‘Fallon’ Debut, Kimmel 'Bachelor' Interview Boost Late-Night Ratings

NBC had a solid week in late night as viewers tuned in to see the debut of “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.” Competing networks held their ground, however, leading to win-win results for all. In its first week out, “Fallon” averaged a 0.9 rating/5 share among adults 18-49 and 2.4 million viewers, beating the debut weeks for late-night shows hosted by Craig Ferguson (January 2005; 0.8 rating, 2 million), Craig Kilborn (March-April 1999; 0.7, 1.5 million), Tom Snyder (January 1995; 0.8, 1.7 million) and Jimmy Kimmel (January 2003; 0.8, 1.7 million). “Fallon” edged out CBS’ “Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson” and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live” on all five nights last week during their competitive half-hour in both viewers 18-49 and total viewers. Overall, “Fallon” was up 26% from “Late Night’s” season-to-date average in the demo and up 21% among total viewers. (Note: “Kimmel” starts at 12:05 a.m., while both “Ferguson” and “Fallon” start at 12:35 a.m.) NBC’s “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” also had a ... (link)