Editing Fox Broadcasting Company (section)

===2000s: Rise to ratings leadership, the ''American Idol'' effect, and fierce rivalry with CBS===
By 2000, many staple Fox shows of the 1990s had ended their runs. During the late 1990s and carrying over into the early 2000s, Fox put much of its efforts into producing reality shows many of which were considered to be sensationalistic and controversial in nature – such as ''[[Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?]]'', ''[[Temptation Island (TV series)|Temptation Island]]'', ''[[Married by America]]'', and ''[[Joe Millionaire]]'' (which became the first Fox program to crack the Nielsen Top 10), as well as video clip shows such as ''[[World's Wildest Police Videos]]'' and ''[[When Animals Attack!]]''. After shedding most of these programs, Fox gradually filled its lineup with acclaimed dramas such as ''[[24 (TV series)|24]]'', ''[[The O.C.]]'', ''[[House (TV series)|House]]'', and ''[[Bones (TV series)|Bones]]'', and comedies such as ''[[The Bernie Mac Show]]'', ''[[Malcolm in the Middle]]'', and ''[[Arrested Development]]''.

As the decade wore on, Fox began surpassing ABC and NBC in the ratings, first in age demographics, then in overall viewership, and placed second behind a resurgent CBS in total viewership, beginning in [[2001–02 United States network television schedule|2002]]. Fox hit a major milestone in [[2004–05 United States network television schedule|2005]] when it emerged as the most-watched U.S. broadcast network in the lucrative 18–49 demographic for the first time, largely boosted by the strength of the reality singing competition series ''[[American Idol]]''. Regarded as the single most dominant program on 21st-century U.S. television, as well as the first Fox show to lead the Nielsen seasonal ratings, ''American Idol'' had peak audiences of up to 38&nbsp;million viewers during the [[American Idol season 2|2003 season finale]] and double-season average audiences of around 31&nbsp;million viewers in [[American Idol season 5|2006]] and [[American Idol season 6|2007]]. Subsequently, it leapfrogged over Fox's Big Three competition to become the highest-rated U.S. television program overall starting with the [[American Idol season 3|2003–04 season]], becoming the first reality singing competition series in the country to reach first place in the seasonal ratings.

''American Idol'' remains the most recent U.S. television program to date to lead the national prime time ratings and attract at least 30&nbsp;million viewers for multiple and consecutive television seasons. It is the most-watched program on U.S. television by seasonal average viewership in the 2000s decade, as well as the most recent program scheduled to have successfully established a [[graveyard slot]] on U.S. television since the end of NBC's ''[[Friends]]'' in 2004 and the subsequent decline of NBC's previously dominant "[[Must See TV]]" Thursday timeblock. By 2005, reality television succeeded sitcoms as the most popular form of entertainment in the United States as a result of Fox's rise with ''American Idol'' and NBC's network declines. ''House'', which aired as ''American Idol''{{'}}s lead-out program on Tuesday nights, earned international prominence in the 21st century and became Fox's first prime time drama series (and the network's third program overall) to reach the Nielsen Top 10 beginning [[2005–06 United States network television schedule|2006]].

Beginning [[2003–04 United States network television schedule|2004]], CBS and Fox, which ranked as the two most-watched broadcast networks in the U.S. during the 2000s, have tended to equal one another in [[Demographics|demographic ratings]] among general viewership, with both networks winning certain demographics by narrow margins; however, while Fox has the youngest-skewing viewer base, CBS is consistently regarded to have the oldest audience demographics among the major broadcast networks. Fox hit a milestone in February 2005 by scoring its first [[Nielsen ratings#Sweeps|sweeps]] victory in total viewership and demographic ratings, boosted largely by its broadcast of [[Super Bowl XXXIX]] and the strengths of ''American Idol'', ''24'', ''House'', and ''The O.C''.

In September 2006, as a result of the increasing number of over-the-air Fox affiliates and the increased availability of digital subchannels carrying Fox in certain markets, Foxnet was discontinued. Then, a sweeping milestone came by the conclusion of the [[2007–08 United States network television schedule|2007–08 season]] on May 21, 2008, shortly after the widely acclaimed [[American Idol season 7|seventh-season finale]] of ''American Idol'', when Fox outranked longtime leader CBS as the most-watched television network overall in the United States, attributed to the strengths of [[Super Bowl XLII]] and its NFL game coverages, ''Idol'' and ''House'' during that season. To date, Fox is the only non-Big Three network to top the overall Nielsen ratings since its inception in the [[1950-1951 United States network television schedule|1950–51 season]].<ref name="wapo"/>

In the late 2000s, Fox launched a few series that proved to be powerful hits in different respects. In 2007, the network began production on the game shows ''[[Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? (American game show)|Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?]]'' and ''[[Don't Forget the Lyrics! (American game show)|Don't Forget the Lyrics!]]''; both shows ran for a total of three seasons each, making them the longest-running game shows in Fox's history. In 2008, the supernatural mystery series ''[[Fringe (TV series)|Fringe]]'' debuted to moderate ratings but earned critical acclaim during its first season on Tuesdays. Throughout its run, the series developed a large loyal fanbase that turned the show into a cult favorite. In 2009, ''[[Glee (TV series)|Glee]]'' premiered to average ratings when its pilot aired as a lead-out program of the [[American Idol season 8|eighth-season finale]] of ''American Idol'', but earned positive reviews from critics. The cast of the series has been acknowledged by [[Barack Obama]] and [[Oprah Winfrey]], who have each asked the cast to perform live for various national events.