Scott D. Pierce: Utahns love ‘Big Bang,’ ‘NCIS’ and ‘Bachelor’

Scott D. Pierce covers TV for The Salt Lake Tribune. Email him at spierce@sltrib.com; follow him on Twitter @ScottDPierce.

Utah viewers really like "The Big Bang Theory." And "NCIS." And "The Bachelor."

The demographics are in from the February sweeps, and all three of those shows did extremely well among viewers in the two demos most highly prized by advertisers — viewers ages 18-49 and 25-54.

According to Nielsen, here are the top 10 shows for February:

Viewers 18-49

1. "The Big Bang Theory"

2. "The Bachelor"

3. "NCIS"

4. "Modern Family"

5. "American Idol" (Thursday)

6. "American Idol" (Wednesday)

7. "NCIS: New Orleans"

8. "Supergirl"

9. "Survivor"

10. "The Goldbergs"

Viewers 25-54

1. "The Big Bang Theory"

2. "NCIS"

3. "The Bachelor"

4. "Modern Family"

5. "Scorpion"

6. "NCIS: New Orleans"

7. "American Idol" (Thursday)

8. "NCIS: Los Angeles"

9. "American Idol" (Wednesday)

10. "Supergirl"

We're not so terribly different from the rest of the country. "Big Bang," "NCIS" and "Bachelor" are all big nationally, too. "Big Bang" is a phenomenon — it's not just a hit on CBS; repeats of the sitcom are the No. 1 in syndication and on cable.

And, despite what you might have heard, "NCIS" isn't just popular among older viewers.

As for, 'The Bachelor," well … there's no accounting for taste. Ugh.

And shows like "Modern Family," "Scorpion" and "Supergirl" ranked better locally than they did nationally.

Local news ratings

If there's a surprise in the local news demographics for February, it's that KUTV-Ch. 2 did as well as it did. And not just in the late-news numbers, but in the morning and from 4 p.m. on.

KSL-Ch. 5 and KSTU-Ch. 13 claimed some wins of their own, but KUTV outpaced them.

Late News (25-54)

1. KUTV-Ch. 2 • 3.0

2. KSL-Ch. 5 • 2.0

3. KSTU-Ch. 13 • 2.1

4. KTVX-Ch. 4 • 0.9

Late news (18-49)

1. KUTV-Ch. 2 • 2.0

2. (tie) KSL-Ch. 5 • 1.6

2. (tie) KSTU-Ch. 13 • 1.6

4. KTVX-Ch. 4 • 0.8

(The late news numbers above are Monday-Friday, live plus same-day DVR viewing; 10 p.m. newscasts for Channels 2, 4 and 5 and 9 p.m. newscast for Ch. 13.)

When we look at other local newscasts at other times of the day, among viewers 18-49:

• KUTV-Ch. 2 tied for first from 5-8 a.m., won at 5 p.m. and tied for first at 6 p.m.

• KSTU-Ch. 13 won at 4:30 a.m. and tied for first at 5 a.m. and 5 p.m.

• KSL-Ch. 5 tied for first from 5-7 a.m. and won at noon.

• KTVX-Ch. 4 tied for first from 5-6 a.m.

Among viewers 25-54:

• KUTV-Ch. 2 tied for first at 5:30 a.m., won from 6-8 a.m., tied for first at 5 p.m. and won at 6 p.m.

• KSTU-Ch. 13 won (or tied for first) from 4:30-5:30 a.m. and at 5 p.m.

• KSL-Ch. 5 tied for first at 5:30 a.m. and won at noon.

• KTVX-Ch. 4 tied for first from 5:30-6 a.m.

National newscasts

Here's one area where Utah viewers differ from the national average. Nationally, "The NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt" leads, with "ABC World News Tonight with David Muir" in second and "The CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley" in third.

Locally, CBS leads among viewers 18-49 and 25-54, with NBC coming in second and ABC third.

Scott D. Pierce covers TV for The Salt Lake Tribune. Email him at spierce@sltrib.com; follow him on Twitter @ScottDPierce.