CBS and Fox Share Bragging Rights

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERWednesday, March 24, 2010 Prime-Time Metered Market Tuesday Ratings:Easy Victory for Idol-Ignited Fox National Ratings in Prime-Time:Week of March 15, 2010 Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time: Moving Coach ________________________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Metered Market Tuesday Ratings:Easy Victory for Idol-Ignited Fox Tuesday 3/23/10 HH Rtg/Shr Fox 15.5/23CBS 7.3/11NBC 5.1/ 8ABC 4.6/ 7CW 1.1/ 2 ---------- -Note: The comparisons are not available due to President Obama addressing the country on the year-ago evening. ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:American Idol (Fox), NCIS R (CBS), NCIS: Los Angeles R (CBS), Lost (ABC) -Yesterday’s Losers (excluding repeats):90210 (CW), Melrose Place (CW), V: The Arrival (ABC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:Led by another two-hour edition of American Idol, Fox dominated the Tuesday overnights and will, no doubt, score an ample victory among adults 18-49. In the distant No. 2 spot was a night of repeats on CBS, followed by NBC, ABC and The CW. American Idol scored a hefty 15.5 rating/23 share in the overnights from 8-10 p.m., with the half-hour breakdown as follows: American Idol (Fox)8:00 p.m.: 14.1/22 (#1)8:30 p.m.: 15.8/24 (#1)9:00 p.m.: 16.1/24 (#1)9:30 p.m.: 16.1/23 (#1) Anything, of course, is always possible on American Idol. But based on last night’s performances, most worthy of the bottom two are Paige Miles and Tim Urban. My pick to be sent packing: Paige Miles. Despite airing all encore telecasts, CBS was still on the Tuesday map courtesy of dramas NCIS (#2: 8.5/13), spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles (#2: 7.5/11) and older skewing The Good Wife (#2: 6.2/10). Over at NBC, demo friendly The Biggest Loser averaged a 5.2/ 8 in the overnights from 8-10 p.m., building by half-hour as follows: The Biggest Loser (NBC)8:00 p.m.: 4.9/ 8 (#3)8:30 p.m.: 5.0/ 8 (#3)9:00 p.m.: 5.4/ 8 (#4)9:30 p.m.: 5.7/ 8 (#4) Opposite a repeat of The Good Wife, NBC’s Parenthood at 10 p.m. perked up to a second-place 4.8/ 8, building by 12 percent from one week earlier. Here is the four-week overnight track for Parenthood. Parenthood (NBC)3/02/10: 5.5/ 93/09/10: 4.5/ 83/16/10: 4.3/ 73/23/10: 4.8/ 8 Airing out of The Biggest Loser, there is every reason to believe Parenthood will finish first at 10 p.m. among adults 18-49. Given the number of holes on NBC’s current line-up, I personally think Parenthood will land a second season renewal. ABC’s Tuesday standout was Lost, which was third with a 6.5/10 in the overnights at 9 p.m. (and will likely translate into high 3-rating among adults 18-49). That led into clips show V: The Arrival at an estimated third-place 4.3/ 7 at 10 p.m. I stress estimated because the final 6-minutes of Lost was factored into the 10:30 p.m. half-hour. Next week, V officially inherits the Tuesday 10 p.m. time period in place of recent occupant The Forgotten. Earlier in the evening on ABC was a repeat of Lost at a fourth-place 2.9/ 5 in the overnights at 8 p.m. Last, and very least, were serialized CW dramas 90210 (1.5/ 2) and Melrose Place (0.9/ 1), which is waiting for the axe to swing at any given moment. Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat)_____________________________________________________________________________ National Ratings in Prime-Time:Week of March 15, 2010 Ignited by three nights of March Madness (Thursday through Saturday), plus the 7 p.m. hour on Sunday, CBS led this third week of March in households, total viewers, adults 18-49 (tied with Fox) and adults 25-54. The home of American Idol, Fox, dominated in adults 18-49 (tied with CBS) and adults 18-34. But both networks were down in the five surveyed categories from one year earlier. Here is a tracking for the ongoing NCAA Basketball Tournament, which increased year-to-year to some degree on all three evenings. 2010 NCAA Basketball: First Round – Day 1 – Thursday 8 p.m.Viewers: 8.90 million (#19), A18-49: 3.2/12 (#16 overall) 2010 NCAA Basketball: First Round – Day 2 – Friday 8 p.m.Viewers: 8.21 million (#21), A18-49: 3.1/11 (#17) 2010 NCAA Basketball - Second Round, Day 1 – Saturday 8:30 p.m.Viewers: 10.29 million (#13), A18-49: 3.6/13 (#10t) Next up was NBC, which finished third across the board at levels close to one year earlier. Fourth-place ABC nosedived, dipping by as much as 45 percent among adults 18-34. A good portion of the alphabet net erosion comes from the absence of Dancing With the Stars, which accounted for four hours of the year-ago weekly line-up. Last-place The CW came in on par with one year earlier. There were two season-finales this week – ABC’s Scrubs and CBS’ Gary Unmarried – and lackluster results for both could signal the official end. Take a look: Scrubs (ABC) – Wednesday 8 p.m.Viewers: 3.44 million (#75), A18-49: 1.2/ 4 (#66t) Gary Unmarried (CBS) – Wednesday 8:30 p.m.Viewers: 5.70 million (#46), A18-49: 1.8/ 6 (#45t) After a three month absence, a two-hour installment of ABC’s FlashForward under-whelmed in the Thursday 8-10 p.m. block as follows, proving absence is not the best way to ignite audience interest. FlashForward (ABC) – Thursday 8 p.m.Viewers: 6.50 million (#38), A18-49: 1.9/ 6 (#39t) As for the freshman midseason scorecard, CBS’ Undercover Boss continues to stand well above anything else, including the lackluster Sunday preview of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution on ABC (which will certainly not bode well for its regularly scheduled run in the Friday 9 p.m. hour). Take a look: Undercover Boss (CBS) – Sunday 9 p.m.Viewers: 14.47 million (#5), A18-49: 4.4/11 (#3)Grade: A The Marriage Ref (NBC) – Thursday 10 p.m.Viewers: 7.60 million (#27), A18-49: 2.9/ 9 (#19t)Grade: C+ Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution (ABC) – Sunday 10 p.m. (series premiere/preview)Viewers: 6.13 million (#41), A18-49: 2.2/ 6 (#34)Grade: D Parenthood (NBC) – Tuesday 10 p.m.Viewers: 5.83 million (#45), A18-49: 2.3/ 7 (#30t)Grade: C- Minute to Win It (NBC) – Sunday 8 p.m. Viewers: 5.11 million (#54), A18-49: 1.8/ 5 (#45t)Grade: D Sons of Tucson (Fox) – Sunday 9:30 p.m.Viewers: 3.84 million (#70), A18-49: 1.9/ 5 (#39t)Grade: F High Society (CW) – Wednesday 9:30 p.m. Viewers: 1.18 million (#89), A18-49: 0.5/ 2 (#86t)Grade: F Here are the final national ratings for the week of March 15, 2010 (with percent change versus the comparable year-ago week in parentheses), followed by the top 20 rated programs of the week and the top rated networks on basic cable. -Households:CBS: 6.7 rating/12 share (- 6), Fox: 5.5/ 9 (- 8), NBC: 3.9/ 7 (+ 5), ABC: 3.5/ 6 (-41), CW: 1.2/ 2 (- 8) -Total Viewers: CBS: 10.82 million (- 6), Fox: 9.22 (-10), NBC: 6.06 (+ 6), ABC: 5.38 (-41), CW: 1.80 (- 7) -Adults 18-49:CBS: 3.2 rating/10 share (- 6), Fox: 3.2/10 (-16), NBC: 1.9/ 6 (- 5), ABC: 1.6/ 5 (-41), CW: 0.8/ 3 (no change) -Adults 25-54:CBS: 3.9/11 (- 5), Fox: 3.7/10 (-16), NBC: 2.3/ 6 (- 4), ABC: 2.0/ 5 (-39), CW: 0.7/ 2 (-12) -Adults 18-34:Fox: 2.6/ 9 (-19), CBS: 2.5/ 9 (- 4), NBC: 1.5/ 5 (no change), ABC: 1.2/ 4 (-45), CW: 1.0/ 3 (+11) -------------------- Top 20 