'Idol,' '70s Show' lift Fox

Morning Ratings Flash - Rick Kissell

By RICK KISSELL

Fox scored another Wednesday victory in key demographics, led by "American Idol" and "That '70s Show," according to preliminary nationals from Nielsen. ABC won the night's final two hours with the conclusion of "The Bachelorette."

From 8 to 9, Fox's "That '70s Show" (5.8/16 in adults 18-49, 12.0 million viewers overall) and "American Idol" (10.3/26 in adults 18-49, 23.3 million viewers overall) both led their timeslots, while the net's "The OC" (4.6/11 in adults 18-49, 10.1 million viewers overall) placed second in 18-49 to the first hour of "Bachelorette."

For ABC, "Bachelorette" (6.1/15 in adults 18-49, 13.6 million viewers overall) led each of its half-hours in 18-49, peaking with a 6.9/18 at 10:30, but this was easily the lowest-rated finale of the "Bachelor" franchise to date. From 8 to 9, "My Wife and Kids" (3.8/11 in adults 18-49, 10.5 million viewers overall) and "It's All Relative" (2.9/7 in adults 18-49, 7.8 million viewers overall) were both up vs. recent weeks.

NBC, led by "Law & Order" at 10 (5.3/14 in adults 18-49, 16.8 million viewers overall), received another soft performance from "West Wing" (3.6/9 in adults 18-49, 11.6 million viewers overall). From 8 to 9, a repeat episode of "The Apprentice" delivered a solid third-place 3.1/8 in adults 18-49.

CBS was paced by "King of Queens" (4.5/11 in adults 18-49, 13.4 million viewers overall).

Preliminary 18-49 averages for the night: Fox, 6.3/16; ABC, 5.2/13; NBC, 4.0/10; CBS, 3.1/8; WB, 1.9/5; UPN, 1.4/4.

In total viewers: Fox, 13.9 million; ABC, 12.1 million; NBC, 12.1 million; CBS, 10.5 million; WB, 4.4 million; UPN, 3.3 million.