Even an Idol repeat bests Wednesday ratings

No one even knew American Idol would be an hour long until yesterday morning, but somehow the mismash of reran performances and fresh judges commentary won the 9 p.m. slot with 20.6 million viewers. That was Idol's “worst” performance this season. But can you blame them? Survivor: Palau also fared better than expected in a new slot due to basketball coverage and drew 19.2 million viewers at 8 p.m. CSI managed 15.1 million with a repeat. And CBS finished the night with CSI: NY's 16.5 million viewers and the evening's prize as most watched network. Alias is struggling and had a season-low average of 6.9 million viewers.