Audience goes up for 'American Idol'

[January 16, 2009]  NEW YORK (AP) -- The second night of "American Idol" delivered an unexpected gift to Fox: a bigger audience.

An estimated 30.5 million people tuned in Wednesday to television's most popular program, up from the 30.3 million the night before for the eighth season opener.

Nielsen Media Research said it's the first time in five years that the audience increased from the first night to the second, a development Fox attributes to good word of mouth about the first night.

"We're thrilled," Mike Darnell, chief of alternative programming at Fox, said.

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.