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The five TV shows
most hurt by 'Idol'


They range from 'Veronica Mars' to 'Survivor'

Feb 28, 2007

Each winter when Fox's "American Idol" returns to the schedule, a whole slew of competing shows take hits in the ratings, and in latter February the hurt worsened when Fox doubled up "Idol" on Tuesday and Wednesdays and adds a third Thursday show.

A few programs seem immune to "Idol's" wrath. One is CBS’s “NCIS,” which targets older viewers, and there's Univision’s “La Fea Mas Bella,” which targets Hispanics.

But the majority are left hurting, and that hurt deepened last week, the week ended Feb. 25, the first with doubled up Tuesday and Wednesday shows and a Thursday "Idol" edition at 8 p.m. NBC's “The Office” and “My Name is Earl” both took slight hits--down 8 and 5 percent from the previous week--and ABC wisely chose to air a “Grey’s Anatomy” repeat in the timeslot.

Here’s a look at the five shows most hurt by “Idol” and their chances of recovering. There seems to be no common thread among them. Some are strong shows, while others were already hurting.

ABC’s “Knights of Prosperity (Wednesday 8:30 p.m.)

Last week’s episode nearly matched a series low, averaging a 1.6 in adults 18-49. ABC already moved the sitcom from 9 to 8:30 last month to get it out of the way of “Idol,” which usually airs at 9.

Considering that “Knights” also lost 27 percent from its “George Lopez” lead-in, it’s just awaiting the axe.

NBC’s “Deal or No Deal” (Wednesday 9 p.m.)

The network’s popular game show has held up against tough competition before, such as ABC’s “Grey’s” and CBS’s “CSI” on Thursdays, but last week it hit a series-low 2.1 airing opposite “Idol.”

Its Monday edition remains strong, so it’s no surprise NBC is moving “Deal” from Wednesday to Sunday next week and replacing it with “Crossing Jordan.”

CBS’s “Jericho” (Wednesday 8 p.m.)

Last fall’s pleasant surprise proved quite vulnerable to “Idol” in its winter return after a three-month hiatus, averaging a series-low 2.3. That’s a full point behind its season average.

CBS will have patience with it because “Idol” usually airs in a later timeslot. But if the low ratings continue, “Jericho” may move, possibly to Tuesdays at 10 p.m. where the network currently airs reruns.

CW’s “Veronica Mars” (Tuesday 9 p.m.)

“Veronica’s” future was already looking dim before last week’s dismal 2.3 million total viewers and retention of barely 50 percent out of lead-in “Gilmore Girls” among the network’s target 18-34s.

Now things look worse.

CBS’s “Survivor” (Thursday 8 p.m.)

Opposite a rare Thursday “Idol,” “Survivor” dipped to one of its lowest ratings ever, a 4.6, and fell 19 percent from its previous season average of 5.7.

Once “Idol” retracts back to Tuesdays and Wednesdays, “Survivor” will bounce back, but it looks increasingly vulnerable.   

Meanwhile, in broadcast ratings for the week ended Feb. 25:
 
Among adults 18-49, Fox was first with a 6.0 average rating and a 16 share, followed by ABC at 4.7/12, CBS at 3.2/8, NBC at 2.6/7, Univision at 1.8/5, CW at 1.2/3, Telemundo at 0.4/1, Telefutura at 0.3/1 and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 18-34, Fox led at 5.6/16, with ABC at 4.2/12, NBC at 2.1/6, CBS at 2.0/6, CW at 1.3/4, Telemundo at 0.4/1, Telefutura at 0.3/1 and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 25-54, Fox was first at 6.4/15, with ABC at 5.3/13, CBS at 4.1/10, NBC at 3.1/7, CW at 1.1/3, Telemundo at 0.4/1, Telefutura at 0.3/1 and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Top five (18-49s): 1. ABC’s “Academy Awards” 14.1; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 12.3; 3. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 11.8; 4. ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” 11.6; 5. Fox’s “American Idol - Thursday” 9.1.
 
Top five (total viewers): 1. ABC’s “Academy Awards” 40.2 million; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 30.5 million; 3. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 29.5 million; 4. ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” 27.4 million; 5. ABC’s “Road to the Oscars” 27.1 million.
 
Bottom five (18-49s): Tie-94. CW’s “Reba” and “Veronica Mars,” CBS’s “Crimetime Saturday” 0.9; 97. CW’s “7th Heaven” 0.8; 98. CW’s “Supernatural” 0.7; 99. CW’s “Beauty and the Geek Encore” 0.5.
 
