TV ratings: 500th ‘American Idol’ episode rises as top three perform

“American Idol” jumped in the ratings Wednesday night as the aging singing contest aired its 500th episode.

Performances from the top three contestants — Caleb Johnson, Alex Preston and Jena Irene — drew 8.77 million viewers overall and a rating of 2.1 among the key 18-to-49-year-olds, according to early numbers from Nielsen.

In the advertiser-desired demographic, “Idol” increased 24% from last week’s low result, matching the number it posted three weeks ago. As Fox’s only prime-time programming Wednesday, “Idol” gave the network a close second-place finish in the demo, coming in a tenth of a point behind CBS.

CBS benefited from the Season 9 finale of “Criminal Minds,” which rose 17% from last week to a 2.7, a tenth of a point shy of the previous season closer. Adding in a steady 2.5 from “Survivor” and a rerun of “CSI,” CBS averaged 9.94 million viewers total and a 2.2 in 18-49, where a ratings point equals about 1.3 million viewers.

NBC’s Dick Wolf spinoff “Chicago P.D.” rose 14% week-to-week for a 1.6 in 18-49, earning a win in the 10 p.m. hour over the “CSI” repeat. “Law & Order: SVU” matched its week-ago rating (1.5), coming after an episode of “Revolution” that was also flat at a 1.1.

ABC’s lineup generally improved from last week. Once again the network had the top show among young adults with “Modern Family” (up 7% to a 3.1), while “The Middle” and the season finale of “Suburgatory” garnered double-digit percentage gains and “Mixology” held even.

The season finale of “Nashville” earned a 1.3, which is 8% better than last week. However, both “Suburgatory” and “Nashville” were down from their prior season closers.