As NBC prepares for tonight’s late night change up – Jay Leno’s final “Tonight Show” – the folks at ABC are celebrating a second place finish for the 2008-09 season (using the prime time TV calendar). For the first time in six seasons, “Nightline” is the #2 show in late night in Total Viewers. “Nightline” tied CBS’ “Late Show with David Letterman” for second in A25-54 viewers but pulled ahead for the #2 slot in A18-49 viewers.
For the year, Nightline was up 14% in Total Viewers and in the just concluded May sweep, Nightline tightened the race with the outgoing Leno to its smallest Total Viewing gap in 10 years, which still stands at 1.21 million viewers.
• For 2008-2009 season:
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| Show | Network | A25-54 | Total Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tonight Show | NBC | 2.19M | 5.15M |
| Nightline | ABC | 1.71M | 3.89M |
| Late Show | CBS | 1.71M | 3.84M |
• For May Sweeps:
| Show | Network | A25-54 | Total Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tonight Show | NBC | 2.17M | 5.00M |
| Nightline | ABC | 1.60M | 3.79M |
| Late Show | CBS | 1.61M | 3.64M |
• For Week of May 18, 2009:
| Show | Network | A25-54 | Total Viewers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tonight Show | NBC | 2.21M | 5.12M |
| Nightline | ABC | 1.57M | 3.63M |
| Late Show | CBS | 1.44M | 3.24M |