Bottom five (total viewers): 95. CW’s “The Game” 2.28 million; 96. CW’s “Veronica Mars” 2.27 million; 97. CW’s “Girlfriends” 2.24 million; 98. CW’s “Supernatural” 1.72 million; 99. CW’s “Beauty and the Geek Encore” 1.25 million.
 
Show on the rise: “Friday Night Smackdown,” CW, Friday 8 p.m. CW’s weekend wrestle-fest posted a 1.8 rating among viewers 18-49 last week, a 13 percent jump versus a 1.6 the previous week.
 
Show on the decline: “Friday Night Lights,” NBC, Wednesday 8 p.m. NBC’s high school football drama had to deal with both the return of CBS’s “Jericho” and the first half of a two-hour “American Idol” last week in the 8 p.m. timeslot, and it suffered, to say the least. The show posted a 1.7 rating among 18-49s, off 32 percent from a 2.5 the previous week.

PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Feb. 25

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

FOX

8.7

9720

14

5.3

14950

13

6.0

7850

16

ABC

8.1

9050

13

4.6

13030

12

4.7

6180

12

CBS

7.2

7980

11

3.9

11190

10

3.2

4150

8

NBC

5.2

5840

8

2.8

7950

7

2.6

3440

7

UNI

2.2

2430

3

1.5

4270

4

1.8

2370

5

CW

1.9

2160

3

1.1

3020

3

1.2

1550

3

TEL

0.5

580

1

0.3

840

1

0.4

540

1

PAX

0.4

490

1

0.2

680

1

0.1

160

0

TF

0.4

430

1

0.2

680

1

0.3

440

1

AZA

0.1

110

0

0.1

140

0

0.1

80

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1.114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

SEASON-TO-DATE PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Feb. 25

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

8.2

9140

13

4.6

13050

12

3.9

5140

11

ABC

6.5

7250

11

3.6

10140

9

3.6

4700

10

NBC

6.2

6900

10

3.4

9620

9

3.4

4470

9

FOX

6.0

6650

10

3.4

9680

9

3.7

4870

10

CW

2.1

2360

3

1.2

3270

3

1.3

1750

3

UNI

2.0

2180

3

1.3

3600

3

1.5

2020

4

TEL

0.5

580

1

0.3

840

1

0.4

510

1

PAX

0.4

490

1

0.2

640

1

0.1

170

0

TF

0.4

410

1

0.2

630

1

0.3

400

1

AZA

0.1

100

0

0.1

150

0

0.1

100

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research 

 

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Feb. 25

#

PROGRAMS

Net

HOUSEHOLDS

PERSONS 2+

Rtg%

Shr

(000)

#

Rtg%

(000)

1

ACADEMY AWARDS(S)

ABC

23.6

37

26317

1

14.2

40172

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

17.2

26

19193

2

10.7

30462

3

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

16.9

25

18814

4

9.7

27394

4

ROAD TO OSCARS 2007(S)

ABC

16.7

26

18582

5

9.6

27098

5

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

16.5

25

18413

3

10.4

29533

6

AMERICAN IDOL THU SP-2/22(S)

FOX

14.1

21

15698

6

8.6

24444

7

CSI

CBS

13.0

19

14503

7

7.7

21780

8

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

12.2

20

13591

8

6.8

19231

9

DEAL OR NO DEAL-MON

NBC

10.8

16

12018

9

6.2

17624

10

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

10.4

15

11571

10

5.8

16560

11

OPRAH WINFREY OSCAR SPEC(S)

ABC

10.2

17

11410

11

5.4

15446

12

NCIS

CBS

9.6

15

10667

11

5.4

15406

13

BARBARA WALTERS SP-2/25(S)

ABC

9.4

15

10527

13

5.1

14535

14

SHARK

CBS

9.1

15

10127

14

5.0

14188

15

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

9.0

13

10045

17

4.8

13705

15

CSI: NY

CBS

9.0

15

10071

17

4.8

13675

17

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CBS

8.9

13

9868

16

4.9

13864

18

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

8.3

14

9213

22

4.2

11935

19

HEROES

NBC

8.2

12

9097

14

5.0

14062

20

24

FOX

7.9

12

8776

20

4.6

13049

21

SURVIVOR: FIJI

CBS

7.8

12

8740

17

4.8

13473

22

LOST

ABC

7.6

12

8467

20

4.6

12952

23

NUMB3RS

CBS

7.3

13

8139

24

3.9

11017

24

UNIT, THE

CBS

7.2

11

7991

23

4.1

11698

25

CLOSE TO HOME

CBS

6.8

12

7589

26

3.6

10098

Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Adults 18-49
Week Ending Feb. 25

