Below are the ABC TV show ratings averages as of the end of week 23 of the 2012-13 season (Sunday, March 3, 2013). Ratings are typically the best way to tell if a show will be cancelled or renewed.
Week-to-week gains: Castle, Last Man Standing, The Bachelor and America’s Funniest Home Videos.
Week-to-week losses: Modern Family, Once Upon a Time, The Middle, Suburgatory, Nashville, The Neighbors, Malibu Country, Zero Hour, Body of Proof, and The Taste.
New this week: Celebrity Wife Swap and Red Widow.
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Want more info on recent/current/future ABC shows? Check our latest ABC network status page to see which shows have been cancelled or renewed, how many episodes there are this season, and when shows will be returning or premiering.
| ABC non-scripted TV shows |
18-49 demo rating (actual) |
Viewers in millions |
Ratings pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Bachelor | 2.6 (2.61) | 8.07 | cycle 17 ratings |
| Celebrity Wife Swap | 2.4 (2.40) | 7.05 | season 2 ratings |
| Dancing with the Stars (fall) | 2.3 (2.29) | 13.87 | cycle 15 ratings |
| Dancing with the Stars (fall, results) | 2.2 (2.16) | 12.92 | cycle 15 ratings |
| Shark Tank | 1.9 (1.86) | 6.59 | season 4 ratings |
| The Taste | 1.7 (1.67) | 4.90 | season 1 ratings |
| Primetime | 1.5 (1.50) | 4.72 | season 24 ratings |
| America’s Funniest Home Videos | 1.5 (1.49) | 6.50 | season 23 ratings |
| 20/20 | 1.4 (1.44) | 5.26 | season 35 ratings |
These charts incorporate the daily final ABC show ratings (reported by Nielsen) and are sorted by the 18-49 demographic. Network advertisers typically prize those viewers most and so will pay more to reach them. There’s lots of information that the networks take into consideration when cancelling or renewing a TV series but the ratings are the biggest factor. The higher the ratings, the better chance that the show will be renewed. And yes, they take it into account when a show airs on a Friday or Saturday night.
What do you think? Are you surprised by any of the averages? Which show(s) do you feel should be doing better or worse, based on their quality? Comment below.
Just when I was getting into Zero Hour it disappears. Do you guys not know quality TV?
Dump the trashy shows and those stupid reality shows. People with IQ’s are looking for something intellectually stimulating.
I am so sad. I started thinking about the past 5 years of television and the shows that got me excited that were just gone one day. All of them ABC???? Not sure how they do their ratings but something is very wrong?!?!?!?!?! Advertise better and get a better system to know who is DVRing!
I think Zero Hour was a great show, I don’t think cancelling was the right way to go. The show is a smart show I think ABC should have considered a different time slot. I was just starting to appreciate the story.