'CSI' Melts World Series

See Also: 'Feeling The Heat' Episode Guide

CBS pulled last week's episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation at the last minute to avoid competition with the World Series, but it was Fox's baseball coverage that was "Feeling the Heat" on Thursday night.

The CSI: Crime Scene Investigation instalment score a 19.4 overnight rating / 27 share, according to Mediaweek. These numbers mean that approximately 19.4 percent of American households with television sets were tuned to CSI, and the episode was viewed by 27 percent of households watching television at the time.

FOX's coverage of game five of the World Series netted a second place finish with a 15.1/21 rating, beating NBC's comedy double of Will & Grace (10.3/14) and Coupling (7.3/10). ABC offered up a repeat of Extreme Makeover for fourth, followed by UPN's WWE Smackdown and the WB bringing up the rear with What I Like About You and Run of the House.

Media analyst Marc Berman reported CBS's Thursday night stalwarts, Survivor, CSI and Without a Trace, increased their viewership by 10 percent from 2002. Once again, Without a Trace (12.5/18) was hot on the heels of long-running medical drama ER (14.7/21) in the 10:00 p.m. timeslot.

CBS successfully won the night with a 14.7/21, followed by FOX (13.7/19) and NBC (12.2/17). ABC's 6.2/9 netted the network fourth place, followed by UPN (4.0/6) and the WB (2.2/3).

Earlier in the week, CSI: Miami led the network to a Monday-night victory. "The Best Defense" scored a first place finish with a 13.2/20, down slightly on the previous week's 13.7/20 (story). CSI executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer's new series, Skin, was a disappointment for FOX, with its ratings below even the premiere of Girls' Club, which was axed last year after only two episodes.

The original ratings report can be found at Mediaweek. Monday's analysis is available at this page.

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