On Its First Week Back on Air, ‘The Voice’ Triumphs Over ‘Idol’
NBC’s alternative to FOX’s struggling singing competition wins favorably in its ratings on opening week
We may have a new singing competition champ on our hands.
The ratings for American Idol this season dropped to an all-time low last week, bringing in only 3.45 million viewers in the 18-49 demographic and with only 11 million viewers in total. That left enough room for NBC’s returning reality-TV game show, The Voice, to come back with a vengeance.
And that they did.
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With two new judges – R&B singer Usher and Latin superstar Shakira – on deck, The Voice premiered last week with 13.6 million viewers in tow. That’s a 11 percent increase from last year’s season premiere.
Back in February, the ratings on Idol seemed to be holding up well, pulling in 13.5 million an episode. Now with The Voice back on the air (on Monday and Tuesday nights) and ABC’s hit ‘Dancing With the Stars’ back in place, ‘Idol’ is quickly losing steam. It has now fallen below a 3 rating in the 18-49 demographic, and the elimination episodes aren’t drawing the high numbers they normally should. And what’s so troubling to the data is that the numbers for The Voice so far this year are higher than any episode from Idol since January.
The true Litmus test will be handed out when Idol approaches its final stages this season, with the finals steadily approaching. By that time ”The Voice’ will already be in its live show rounds. If ‘The Voice’ holds up, we will have a new reigning champion in the world of singing competitions.
So what do you think?
Like The Voice over Idol?
Like Idol over The Voice?
Tired of all the singing competitions?
Cancel them all?
Share your thoughts.
