CBS won the Nielsen Media Research prime-time ratings race in the 18-49 demo Monday night with a 5.7 rating/13 share average thanks to time-period-winning performances from sitcoms Everybody LovesRaymond and Two and a Half Men and a night-topping outing from CSI: Miami (7.7/18).
NBC was second with a 5.1/12, with solid performances across the board from Fear Factor (4.7/12 to win at 8-9), Las Vegas (4.8/11) and new crime show, Medium, which continued to deliver strong numbers at 10 with a 5.8/14. NBC was happily giving Medium a "well done," pointing out that the show is beating the time period average by a whopping 87% (a 5.8 vs. a 3.1 for NBC pre-Medium)
ABC was a distant third, just barely edging out Fox with a 3.9/9 for new Home Makeover spin-off, How'd They Do That, which averaged a solid 4.2/10 for second place; The Bachelorette, which came in fourth at 9-10 with a 3.8/8; and reality show Supernanny (3.7/9).
Fox was in fourth with a 3.8/9 for Trading Spouses (3.1/8) and 24 (4.5/10), but its numbers are virtually guaranteed to improve dramatically Tuesday with the launch of American Idol, despite Fox's suggestion to TV critics that the ratings might be down from last year.
UPN and The WB were neck and neck, with The WB taking fifth with a 1.4/3 for Seventh Heaven and Everwood, and UPN recording a 1.3/3 for One on One, Half & Half, Girlfriends and Second Time Around.
