Cougar Town returns, but viewers' love just wasn't there

ABC's Cougar Town finally made its triumphant return last night, but on Valentine's Day, not many people showed it much love.

The show, which stars Courteney Cox, managed only to hit an all-time series low in the overnight ratings last night.  Media Life reports that among viewers ages 18 to 49, the episode grabbed a mediocre 1.8 rating, shedding fully 18% of the audience which watched Tim Allen's Last Man Standing immediately before it.

Among the broadcast networks on Tuesday night, CBS won handily among 18-49s and households. Fox took second place in both demos.

Terre Haute's HI-99 was the country's highest-rated radio station in 2011

Terre Haute country station WTHI-FM - better known by its longtime nickname, "HI-99" - wasn't just the highest-rated country station in the U.S. last year, it was the highest-rated station in the nation period, according to BIA.

HI-99, which is one of two stations that Indianapolis-based Emmis Communications owns in Terre Haute, scored a 27.1 rating in the spring book and a 26.3 this past fall, which put it ahead of the other 14,727 stations nationwide.

The 50,000-watt station, which can be heard in the northernmost part of the Tri-State area, has long been a ratings leader in Terre Haute and the surrounding area, holding down the #1 spot for well over two decades. 2012 will mark the station's 30th year as a country station. WTHI has a long history of community involvement, and has raised more than a million dollars for St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, among many other noteworthy achievements over the years.

HI-99 was also the 2011 Indiana Broadcasters Association Station of the Year.

"I am proud of our entire team for such a remarkable accomplishment," said James Conner, VP/GM of Emmis' Terre Haute stations. "This type of an achievement wouldn't be possible without the dedication of our on-air staff led by Country DJ Hall of Fame member Barry Kent.  A majority of our employees have been with WTHI for 10 or more years and they understand the dedication required to maintain a high level of success in our ever changing industry.  Our team's professionalism, work ethic and dedication to our community is what sets us apart."

WTHI-FM and its Terre Haute sister station, WWVR-105.5 The River, will move into a new, modern facility on Wabash Avenue in downtown Terre Haute later this year.  Emmis purchased the stations from Wabash Valley Broadcasting in 1998.

Early numbers suggest Grammy telecast was second most-watched in its history

Based on what I saw on my personal Twitter feed last night, many of you tuned in for the Grammy Awards on CBS.

The awards show, which aired just one day after the sudden death of singer Whitney Houston, may turn out to be the second most-watched Grammy telecast in the program's history. Media Life Magazine reports that the show averaged 41.6 million viewers and drew a rating of 14.4, which was up from 10.8 last year.

Those numbers come from Nielsen and are preliminary. More detailed numbers should be out soon, and I'll update them when they do arrive.

CBS' 60 Minutes also received a healthy reception last night. The program's interview with multiple-Grammy winner Adele helped the show to a 2.9 rating.

And CBS wasn't alone in drawing viewers. A special edition of Dateline NBC focused on the death of Houston helped the Peacock Network draw in more viewers to that show than it's had in two-and-a-half years (Aug. 2009). That show grabbed a 1.6 rating, which, for NBC, is quite respectable.

UPDATE: Super Bowl XLVI DOES set viewership record, after all

UPDATE, 9:35 p.m.: Media Life Magazine reports this evening that, indeed, last night's Super Bowl did indeed become the most-watched television program in history. On average, 111.3 million people tuned in to watch the Giants beat the Patriots.

Super Bowl XLVI becomes the third consecutive Super Bowl to set a new record; until 2010's Super Bowl XLIV, the high-water mark had been the 1983 series finale of M*A*S*H.

PREVIOUSLY: While the numbers aren't all in yet, the overnight ratings are in for last night's Super Bowl on NBC.

The AP reports this morning that the game (which, if you've not heard yet, was won by the New York Giants) pulled in a 47.8 rating and a 71 share, which is just that close to the record tied last year when Green Bay defeated Pittsburgh.

The original record (a 47.9 rating and 68 share) was set, interestingly enough, when the Giants beat the Denver Broncos 25 years ago.