New in Off-Net Outnumbers New in First-Run For Fall 2009

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERMonday, January 26, 2009 Prime-Time Ratings:Weekend Highlights Ratings Box:What's Hot/What's Not On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time:Leaving Knots Landing___________________________________________________________________________ Note: Due to the current NATPE conference in Las Vegas, The Programming Insider will not be published Tuesday, Jan. 27 through Thursday, Jan. 29. But check out Mediaweek.com and PIFeedback.com for daily updates from the gathering. ___________________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Ratings:Weekend Highlights Friday 1/23/09Note: The following results are based on the fast affiliate ratings (Live Plus Same Day data). HH Rtg/Shr CBS 6.7/12Fox 3.6/ 6ABC 3.2/ 6NBC 3.1/ 5CW 0.9/ 2 -Total Viewers:CBS: 10.78 million, Fox: 6.01, NBC: 4.84, ABC: 4.68, CW: 1.34 -Adults 18-49: CBS: 2.6 rating/8 share, ABC: 1.6/ 5, NBC and Fox: 1.5/ 5 each, CW: 0.6/ 2 -------------------- Note: Any prior rating results are based on the final nationals. Since the level of DVR penetration has increased from 20 percent at this same point last year to approximately 28 percent at present, the overall results may be negatively impacted. ---------- -Friday’s Winners:Ghost Whisperer (CBS), Flashpoint (CBS), Numb3rs (CBS) -Friday’s Losers (excluding repeats):Everybody Hates Chris (CW), The Game (CW), Friday Night Lights (NBC), Supernanny (ABC), 13: Fear is Real (CW), Dateline (NBC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:It was another clean Friday sweep for CBS care of Ghost Whisperer (Viewers: 11.27 million; A18-49: 2.8/ 9), Flashpoint (Viewers: 10.21 million; A18-49: 2.4/ 7) and Numb3rs (Viewers: 10.86 million; A18-49: 2.7/ 8). The network ranked first in every half hour. Fox finished second in total viewers and third overall among adults 18-49 (tied with NBC in the demo) with its combination of Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (Viewers: #2, 6.04 million; A18-49: #4, 1.3/ 4) and Don’t Forget the Lyrics (Viewers: #2, 5.99 million; A18-49: #2, 1.7/ 5). Worth noting for Don’t Forget the Lyrics was growth out of 5th Grader of 31 percent in the demo. ABC had a typical Friday with its line-up of a repeat of Wife Swap (Viewers: #4, 3.89 million; A18-49: #3, 1.4/ 4), Supernanny (Viewers: #3, 4.57 million; A18-49: #3, 1.6/ 5) and 20/20 (Viewers: #2, 5.57 million; A18-49: #2, 1.7/ 5). NBC, meanwhile, performed as follows: 8:00 p.m. – Howie Do ItViewers: 5.43 million (#3), A18-49: 1.5/ 5 (#2) 8:30 p.m. – Howie Do ItViewers: 5.65 million (#3), A18-49: 1.7/ 6 (#2) 9:00 p.m. – Friday Night LightsViewers: 3.96 million (#4), A18-49: 1.4/ 4 (#4) 10:00 p.m. – DatelineViewers: 5.03 million (#3), A18-49: 1.6/ 5 (#3) Although the second place finish in the demo keeps Howie Do It off the listing of losers, I personally wish the producers would drop that grating “Howie Do It” singing. It’s nauseating! Buried in fifth was the CW care of sitcoms Everybody Hates Chris (Viewers: 1.64 million; A18-49: 0.6/ 2) and The Game (Viewers: 1.61 million; A18-49: 0.7/ 2) and 13: Fear is Real (Viewers: 1.06 million; A18-49: 0.6/ 2), which is now in originals. Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) ------------------------- Saturday 1/24/09Note: The following results are based on the fast affiliate ratings (Live Plus Same Day data). HH Rtg/Shr Fox 3.8/ 7CBS 3.6/ 6NBC 2.4/ 4ABC 1.6/ 3 -Total Viewers:Fox: 6.05 million, CBS: 5.56, NBC: 3.65, ABC: 2.24 -Adults 18-49: Fox: 2.0 rating/6 share, CBS: 1.5/ 5, NBC: 0.7/ 2, ABC: 0.6/ 2 ---------- Note: Any prior rating results are based on the final nationals. Since the level of DVR penetration has increased from 20 percent at this same point last year to approximately 28 percent at present, the overall results may be negatively impacted. ---------- -Saturday’s Winners:Nothing -Saturday’s Losers (excluding repeats):Game Show in My Head (CBS), Crusoe (NBC), The U.S. Figure Skating Championship (NBC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:It was slim pickings on this fourth Saturday in January, with Fox leading the night care of veteran Cops and America’s Most Wanted. But barely six million viewers and a 2-rating among adults 18-49 for the network is nothing to boast about. Next overall was lackluster CBS, followed by even worse NBC and barely visible ABC. Note to ABC: the next time you want to repeat Lost, don’t do it. Viewers just don’t watch the second time around. Cops opened the evening for Fox with an average (and dominant) 5.96 million viewers and a 1.9 rating/6 share among adults 18-49 from 8-9 p.m. That led into America’s Most Wanted with an almost duplicate (and also time period winning) 6.14 million viewers and a 2.0/ 6 in the demo. Consider both typical performances. Back-to-back episodes of CBS’ recently introduced Game Show in the My Head left little to be desired as follows: Game Show in My Head (CBS)8:00 p.m. – Viewers: 3.72 million (#2), A18-49: 1.1/ 4 (#2)8:30 p.m. – Viewers: 4.00 million (#2), A18-49: 1.4/ 4 (#2) Amazing, isn’t it, that a show can rate this low and still rank second in the time period? Game Show in My Head led into a repeat of CSI: NY (Viewers: #2, 5.04 million; A18-49: #2, 1.3/ 4 at 9 p.m.), followed by 48 Hours Mystery, which moved into first with 7.77 million viewers and a 2.0/ 6 among adults 18-49 at 10 p.m. 48 Hours Mystery was, by far, the most-watched show of the evening. Pretty sad, don’t you think? NBC’s Crusoe, which concludes on Jan. 31, got no mileage at 8 p.m., with just 2.85 million viewers (#3) and a 0.7/ 2 among adults 18-49 (#3). Word of advice to NBC: picturesque epics are nice to look at, but they rarely attract a universal sized TV audience. Nest on NBC was two-hour special The U.S. Figure Skating Championship, which tanked with 4.04 million viewers and a 0.7/ 2 among adults 18-49 from 9-11 p.m. Here is the half-hour breakdown: The U.S. Figure Skating Championship (NBC) 9:00 p.m. – Viewers: 3.59 million (#3), A18-49: 0.6/ 2 (#3) 9:30 p.m. – Viewers: 3.83 million (#3), A18-49: 0.6/ 2 (#3t)10:00 p.m. – Viewers: 4.11 million (#2), A18-49: 0.8/ 2 (#2t)10:30 p.m. – Viewers: 4.64 million (#2), A18-49: 1.0/ 3 (#2) It was even worse for ABC, meanwhile, care of a repeat of clips show Lost: Destiny Calls (Viewers: #4, 1.92 million; A18-49: #4, 0.5/ 2) and a repeat of last Wednesday’s two-hour fifth season Lost opener (Viewers: 2.40 million; A18-49: 0.7/ 2 – last in both categories from 9-11 p.m.). What a night! Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) ------------------------- Sunday 1/25/09Note: The following results are based on the metered market ratings. HH Rtg/Shr CBS 8.4/13ABC 5.7/ 9NBC 5.4/ 8Fox 3.2/ 5CW 0.6/ 1 ---------- Note: Year-to-year overnight comparisons were not available. ---------- Note: The fast national results for Sunday will be posted at PIFeedback.com by 12 p.m. ET. Go to the website, click on Ratings Box (the first category), then Last Night’s Results, and Sunday, January 25, 2009. ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:60 Minutes (CBS), Cold Case (CBS) -Yesterday’s Losers (excluding repeats)Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (Fox) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown: CBS led the Sunday overnight troops by a hefty margin, beating second-place ABC by a considerable 47 percent. Keep in mind that ABC aired a repeat of Desperate Housewives last night. Third overall was NBC, followed by Fox and lowly the CW. When a network dips to a 0.6 rating for the night, that indeed is lowly! Veteran 60 Minutes opened the evening for CBS with a dominant 9.4 rating/16 share in the overnights from 7-8 p.m. Second in the hour was a repeat of ABC’s also long running America’s Funniest Home Videos (5.3/ 9), followed by the first half of a two-hour edition of NBC’s Dateline (3.6/ 6), a Sunday edition of Fox’s Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (2.4/ 4), which sunk to a series low, and a repeat of Jericho on the CW (0.6/ 1). Isn’t it a joke that the CW is airing Jericho? Top overnight honors at 8 p.m. went to an early edition of CBS’ Cold Case (8.9/14), which is a better fit out of 60 Minutes than regularly scheduled The Amazing Race. Second was the first half of a two-hour edition of ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (5.8/ 9), which should have no trouble winning the hour among adults 18-49, followed by the second half of NBC’s expanded Dateline (5.3/ 8), two episodes (original and repeat) of Fox’s The Simpsons (#4, avg. 3.6/ 6), and repeat theatrical AntiTrust on the CW (0.6/ 1 from 7-9 p.m.). Overall, Dateline averaged a 4.5/ 7 from 7-9 p.m. The 9-11 block featured the battle of Hallmark Hall of Fame’s Loving Leah on CBS versus part one of miniseries The Last Templar on NBC. Loving Leah finished first in the two-hour time period in the overnights, with a 7.6/12. The Last Templar was second at a 6.4/10. Here are the half-hour breakdowns: Hallmark Hall of Fame’s Loving Leah (CBS) 9:00 p.m.: 7.1/10 (#1t) 9:30 p.m.: 7.3/11 (#1)10:00 p.m.: 7.8/12 (#1)10:30 p.m.: 8.1/14 (#1) The Last Templar, part one (NBC)9:00 p.m.: 6.9/10 (#3) 9:30 p.m.: 6.3/ 9 (#3)10:00 p.m.: 6.4/10 (#2)10:30 p.m.: 6.1/10 (#2) The bottom line: neither performance is likely to warrant an original made-for movie comeback. Over at ABC, the second half of the expanded Extreme Makeover: Home Edition rose to a 7.1/11 from 9-10 p.m. (#2), lifting its overnight average to a 6.4/10 from 8-10 p.m. Once again, this is the show to beat among adults 18-49. A repeat of Desperate Housewives followed with a last-place 4.4/ 7. Fox capped off its evening with a repeat of Family Guy (#4: 4.0/ 6) and an original installment of American Dad (#4: 3.5/ 5) from 9-10 p.m. And there you have it…that’s Sunday! Source: Nielsen Media Research data____________________________________________________________________________ Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -How Is This For a Winning Streak?:Based on ratings for the week of Jan. 12, CBS daytime favorite The Young & the Restless finished first in households in daytime for the 1,046th consecutive week. -Syndicated Off-Network Sitcoms – Season to-Date Results:Based on data through Jan. 11, what follows are the national household rating results for the cluttered category of syndicated off-network sitcoms (with percent change versus the comparable year-ago period in parentheses for the established entries): Households:Two and a Half Men (Warner Bros.): 4.9 rating (+17), Family Guy (Twentieth Television): 3.9 (- 5), Seinfeld (Sony Pictures Television): 3.4 (-11), Everybody Loves Raymond (CBS Television Distribution): 3.1 (-26), George Lopez (Warner Bros.): 2.9 (+12), Friends (Warner Bros.): 2.5 (-11), King of Queens (SPT): 2.5 (-14), House of Payne (Twentieth): 2.1, Frasier (CBS): 1.9 (no change), King of the Hill (Twentieth): 1.9 (- 5), Sex and the City (Warner Bros.): 1.7 (-19), Malcolm in the Middle (Twentieth): 1.6 (+ 7), That’ 70s Show (Twentieth): 1.6 (-16), Bernie Mac (Twentieth) and My Wife