Does the addition of the word “supernatural” increase a TV show’s audience figures? The answer appears to be, yes.

Neilsen, the media data tracker, has shown that when video playbacks are included in audience ratings, only the show Supernatural had an increase of more than three percent.

Mediapost reports:

Network programs continued to elicit small or no gains when ratings for same-day DVR playback viewing were added to a program’s live viewing tally. Increases, if they occurred at all, were mostly under 0.5 percent. Still, there were a few exceptions as two WB shows showed noticeable ratings bumps when DVR viewing was added. The Dec. 28 episode of the WB’s “Supernatural” received the largest boost of any network show through Thursday, with a 3.1 percent increase via DVR viewing in the adults 18-49 demo.

People really are interested in “things that go bump in the night”.