CBS and Fox Lead Holiday Week of Dec. 28

THE PROGRAMMING INSIDERWednesday, January 6, 2010 Prime-Time Metered Market Tuesday Ratings:CBS Wins, Solid Sampling for The Biggest Loser Season Opener National Ratings in Prime-Time:Week of December 28, 2009 Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest TV Trivia Time: Stick to the Movies, Please ________________________________________________________________________________ Prime-Time Metered Market Tuesday Ratings:CBS Wins, Solid Sampling for The Biggest Loser Season Opener Tuesday 1/05/10 HH Rtg/Shr CBS 10.8/17Fox 6.5/10NBC 5.8/ 9ABC 2.5/ 4CW 0.7/ 1 ---------- -Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening (Tuesday, January 6, 2009):Fox: +91, CBS: + 1, NBC: -17, ABC: -49, CW: -61 ---------- -Yesterday’s Winners:NCIS (CBS), Fedex Orange Bowl (Fox), The Biggest Loser (NBC), NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS), The Good Wife (CBS) -Yesterday’s Losers:Scrubs (ABC), Better Off Ted (ABC), The Forgotten (ABC), The Jay Leno Show (NBC) ---------- -Ratings Breakdown:CBS remained in the overnight Tuesday winner’s circle despite facing The Fedex Orange Bowl on Fox, which finished a distant second. Third overall was NBC, which is expected to flex some muscle among adults 18-49, followed by distant ABC and another night of repeats on The CW. CBS blockbuster NCIS opened with a 12.3 rating/19 share at 8 p.m., which topped the charts again for the evening. That led into the biggest new hit of the season, spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles (#1: 11.0/17 at 9 p.m.), followed by also dominant legal drama The Good Wife (9.1/15 at 10 p.m.). Over at Fox, Georgia Tech vs. Iowa on the Fedex Orange Bowl averaged an estimated 6.5/10 in the overnights in prime-time, with the half-hour breakdown as follows: Fedex Orange Bowl (Fox)8:00 p.m.: 5.2/ 8 (#3)8:30 p.m.: 6.3/10 (#2)9:00 p.m.: 7.4/11 (#1)9:30 p.m.: 7.8/12 (#2)10:00 p.m.: 7.0/11 (#1)10:30 p.m.: 7.3/12 (#2) Comparably, this was 12 percent below Virginia Tech versus Kansas in the Orange Bowl match-up on Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008, but still a an improvement over recent occupants So You Think You Can Dance and Glee. (Results for Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2009 were not available). Remember, results for any live sporting event are always approximate. Ratings-hungry NBC got some much needed good news last night care of aforementioned two-hour The Biggest Loser: Couples season-opener, which averaged a 6.4/10 in the overnights from 8-10 p.m., growing in every half-hour as follows: The Biggest Loser (NBC)8:00 p.m.: 5.9/ 9 (#2)8:30 p.m.: 6.2/ 9 (#3)9:00 p.m.: 6.6/10 (#3)9:30 p.m.: 7.0/11 (#3) Comparably, this was on par with the 6.8/10 for the also two-hour season-opener on January 6, 2009. Keep in mind, of course, that the strength of The Biggest Loser always falls within the adult 18-49 demographic. The Jay Leno Show, which always scores its biggest audience of the week outside of The Biggest Loser, finished third at 10 p.m. with a still uneventful 4.4/ 7. Elsewhere, the news was grim at ABC, which filled the 8-10 p.m. block with two episodes each of sure-to-be canceled sitcoms Scrubs and Better Off Ted. Take a look: ABC/Tuesday8:00 p.m. - Scrubs: 2.8/ 4 (#4)8:30 p.m. – Better Off Ted: 2.0/ 3 (#4)9:00 p.m. – Scrubs: 2.1/ 3 (#4)9:30 p.m. – Better Off Ted: 1.9/ 3 (#4) Despite the accolades from the critics, I personally knew Better Off Ted would never catch on. Minus any lead-in support, on-the-fence crime drama The Forgotten lived up to its title with a last-place 3.0/ 5 at 10 p.m. Last, and very least, were repeats of The CW’s 90210 (0.8/ 1) and freshman dud Melrose Place (0.6/ 1). Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat)_____________________________________________________________________________ National Ratings in Prime-Time:Week of December 28, 2009 CBS and Fox shared leadership on this holiday week (translation: tons of repeats), with CBS first in households and total viewers and Fox No. 1 in the three key demos -- adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and adults 18-34. Erosion was the clear observation of the week, with the steep declines for NBC a reflection of 27.79 million viewers for game two of Indianapolis vs. San Diego on the NFL Playoffs on the year-ago Saturday (Jan. 3, 2009). Here are the final national ratings for the week of December 28, 2009 (with percent change versus the comparable year-ago week in parentheses), followed by the top 30 rated programs of the week. Since most shows were in repeats, the freshman series scorecard is excluded this week. -Households:CBS: 5.2 rating/9 share (- 2), Fox: 4.2/ 7 (-19), ABC: 3.8/ 6 (- 3), NBC: 3.2/ 5 (-44), CW: 0.6/ 1 (-25) -Total Viewers: CBS: 8.25 million (- 2), Fox: 7.31 (-16), ABC: 6.43 (no change), NBC: 5.09 (-46), CW: 938,000 (-26) -Adults 18-49:Fox: 2.6 rating/ share (- 7), ABC: 2.0/ 6 (- 5), CBS: 1.8/ 5 (-10), NBC: 1.7/ 5 (-41), CW: 0.4/ 1 (no change) -Adults 25-54:Fox: 2.9/ 7 (-12), CBS: 2.5/ 6 (- 7), ABC: 2.4/ 6 (- 4), NBC: 2.0/ 5 (-43), CW: 0.4/ 1 (-20) -Adults 18-34:Fox: 2.3/ 8 (no change), ABC: 1.5/ 5 (-12), NBC: 1.4/ 5 (-29), CBS: 1.1/ 4 (- 8), CW: 0.4/ 1 (-20) -------------------- Top 30 Rankings -Total Viewers:Sunday Night Football: Cincinnati at New York (NBC): 16.33, All-State Sugar Bowl (Fox): 15.33, Desperate Housewives (ABC): 15.35, 60 Minutes (CBS): 14.84, NCIS R (CBS): 12.87, The Rose Bowl Post Game (ABC): 11.91, The OT (Fox): 11.51, Two and a Half Men R (CBS): 11.09, Criminal Minds R (CBS): 11.06, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC): 10.98, CSI: NY R (CBS): 10.89, Brothers & Sisters (ABC): 10.78, America’s Funniest Home Videos (ABC): 10.15, Football Night in America, Part 3 (NBC): 10.13, The Big Bang Theory R (CBS): 9.93, NCIS – Sunday R (CBS): 9.91, The Kennedy Center Honors (CBS): 9.63, CSI: Miami R (CBS): 9.49, The Simpsons (Fox): 8.55, New Year’s Rockin Eve (ABC): 8.21, Family Guy (Fox): 8.16, 20/20 – Tuesday (ABC): 8.04, The Mentalist R (CBS): 7.95, All-State Sugar Bowl Pre-Game (Fox): 7.66, Cold Case R (CBS, Sun. 9 p.m.): 7.66, CSI R (CBS): 7.21, The Cleveland Show (Fox): 6.94, Cold Case R (CBS, Sun. 10 p.m.): 6.87, 48 Hours Mystery (CBS): 6.50, ABC Thursday Movie: Wild Hogs: 6.41 -Adults 18-49:Sunday Night Football: Cincinnati at New York (NBC): 6.1 rating/15 share, Desperate Housewives (ABC): 5.3/12, All-State Sugar Bowl (Fox): 5.1/14, The OT (Fox): 4.3/11, The Simpsons (Fox): 4.0/10, Family Guy (Fox): 4.0/ 9, Football Night in America, Part 3 (NBC): 3.7/ 9, The Rose Bowl Post-Game (ABC): 3.5/10, Brothers & Sisters (ABC): 3.5/ 9, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC) and The Cleveland Show (Fox): 3.3/ 8 each, The Big Bang Theory R (CBS): 3.0/ 8, Two and a Half Me R (CBS) and American Dad (Fox): 2.8/ 7 