ESPN’s coverage of the Little League World Series and NFL pre-season football last week helped propel the network to a first place primetime ratings finish among cable networks according to Nielsen.
The sports network averaged 2.6 million viewers during the week of Aug. 18-24, besting second place finisher Fox News Network, which drew 1.9 million viewers. USA Network took third place with 1.8 million watchers, followed by Disney Channel (1.8 million viewers) and TNT (1.75 million).
TBS (1.63 million), History (1.57 million); MTV (1.5 million); HGTV (1.43 million) and Discovery Channel (1.13 million) rounded out the top 10.
Disney Channel was the top choice among viewers on a 24-hour basis, averaging 1.37 million viewers for the week. Nickelodeon finished a close second with 1.3 million viewers, followed by Fox News (1.15 million); Adult Swim (1.15 million) and Cartoon Network (1.06 million).
MTV’s Video Music Awards was the most watched show on cable last week, helping the network finish first among adult 18-49 and adult 18-34 viewers. ESPN was tops among adult 18-54 year olds, according to Nielsen.
Most Watched Cable Shows on Cable During the Week Of Aug. 18-24
Date Show Network Total Viewers
8/24 2014 Video Music Awards MTV 8.2 million
8/18 NFL Pre-Season Football ESPN 6.9 million
8/19 Rizzoli & Isles TNT 5.2 million
8/20 Little League World Series ESPN 4.9 million
8/24 The Last Ship TNT 4.3 million
8/18 WWE Monday Night Raw USA 4.3 million
8/18 WWE Monday Night Raw USA 4.2 million
8/24 True Blood HBO 4.0 million
8/18 WWE Monday Night Raw USA 3.9 million
8/18 Love & Hip Hop Atlanta VH1 3.9 million
Source: Nielsen
