as well as occasional reports by other CBS News reporters.

The ratings are typically the best indication of a show’s likelihood of staying on the air. The higher the ratings (particularly in the 18-49 demo), the better the chances for survival. This chart will be updated as new ratings data becomes available — usually the next day, around 11:30am EST/8:30am PST. Refresh to see the latest.

4/15 update: You can see the rest of the latest night’s ratings.

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For comparisons: The 29th season of 48 Hours in 2016-27 averaged a 0.66 rating in the 18-49 demographic with 4.246 million total viewers.

Note: These are the Live + Same Day Ratings which include “live” viewing plus delayed DVR viewing, up until 3am local time that same night. Ratings marked with an “*” are the fast affiliate ratings and will be updated with the Live+SD numbers when they are made available. Typically, networks get paid for C+3 ratings which includes DVR viewing within three days of the original airing when commercials are watched. Those numbers are rarely released to the press.