and Kids (Disney-ABC): 1.4 (-27 each), Scrubs (Disney-ABC): 1.2 (-14), According to Jim (Disney-ABC): 1.1 (-21), Will & Grace (NBC Universal): 0.8 (-11), Still Standing (Twentieth): 0.8 (-38), South Park (Twentieth): 0.7 (-22), Half & Half (CBS) and One on One (CBS): 0.6 (-14 each) Source: Nielsen Media Research data ________________________________________________________________________________ EXTRA, EXTRA…READ ALL ABOUT IT Have a message you want to get out…quickly?Want to reach your target audience in network, cable, syndication and the buying community?Send the copy and we will tailor a colorful text advertisement suited to your needs. 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On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options Monday 1/26/09 ABC: 8:00 p.m. The Bachelor (two hours)10:00 p.m. True Beauty CBS: 8:00 p.m. The Big Bang Theory (R) 8:30 p.m. How I Met Your Mother (R) 9:00 p.m. Two and a Half Men (R) 9:30 p.m. Worst Week (R)10:00 p.m. CSI: Miami (R) NBC: 8:00 p.m. Superstars of Dance 9:00 p.m. Miniseries: The Last Templar (conclusion) Fox: 8:00 p.m. House 9:00 p.m. 24 CW: 8:00 p.m. Gossip Girl (R) 9:00 p.m. One Tree Hill (R) MNTV 8:00 p.m. Twilight Zone (R) 8:30 p.m. Twilight Zone (R) 9:00 p.m. Masters of Illusion ION 8:00 p.m. NCIS (R) 9:00 p.m. NCIS (R)10:00 p.m. NCIS (R) -Of Note on Cable:Trust Me (TNT): 10 p.m. (series premiere) ________________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -2009 Screen Actors Guild Award Winners:As award season continues, here is a listing of the winners from last night’s 2009 Screen Actors Guild Awards on TNT: TELEVISION-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: Mad Men (AMC)-Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series: 30 Rock (NBC)-Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series: Hugh Laurie (House, Fox)-Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series: Sally Field (Brothers & Sisters, ABC)-Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series: Alec Baldwin (30 Rock, NBC)-Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series: Tina Fey (30 Rock, NBC)-Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries: Paul Giamatti (John Adams, HBO)-Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries: Laura Linney (John Adams, HBO) MOVIES-Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture: Slumdog Millionaire-Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role: Sean Penn (Milk)-Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role: Meryl Streep (Doubt)-Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role: Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)-Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role: Kate Winslet (The Reader) -More Legend of the Seeker:Disney-ABC Domestic Television Distribution has renewed first-run weekly hour Legend of the Seeker for a second season on the Tribune owned stations, which represents 35 percent of the country. Individual station renewals include WPIX/New York, KTLA/Los Angeles, WGN/Chicago, WPHL/Philadelphia, KDAF/Dallas, WDCW/Washington, D.C., KIAH/Houston, KMYQ/Seattle, WSFL/Miami, KWGN/Denver, KTXL/Sacramento, KPLR/St. Louis, KRCW/Portland. WTTV/Indianapolis, KSWB/San Diego, WTXX/Hartford-New Haven, WMXI/Grand Rapids and WNOL/New Orleans. Season to-date through Jan. 4, Legend of the Seeker is averaging a 2.5 GAA (gross average audience) household rating. Despite the early marginal success, however, no competing new first-run scripted weeklies will be present at this week’s NATPE conference in Las Vegas. ---------- -Flavor Flav Inks Syndication Deal:Rapper and reality star Flavor Flav and filmmaker Deon Taylor will spin-off their BET