RATINGS RECAP: 3/8/17

ABC
8:00 The Goldbergs
Viewers: 5.7 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7
8:30 Speechless
Viewers: 5.0 million, 18-49 demo: 1.5
9:00 Modern Family
Viewers: 6.5 million, 18-49 demo: 1.9
9:30 Black-ish
Viewers: 5.1 million, 18-49 demo: 1.4
10:00 Designated Survivor
Viewers: 5.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.3

CBS
8:00 Survivor
Viewers: 7.6 million, 18-49 demo: 1.7
10:00 Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders
Viewers: 5.4 million, 18-49 demo: 0.9

NBC
8:00 Law & Order: SVU (Repeat)
Viewers: 4.0 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7
9:00 Law & Order: SVU (Repeat)
Viewers: 4.4 million, 18-49 demo: 0.8
10:00 Chicago PD (Repeat)
Viewers: 4.0 million, 18-49 demo: 0.7

FOX
8:00 Lethal Weapon
Viewers: 5.9 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2
9:00 Star
Viewers: 3.8 million, 18-49 demo: 1.2

CW
8:00 Arrow (Repeat)
Viewers: 0.9 million, 18-49 demo: 0.2
9:00 The 100 (Repeat)
Viewers: 0.6 million, 18-49 demo: 0.2

It was a down Wednesday night for ABC until 10pm. At 8pm, The Goldbergs was down half a million viewers and a tenth in the demo while Speechless was down three tenths in viewers and a tenth in the demo. At 9pm, Modern Family finally dipped below a 2.0 demo for the first time ever. It was an impressive seven and a half year run without falling below that threshold but it has happened now. The only broadcast shows that have never gone below a 2.0 now are The Big Bang Theory, This is Us, and Empire. At 9:30pm, Black-ish was down two tenths in viewers and the demo. The best news of the night for ABC came from Designated Survivor, which returned after nearly three months off up from its December finale. I thought this was a prime candidate for a rough return with a serialized freshman drama that had a long time off so the fact that it was up was certainly a promising return.

CBS had the return of Survivor but it was a pretty weak start for the long running franchise. It had its weakest debut ever with 7.6 million viewers and a 1.7 demo. The spring edition started disappointingly last year but then had a decent season so we'll see what happens here. It led into the season premiere of Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders, which struggled and hit a series low. It still did better than Doubt but it was another weak Wednesday 10pm performance. It's a little understandable since it was rushed back to air with little promotion but still, Code Black is continuing to look better with each new show that airs in the slot. Finally on FOX, Lethal Weapon was down four tenths in viewers and two tenths in the demo for a new series low while Star was up four tenths in viewers and a tenth in the demo.

WINNER OF THE NIGHT: Designated Survivor (ABC)
LOSER OF THE NIGHT: Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders (CBS)