HispanicBusiness

More than one million Hispanic viewers helped push AMERICAN IDOL to the top of the ratings charts among all U.S. viewers and also among U.S. Hispanics for the week of May 12-18, according to numbers released by the Nielsen Media Group.

AMERICAN IDOL added 1,142,000 U.S. Hispanic viewers to its total of 24.9 million nationwide on Wednesday, while ABC's frenzied competition between spinning couples -- DANCING WITH THE STARS -- trailed only slightly and grabbed the third and fourth spots for most-viewed English-language show among the Hispanic audience.

As the top-rated AMERICAN IDOL zoomed toward its final showdown, the week saw the elimination in tears of the single remaining female contestant, Syesha Mercado. Just two remain: the young heartthrob David Archuleta and cool, collected David Cook.

Rounding out the list of top 10 English-language shows among U.S. Hispanics were DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES and perennial favorite FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN.

Among Spanish-language programs, it was the soap opera AL DIABLO CON LOS GUAPOS' (Down With The Beautiful) turn to seize the top spot, with a 20.8 rating and 2.5 million households watching. The telenovela continues its winning way with the intricate but bedeviled love story of the beautiful and pure Milagros "Milli" Belmonte and the aristocratic womanizer Alejandro Arango. Univision's other soap operas gathered their usual strong ratings, with FUEGO EN LA SANGRE drawing 2.5 million households and YO AMO JUAN QUERENDON attracting 1.6 million.

The week saw the conclusion of the second annual beauty pageant NUESTRA BELLEZA LATINA (Our Latin Beauty). Viewers and judges choose Melissa Marty of Puerto Rico to be the reigning champion of Hispanic beauty.

The following lists are TV ratings based on Hispanic viewership. Nielsen's ratings include viewers who watched the program while it aired and those who viewed the shows via digital video recorder within 24 hours of their airing. Nielsen says that the Hispanic TV audience represents more than 11.63 million television households in the United States. The rating is the percentage of households watching a TV program during the average minute.

Top 10 English-language shows and ratings (May 12 -18, 2008)
1. American Idol – Wednesday (Fox) 6.1
2. American Idol – Tuesday (Fox) 5.5
3. Dancing With Stars – Results – Tuesday (ABC) 5.4
4. Dancing With Stars – Monday (ABC) 5.2
5. Desperate Housewives – Saturday (ABC) 5.0
6. Friday Night Smackdown – Friday (CW) 4.3
7. Grey's Anatomy – Thursday (ABC) 4.2
8. Hell's Kitchen – Tuesday (Fox) 3.8
8. Family Guy – Saturday (ABC) 3.8
8. Without a Trace – Saturday (ABC) 3.8

Top 10 Spanish-language shows and their ratings (May 12-18, 2008)
1. Al Diablo con Guapos – Five-Night Avg. (Univision) 20.8
2. Aqui Y Ahora – Tuesday (Univision) 20.7
3. Fuego En La Sangre – Five-Night Avg. (Univision) 20.5
4. Nuestra Belleza – Friday (Univision) 19.2
5. Don Francisco Presenta – Wednesday (Univision) 15.6
6. Cristina – Monday (Univision) 15.5
7. Yo Amo Juan Querendon – Five-Night Avg. (Univision) 13.2
8. Amas Casa Desesperads – Thursday (Univision) 12.6
9. Sabado Gigante – Saturday (Univision) 11.2
10. Noche De Estrellas – Sunday (Univision) 10.1