movie Nite Tales into a half-hour weekend anthology horror series featuring Flav in a role similar to Tales From the Crypt’s Cryptkeeper. Trifecta Entertainment, home of upcoming Laguna Beach and The Hills in off-network, will sell the advertising time. -Katie Couric in Prime-Time:CBS will air a prime-time edition of The Evening News with Katie Couric this Wednesday, Jan. 28 at 8 p.m. ET in place of regularly scheduled The New Adventures of Old Christine and Gary Unmarried. Just what we need, right? -Timeless International Update:Distributor Timeless International, home of upcoming The 17th Annual Trumpet Awards (airing in a broadcast window of Saturday, April 4 through Sunday, May 17), has confirmed the following list of guests: Tyler Perry, Magic Johnson, Chris Tucker, Raven Symoné, Holly Robinson Peete, EnVogue, Teena Marie and Regina Belle. For more information on the special, which will also pay tribute to President Barack Obama, contact Sean Deneny at 818/575-8428. -New Program Offerings at NATPE 2009:For the first time in recent memory, new in off-network syndication for next fall has more to offer than first-run. Here is the breakdown: FIRST-RUN STRIPS -TalkMarie (Program Partners)Dr. Mehmet Oz (Sony Pictures Television): firm “go”The Wendy Williams Show (Debmar-Mercury): firm “go,” July 2009 lunch -CourtJudge Jeanine Pirro (Warner Bros./Telepictures): currently airing on the CW in daytimeStreet Court (Litton Entertainment) -GameAre You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (Twentieth Television) WEEKLIES -Half HourDragonfly TV (Telco Productions)Nite Tales (Trifecta Entertainment)100cc Raw Thrill (Entertainment Concepts Int’l)Swap TV (Telco Productions)Tevino (American Latino Syndication)What’s in a Kid’s World (Entertainment Concepts Int’l) -One HourThe Brian McKnight Show (Litton Entertainment)Johnnie High’s Country Music Revue (Entertainment Concepts Int’l) ---------- OFF-NETWORK STRIPS -Half HourEverybody Hates Chris (CBS Television Distribution)The Hills (Trifecta Entertainment)Laguna Beach (Trifecta)The Office (NBC Universal)My Name is Earl (Twentieth Television)Weeds (Lions Gate) -One HourCold Case Files (Trifecta)The E! True Hollywood Story (Debmar-Mercury)Law & Order: SVU (NBC Universal)Star Trek: The Next Generation (CBS) WEEKLIESBones (Twentieth)Criminal Minds (CBS)Deadliest Catch (Debmar-Mercury)Ghost Whisperer (Disney-ABC)Grey’s Anatomy (Disney-ABC)Prison Break (Twentieth)Supernatural (Warner Bros.) __________________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:Leaving Knots Landing Where did Abby Fairgate Cunningham Ewing Sumner move to when she left the very troubled town of Knots Landing? DallasJapanLas VegasParisProvidence The answer to Friday’s question… How much money did the Clampett fortune swell to by the final season of The Beverly Hillbillies? $50 million$95 million$150 million$175 million$250 million Is: b) $95 million. Granny could sure fix a mess of vittles with that kind of money! All together now… Come and listen to a story about a man named JedA poor mountaineer, barely kept his family fed,Then one day he was shootin' at some food,And up through the ground came a bubblin' crude.Oil that is, black gold, Texas tea.Well the first thing you know ole Jed’s a millionaire,Kinfolk said Jed move away from thereSaid Californy is the place you ought to beSo they loaded up the truck and moved to Beverly.Hills, that is. Swimmin' pools, movie stars. - The Beverly Hillbillies! -Current kudos goes to:Gerry Bixenspan, Larry Collins, Tom Condosta, James Davison, John Ferlazzo, Jerry Gibbons, Bob Ingersoll, Synda Kollman, Beverly Morris, Michelle Stanton

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