each, New Year’s Rockin’ Eve (ABC): 2.7/10, 60 Minutes (CBS) and America’s Funniest Home Videos (ABC): 2.7/ 7 each, NCIS R (CBS) and Criminal Minds R (CBS): 2.4/ 7 each, 20-20 – Tuesday (ABC) and CSI: NY R (CBS): 2.3/ 7 each, CSI: Miami R (CBS): 2.2/ 6, Football Night in America, Part 2 (NBC): 2.1/ 6, Cops R (Fox, Sat. 8:30 p.m.): 1.9/ 6, How I Met Your Mother R (CBS) and America’s Most Wanted (Fox): 1.8/ 5 each, NCIS – Sunday R (CBS): 1.8/ 4, ABC Thursday Movie: Wild Hogs: 1.7/ 6, 20/20 – Friday and Cops R (Fox, Sat. 8 p.m.): 1.8/ 5 each Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) Ratings Box:What’s Hot/What’s Not -Record December for Hallmark Channel:Benefiting by over 450 hours of holiday-themed programming, feel-good Hallmark Channel rose to its highest rated December on record, with a 1.5 household rating in prime-time (and an overall fifth-place finish in households among all basic cable networks). Based on the full year, Hallmark Channel ranked No. 9 in primetime (with a 1.0 household rating), marking the fourth straight year of a top 10 finish. -Stellar ABC Family on Monday:The return of ABC Family drama The Secret Life of the American Teenager reached a new milestone, with a series-high performance in viewers 12-34 (3.0 million), females 12-34 (2.5 million), teens (1.6 million) and female teens (1.4 million), and its second best to-date in total viewers (4.5 million) in the Monday 8 p.m. hour this week. Comparably, this was ABC Family’s most-watched telecast in the aforementioned demos. Leading out of The Secret Life of the American Teenager was the return of Make it or Break It, which rose to a series-high in total viewers (2.7 million), adults 18-49 (1.2 million), women 18-49 (926,000), viewers 12-34 (1.7 million), females 12-34 (1.5), teens (1.0 million) and female teens (931,000) at 9 p.m. -Updated Ratings in Syndicated Talk:Based on GAA (gross average audience) ratings through December 14, 2009, what follows are the updated results in syndicated talk based on households and key women 25-54 and women 18-49. Keep in mind that Warner Bros.’ sophomore The Bonnie Hunt Show will be not be returning next fall. Percent change from the year-ago period appears in parentheses. Worth noting, in particular, is the stellar ongoing freshman performance for Sony Pictures Television’s The Dr. Oz Show (the highest rated new talker since Dr. Phil in 2002) and growth for all three of the NBC Universal occupants: Maury, The Jerry Springer Show and The Steve Wilkos Show. Households:Oprah (CBS Television Distribution): 5.3 rating (+ 2 percent), Dr. Phil (CBS): 2.9 (-17), Dr. Oz (Sony Pictures Television): 2.7, Live With Regis & Kelly (Disney-ABC): 2.5 (- 4), The Ellen DeGeneres Show (Warner Bros.): 2.2 (no change), Maury (NBC Universal): 2.1 (+ 5), The Doctors (CBS): 2.0 (+33), Rachael Ray (CBS): 1.7 (no change), Jerry Springer (NBCU): 1.3 (+18), Steve Wilkos (NBCU): 1.2 (+20), Wendy Williams (Debmar-Mercury): 1.2, Bonnie Hunt (Warner Bros.): 0.8 (-11), Martha (NBCU): 0.6 (-14) Women 25-54:Oprah (CBS): 3.5 (+ 3), The Ellen DeGeneres Show (Warner Bros.): 1.6 (+14), Dr. Phil (CBS): 1.6 (-20), Dr. Oz (Sony Pictures Television): 1.6, Maury (NBCU): 1.5 (+15), Live With Regis & Kelly (Disney-ABC): 1.3 (-13), Rachael Ray (CBS): 1.0 (-17), Wendy Williams (Debmar-Mercury): 1.0, The Doctors (CBS): 0.9 (+13), Jerry Springer (NBCU) and The Steve Wilkos Show (NBCU): 0.8 (+33 each), Bonnie Hunt (Warner Bros.): 0.5 (no change), Martha (NBCU): 0.4 (-20) Women 18-49:Oprah (CBS): 2.7 (- 4), Maury (NBCU): 1.6 (+ 7), The Ellen DeGeneres Show (Warner Bros.): 1.4 (+17), Dr. Phil (CBS): 1.3 (-24), Dr. Oz (SPT): 1.3, Live With Regis & Kelly (Disney-ABC): 1.1 (- 8), Wendy Williams (Debmar-Mercury): 1.0, Rachael Ray (CBS): 0.9 (-10), Jerry Springer (NBCU) and The Steve Wilkos Show (NBCU): 0.8 (+33 each), The Doctors (CBS): 0.8 (+14), Bonnie Hunt (Warner Bros.): 0.4 (no change), Martha (NBCU): -25 Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat) On the Air Tonight:Prime-Time Programming Options Wednesday 1/06/10 ABC: 8:00 p.m. The Middle 8:30 p.m. The Middle 9:00 p.m. Modern Family 9:30 p.m. Cougar Town 10:00 p.m. Ugly Betty (new day and time) CBS: 8:00 p.m. I Get That A Lot 9:00 p.m. The 36th Annual People’s Choice Awards NBC: 8:00 p.m. Mercy 9:00 p.m. Law & Order: SVU10:00 p.m. The Jay Leno Show Fox: 8:00 p.m. Glee (R) 9:00 p.m. Glee (R) CW 8:00 p.m. One Tree Hill (R) 9:00 p.m. Gossip Girl (R) ______________________________________________________________________ TV Tidbits:Notes of Interest -CBSTD Announces Clearances for Nancy Grace:Swift Justice with Nancy Grace, a new half-hour court strip hosted by HLN anchor and prosecutor Nancy Grace has been cleared in 80 percent of the country for a fall 2010 debut, including 48 of the top 50 markets. Sold in a two-year window in back-to-back half-hours, represented station groups include Fox Television Stations, Tribune Broadcasting, Sinclair Broadcast Group, CBS Television Stations, LIN TV, Cox Television, Local TV, Meredith, Media General, Gannett and Newport. -Twentieth Television Off-Net Renewals:Twentieth Television has renewed Family Guy in off-network syndication on the Fox and Tribune stations for a second four-year cycle, taking it through 2014-15. Despite the abundance of upcoming barter only deals, stations paid cash to renew the animated hit. Twentieth has also announced clearances for American Dad for a fall 2010 debut in approximately 40 percent of the country, including stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and Dallas. _________________________________________________________________________ TV Trivia Time:Stick to the Movies, Please Which one of the following movies was never spun-off into a TV series? The Bad News Bears Breaking AwayFreebie and the Bean Going My WayThe Wild Bunch The answer to yesterday’s question… What did Miss Patty teach on comedy/drama Gilmore Girls? Acting DancingHome economicsMathSinging Is: b) Dancing. Kooky Patty (Liz Torres) was always at the center of things in classic TV town Stars Hollow. -Current kudos goes to:Amanda Abry, Suzanne Ackley, Betty Bishop, Joanne Albrecht, Gerry Bixenspan (2x), Barbara Bloomfield, Larry Collins, Kristin Conner, Harold Cooper, John Ferlazzo, Arleen Fong, Joslyn Hansen, Sherrie Hentschel, Penny Hirsch, Heidi Hoffmeister, Bob Ingersoll, Deb Kainer, Kathryn Kieser, Mark Krause, Steve Kurtzer, Stephen LaRue, Danny Leclair, Patty Lynch, Michael Murphy, Stacie Nice, Kimberley Orti, Alex Petrilli, Francine Purcell, Arthur Reinstein, Lisa Tatum-Roehrig, Colleen Roth, Ron Salmon, Maxine Schulman, Robyn Swart, Carol Teichman, Bobbie Termeer, Meredith Wayne, Myndi Weinraub, Abbott Wool, Mike Wooley

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CBS and Fox Lead Holiday Week of Dec. 28

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