Barbara Walters Return to 20/20 Wins the Hour for ABC

By Chris Ariens 

Barbara Walters‘ 20/20 interview with Mary Kay Letourneau Fualaau and Vili Fualaau won the 10pmET timeslot in the two younger demos, while also topping a two-hour Dateline in viewers. 20/20 averaged 6 million viewers to Dateline’s 5.3 million. Blue Bloods on CBS won the 10pm hour in viewers with 10.1 million.

20/20 was up week to week in Total Viewers (+62%), Adults 18-49 (+75%) and Adults 25-54 (+58%), experiencing 7-week highs in all 3 measures, according to Nielsen Live+ Same Day ratings.

The hour — which saw Walters return to the show she once hosted — included a candid interview with Letourneau who spent 6 years in prison for an affair with Fualaau, an affair that began when she was 34 and he was just 13. The couple has now been married 10 years and have two daughters together.

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