Reality rules on Wednesday

Morning Ratings Flash - Rick Kissell

Fox, NBC embrace new reality in ratings race

'Joe,' 'Fear' conquer all on Monday

Fox's "American Idol" and ABC's "The Bachelorette" and "Celebrity Mole Hawaii" shined on the second Wednesday of the February sweep, according to preliminary nationals from Nielsen. ABC edged past Fox for the night's lead in adults 18-49 and also nosed out NBC for the evening's largest overall audience.

"Idol" was the night's No. 1 program in adults 18-49 (9.0/23), more than doubling the score of ABC's second-place "George Lopez" (4.3/11). Fox also received a winning perf from "That '70s Show" at 8 (5.9/16 in adults 18-49), while "Bernie Mac" (5.0/12) and "Cedric the Entertainer" (4.1/10) combined for a third-place 18-49 finish in the 9 o'clock hour.

At ABC, "The Bachelorette: The Men Tell All" averaged a dominant 8.3/20 in adults 18-49 and 17.3 million viewers overall, and "Celebrity Mole" followed with a second-place 6.0/16 in the demo for its season finale. "Mole," as has been the case in recent weeks, led its hour in adults 18-34 (6.1/18). The Alphabet's "My Wife and Kids" also performed better at 8 (4.8/13 in adults 18-49), closing the gap with Fox's "70s" and moving ahead in total viewers (12.7 million).

NBC, third for the night in 18-49 and second in 25-54, saw all three of its dramas improve week-to-week. Net was again led by "Law & Order" (6.6/17 in adults 18-49, 18.3 million viewers overall).

CBS ran fourth, as its "Price is Right" spec (2.4/6 in adults 18-49, 11.8 million viewers overall) declined about 25% week-to-week in the demo.

Preliminary 18-49 averages for the night: ABC, 6.3/16; Fox, 6.1/16; NBC, 4.8/12; CBS, 2.7/7.

In total viewers: ABC, 13.9 million; NBC, 13.7 million; Fox, 13.0 million; CBS, 11.0 million.