Fox’s “Empire” continues to make TV history. After passing the nine million mark last week in the number of Black TV viewers, the Wednesday night drama added nearly another half million viewers in the first week of March. That makes seven consecutive weeks of continuous audience growth, and the first time that such an increase can be credited to Black households.
“I thought we would grow in White households,” said “Empire” executive producer Danny Strong during a media conference call. “What I didn’t realize is that we would grow in White households but double in African-American households.” Of the 14.7 million that watched the drama, 64% were black.
Fox was easily the week’s most watched network in Black households. It had 15.2 million across five shows on The Top 25. ABC was second with 12.5 million for eights programs. CBS finished a rare third with just 9.2 over nine shows.
The total number of viewers for the Top 25 shows in Black homes, according to Nielsen, was 40.8 million, or four percent more than the previous week.
Black TV Ratings for Week of March 2 – 8
Top 25 Broadcast TV Shows in Black Households
Rank | Program | Network | % of AA Homes | % of AA P2+ | No. of Viewers (000)
| 1 | EMPIRE | FOX | 43.4 | 24.3 | 9,462 |
| 2 | SCANDAL | ABC | 18.7 | 9.5 | 3,689 |
| 3 | AMERICAN CRIME | ABC | 12.8 | 6.5 | 2,543 |
| 4 | AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY | FOX | 10.1 | 5.2 | 2,039 |
| 5 | AMERICAN IDOL-THURSDAY | FOX | 7.7 | 3.9 | 1,528 |
| 6 | VOICE-TUE | NBC | 7.6 | 3.7 | 1,433 |
| 7 | CSI: CYBER | CBS | 7.2 | 3.5 | 1355 |
| 8 | GREY’S ANATOMY | ABC | 7.2 | 3.5 | 1362 |
| 9 | VOICE | NBC | 7.1 | 3.5 | 1,355 |
| 10 | BLUE BLOODS | CBS | 6.4 | 3.2 | 1,230 |
| 11 | GOTHAM | FOX | 6.4 | 3.3 | 1,286 |
| 12 | SHARK TANK | ABC | 5.9 | 2.8 | 1,104 |
| 13 | HAWAII FIVE-0 | CBS | 5.6 | 2.7 | 1,070 |
| 14 | CHICAGO FIRE | NBC | 5.6 | 2.7 | 1,036 |
| 15 | THE BIG BANG THEORY | CBS | 5.4 | 2.8 | 1,074 |
| 16 | SECRETS AND LIES | ABC | 5.3 | 2.7 | 1,067 |
| 17 | 60 MINUTES | CBS | 4.9 | 2.3 | 905 |
| 18 | NCIS: LOS ANGELES | CBS | 4.8 | 2.3 | 916 |
| 19 | NCIS: NEW ORLEANS ENCORE | CBS | 4.8 | 2.2 | 864 |
| 20 | THE GOOD WIFE | CBS | 4.7 | 2.5 | 965 |
| 21 | REVENGE | ABC | 4.7 | 2.4 | 941 |
| 22 | FRESH OFF THE BOAT | ABC | 4.7 | 2.3 | 907 |
| 23 | THE FOLLOWING | FOX | 4.7 | 2.3 | 898 |
| 24 | BLACK-ISH | ABC | 4.6 | 2.4 | 927 |
| 25 | NCIS | CBS | 4.6 | 2.3 | 880 |
Source: Nielsen. Number of viewers ages 2+ shown in thousands (1,000 = 1 million). Rankings are based on share of Black households. Representing more than 13.45 million television households in the U.S., the African-American television audience is the largest minority segment in Nielsen’s measurement samples. All times are eastern.
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