TV Ratings: American Music Awards Sink to New Low as Football Dominates

8:51 AM PST 11/19/2012 by Michael O'Connell

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UPDATED: ABC's three-hour broadcast sees the demo score slide 21 percent from its steady showing in 2011 and a drop of 2.5 million total viewers.

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The American Music Awards took a big hit Sunday night. After pulling a steady (and historically low) 4.3 rating among adults 18-to-49 for the past two years, ABC's 2012 broadcast of the music honors was down more than 20 percent.

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Falling shy of NBC's Sunday Night Football, the three-hour telecast averaged a 3.4 rating among adults 18-to-49 and 9.47 million viewers, according to fast affiliate numbers. That's nearly a point shy of 2011's key demo score and a far cry from 2009's healthy 5.5 adults rating. In total viewers, it was down from last year's 12 million to 9.47 million.

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With a new episode of America's Funniest Home Videos (1.7 rating) at 7 p.m., ABC averaged a 2.9 rating among 18-to-49 and 8.97 million viewers for the night.

Leading the pack by all measures, Sunday Night Football pulled a 6.0 rating among adults 18-to-49. The Baltimore Ravens-Pittsburgh Steelers game followed a 90-minute Football Night in America (3.0 rating) and gave NBC a 4.9 rating in adults 18-to-49 and 13.3 million viewers for the night.

CBS' Sunday block had an early advantage (and tentative scores) after nearly an hour's worth of NFL overrun led into 60 Minutes (2.8 rating in 18-to-49). The Amazing Race followed with a 2.2 adults rating before new episodes of The Good Wife (1.6) and The Mentalist (rating not yet available). The network's nightly average, subject to change, brought a 3.0 rating and 12.59 million viewers.

Fox had an encore of Bob's Burgers (1.3), followed by new outings of The Cleveland Show (down 16 percent to a 1.6), The Simpsons (down just a tenth of a point to a 2.5), Bob's Burgers (a steady 1.8), Family Guy (an even 2.5) and American Dad (up 11 percent to a 2.0 rating). Fox averaged a 2.9 among 18-to-49 and 4.2 million viewers.

Univision pulled a 1.2 rating.