ABC's THE GOLDBERGS Surges by Double Digits to 6-Week Highs

ABC's "Modern Family" returned to original for the first time in 3 weeks to rank as Wednesday's No. 2 TV show to Fox's "Empire" in Adults 18-49 (2.2/8). In addition, ABC's "The Goldbergs," "black-ish" and "Nashville" each hit multi-week highs.

"The Middle"/"The Goldbergs" (8:00-9:00 p.m. - 6.7 million and 1.8/7 in AD18-49):
Finishing a strong second to "Survivor" from 8:00-9:00 p.m. in Adults 18-49, ABC's "The Middle" (1.7/7) and "The Goldbergs" (1.9/7) dominated their scripted competition in the hour by 50% over Fox's "Rosewood" (1.2/4) and by 157% over NBC's "Heartbeat" (0.7/3).

"The Middle" was up over its week-ago Fast Affiliate numbers in Total Viewers (6.9 million vs. 6.7 million) and Adults 18-49 (1.7/7 vs. 1.6/7), which adjusted up 1-tenth in the Nationals. "The Goldbergs" surged by double digits week to week in Total Viewers (+14% - 6.6 million vs. 5.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (+19% - 1.9/7 vs. 1.6/6) to its best performance in 6 weeks - since 3/23/16.

"Modern Family"/"black-ish" (9:00-10:00 p.m. - 6.5 million and 1.9/6 in AD18-49):
Opposite Fox's "Empire" in the 9:00 p.m. hour, ABC took 2nd place in Adults 18-49 (1.9/6) with "Modern Family" and "black-ish" beating CBS (+6% - 1.8/6 for the "Criminal Minds" finale) and NBC (+73% - 1.1/4 for "L&O:SVU").

"Modern Family" held even with its last original (on 4/13/16) in Total Viewers (7.4 million) and Adults 18-49 (2.2/8). "black-ish" grew week to week by 12% in Total Viewers (5.6 million vs. 5.0 million) and by 7% in Adults 18-49 (1.6/5 vs. 1.5/5), hitting a 4-week high with young adults - since 4/6/13.

"Nashville" (10:00-11:00 p.m. - 3.9 million and 0.9/3 in AD18-49):
At 10:00 p.m., ABC's "Nashville" grew to 3-week highs (since 4/13/16) in Total Viewers (+3% - 3.9 million vs. 3.8 million) and Adults 18-49 (+13% - 0.9/3 vs. 0.8/3) over its National ratings and was even with its week-ago Fast Affiliate numbers. Live + 3 Day Ratings for Last Wednesday (4/27/16): "Nashville" was once again Wednesday's top gainer on broadcast among Adults 18-49 with a +75% leap over its L+SD rating.

Projections Rationale: Lifts vs. L+SD are based on 2015-16 season averages for originals (excluding the premiere).
Returning shows: Profile based on same show (either premiere or averages for originals).
New Series: Based on similar series.

A note about DVR penetration: DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample is currently at 49% in U.S. TV Homes. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which are increasingly not reflected in the overnight Live + Same Day numbers. As a result, the Live + 7 Day ratings are the most accurate Nielsen measure to gauge the size of the TV audience.

Source: The Nielsen Company, Fast Affiliate Live + Same Day Ratings for 5/4/16.

Photo credit: ABC/ Byron Cohen*

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