Rankings -Total Viewers:American Idol – Tuesday (Fox): 22.91 million, American Idol – Wednesday (Fox): 20.51, NCIS (CBS): 18.00, NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS): 15.09, Undercover Boss (CBS): 14.47, The Good Wife (CBS): 13.40, 60 Minutes (CBS): 13.28, Two and a Half Men R (CBS): 12.70, The Amazing Race (CBS): 11.99, The Big Bang Theory R (CBS): 11.67, House (Fox): 11.37, Desperate Housewives (ABC): 10.84, NCAA Basketball - Second Round, Day 1 (CBS): 10.29, Law & Order: SVU (NBC): 9.65, Cold Case (CBS): 9.43, 24 (Fox): 9.01, CSI: Miami R (CBS): 8.96, 2010 NCAA Basketball: First Round – Day 1 (CBS): 8.90, Lost (ABC): 8.87 -Adults 18-49:American Idol – Tuesday (Fox): 8.1 rating/22 share, American Idol – Wednesday (Fox): 6.8/20, Undercover Boss (CBS): 4.4/11, House (Fox): 4.0/12, Two and a Half Men R (CBS): 3.9/11, The Big Bang Theory R (CBS) and Lost (ABC): 3.9/10 each, The Amazing Race (CBS): 3.8/ 9, NCAA Basketball - Second Round, Day 1 (CBS): 3.6/13, The Office (NBC): 3.6/11, NCIS (CBS): 3.5/10, Family Guy (Fox): 3.5/ 9 Desperate Housewives (ABC): 3.5/ 8, 2010 NCAA Basketball: First Round – Day 1 (CBS): 3.2/12, NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS): 3.2/ 8, 2010 NCAA Basketball - Second Round, Day 1 (CBS): 3.1/11, 30 Rock (NBC): 3.0/ 9, The Marriage Ref (NBC): 2.9/ 9, 60 Minutes (CBS): 2.9/ 8 CABLE What follows are the top 10 rated networks on cable in prime-time for the week of Feb 22 based on total viewers and the three key demos: Total Viewers:USA: 2.96 million, Fox News: 2.65, TNT: 2.02, Nick at Nite: 1.78, TBS: 1.67, ABC Family: 1.64, History: 1.63, Discovery: 1.62, A&E: 1.43, Cartoon: 1.34 Adults 18-49:USA: 1.07 million, TBS: 956,000, TNT: 891,000, Discovery: 847,000, ABC Family: 784,000, History: 748,000, A&E: 650,000, Comedy Central: 621,000, FX: 612,000, Food Network: 572,000 Adults 25-54:USA: 1.23 million, TNT: 914,000, TBS: 828,000, History: 809,000. Discovery: 807,000, ABC Family: 736,000, Fox News: 705,000, A&E: 672,000, Tru TV: 595,000, Food Network: 589,000 Adults 18-34:TBS: 535,000, USA: 439,000, Discovery: 414,000, ABC Family: 406,000, TNT: 403,000, MTV: 378,000, Comedy Central: 371,000, FX: 340,000, History: 334,000, A&E: 287,000 Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -Record Opening for Dancing With the Stars:Based on the Live Plus Same Day ratings, ABC’s veteran Dancing With the Stars opened its 10th edition with a record 24.2 million viewers and a 6.4 rating/17 share among adults 18-49 on Monday, March 22. Comparably, this was ABC’s most-watched regular entertainment telecast since November 2007 and biggest audience in the time period since the Rose Bowl in 2001. -Also on Monday:Showtime’s Nurse Jackie kicked-off season two with 1.08 million viewers at 10 p.m., building from the series-premiere (1.01 million) by seven percent and the season one finale (992,000) by two percent. Lead-out The United States of Tara was on par with its series-opener, with 816,000 viewers at 10:30 p.m. -Updated National Ratings in Syndication:What follows are the top 20 rated programs in syndication (first-run and off-network) based on households for the week of March 8: Wheel of Fortune (CBS Television Distribution): 7.3 rating, Jeopardy (CBS): 6.3, Two and a Half Men (Warner Bros.): 5.3, Oprah (CBS): 4.7, Judge Judy (CBS) and Entertainment Tonight (CBS): 4.6 each, Family Guy (Twentieth): 3.5, CSI: NY (CBS): 3.5, Inside Edition (CBS): 3.2, The Office (NBC Universal): 3.1, Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC): 3.0, Seinfeld (Sony Pictures Television): 2.9, Dr. Phil (SPT): 2.8, Dr. Oz (SPT), Live with Regis & Kelly (Disney-ABC), Everybody Loves Raymond (CBS), Two and a Half Men (Warner Bros.) and Wheel of Fortune – Weekend (CBS): 2.7 each Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options Wednesday 3/24/10 ABC: 8:00 p.m. Modern Family (R) 8:30 p.m. The Middle 9:00 p.m. Modern Family 9:30 p.m. Cougar Town 10:00 p.m. Ugly Betty CBS: 8:00 p.m. Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains 9:00 p.m. Criminal Minds (R)10:00 p.m. CSI: NY (R) NBC: 8:00 p.m. Mercy 9:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU (R)10:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU Fox: 8:00 p.m Human Target 9:00 p.m. American Idol CW 8:00 p.m. America’s Next Top Model 9:00 p.m. Fly Girls (premiere) 9:30 p.m. High Society New Program Descriptions Fly Girls (CW) The lives of five jet-setting (and, no doubt, attractive) flight attendants of global airline Virgin America is the focus of this new docu-drama. Although the lead-in support from America’s Next Top Model is sufficient, facing American Idol is a suicide mission.______________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -Reduced Episode Order for Two and a Half Men:Yes, the ratings are still rock-solid and the series will still have a full season episode order. But due to the recent personal problems of Charlie Sheen, CBS has reduced the episode order for Two and a Half Men from 24 to 22 this season. -In Other Primetime News:Fox has finally swung the axe on low-rated sitcom ‘Til Death, while Zach Braff posted on his Facebook account that ABC’s long-running Scrubs will also be ending this season. -Hallmark Channel Update:By now you know that feel-good cable net Hallmark Channel is one of my personal favorites. There should always be a place for family-driven entertainment. At a press lunch in New York yesterday, the upcoming home of Martha Stewart reiterated its upcoming slate of 24 original movies, including The Wild Girl, Class, The Wish List, Fairfield Road, Growing the Big One, The Night Before the Night Before Christmas, The Good Witch’s Gift, Backyard Wedding and After the Fall. Martha’s talk show, meanwhile, will air in the weekday 10 a.m. hour beginning in September, while a blend of programming from the Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia TV library will occupy the 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. block (and the 6-9 a.m. block on the weekends) beginning on Monday. For more on Hallmark Channel, click on www.hallmarkchannel.com. _________________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:Moving Coach Sitcom Coach began in Minnesota but ended its long series run in another state. What state was that? Alabama ArizonaFloridaGeorgiaPennsylvania The answer to yesterday’s question… Remember classic theatrical Animal House, which was a mega-hit in 1978? Which one of the following actors did not reprise his role for Delta House, the short-lived spin-off sitcom the following year? a) Stephen Furstb) Tim Mathesonc) Bruce McGilld) John Vernon e) James Widdoes Is: b) Tim Matheson. Peter Fox took over the role of Eric “Otter” Stratton. -Current kudos goes to:Gerry Bixenspan, Barbara Bloomfield, Paul Certo, Larry Collins, Reid Davis, Maureen Goldman, Geoffrey Gordon, Carolyn Becker Hayes, Michael Holland, Ken Hommel, Bob Ingersoll, Marie LeFevre Karp, Synda Kollman, Mark Krause, Steven Kurtzer, Jim Moore, Michael Murphy, Alan Perris, Gordon Purcell, Colleen Roth, Ron Salmon, Mindy Staley

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CBS and Fox Share Bragging Rights

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