Rank

Program

Net

Rtg%

(000)

1

ACADEMY AWARDS(S)

ABC

14.1

18411

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

12.3

16070

3

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

11.8

15413

4

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

11.6

15212

5

AMERICAN IDOL THU SP-2/22(S)

FOX

9.1

11948

6

ROAD TO OSCARS 2007(S)

ABC

8.9

11593

7

CSI

CBS

6.8

8829

8

HEROES

NBC

6.0

7878

8

OPRAH WINFREY OSCAR SPEC(S)

ABC

6.0

7890

10

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

5.9

7761

11

LOST

ABC

5.7

7461

12

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

5.3

6882

13

24

FOX

5.1

6601

14

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CBS

4.9

6401

15

DEAL OR NO DEAL-MON

NBC

4.8

6327

16

BARBARA WALTERS SP-2/25(S)

ABC

4.7

6080

17

FOX NEXTEL CUP WNNRS CIRC

FOX

4.6

6007

17

SURVIVOR: FIJI

CBS

4.6

6025

19

OFFICE

NBC

4.2

5446

20

E.R.

NBC

4.1

5293

20

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

4.1

5330

22

CSI: NY

CBS

3.9

5136

22

PRISON BREAK

FOX

3.9

5041

22

SHARK

CBS

3.9

5079

25

FAMILY GUY-SUN 9:30P

FOX

3.8

5003

25

SIMPSONS

FOX

3.8

4905

Source: Nielsen Media Research

  

SPANISH-LANGUAGE TELEVISION (WEEKLY COLLAPSED)
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Feb. 25

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+ (000)

1

PREMIO LO NUESTRO'07 2/22(S)-02/22/2007

UNI

26.7

5573

2

FEA MAS BELLA M-F

UNI

24.5

5327

3

NOCHE DE ESTRELLAS 2/22(S)-02/22/2007

UNI

21.6

4121

4

MUNDO DE FIERAS M-F

UNI

18.3

3865

5

DUELO DE PASIONES M-F

UNI

17.3

3592

6

CASOS VIDA R: ED. ESP FRI

UNI

17.2

3471

7

BAILANDO BODA SUENOS SUN

UNI

15.3

3130

8

DON FRANCISCO PRESENTA-WE

UNI

14.5

2742

9

CRISTINA-MON

UNI

14.4

2515

10

SABADO GIGANTE-SAT

UNI

13.9

2620

11

CASOS FAMILIA ED ESP SAT

UNI

13.1

2501

12

CAMINO P. LO NUESTRO 2/20(S)-02/20/2007

UNI

12.1

2221

13

HORA PICO-SUN

UNI

10.5

2175

14

VIUDA DE BLANCO M-F

TEL

7.2

1274

15

MARINA M-F

TEL

7.1

1295

16

CINE LAS ESTREL1 SUN

TF

6.4

1352

17

ZORRO M-F

TEL

6.3

1187

18

FUTBOL LIGA MEX WED

TF

4.9

930

19

FUTBOL LIGA MEX SAT

TF

4.7

990

20

DECISIONES M-F

TEL

4.5

843

21

CINEMUNDO DEL SABADO

TEL

4.4

812

22

CINE LAS ESTREL2 SUN

TF

4.1

815

23

CINE MILLONARIO

TEL

4.0

824

24

CINE LAS ESTREL1 M-THU

TF

3.6

682

25

CINE LAS ESTREL2 SAT

TF

3.3

760

* Nielsen Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 11.63 million Hispanic TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

HISPANIC ENGLISH-LANGUAGE VIEWING
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Feb. 25

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+(000)

1

ACADEMY AWARDS(S)-02/25/2007

ABC

12.1

2167

2

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

8.9

1884

3

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

8.4

1713

4

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

7.8

1321

5

ROAD TO OSCARS 2007(S)-02/25/2007

ABC

7.5

1450

6

AMERICAN IDOL THU SP-2/22(S)-02/22/2007

FOX

6.6

1320

7

OPRAH WINFREY OSCAR SPEC(S)-02/22/2007

ABC

5.8

953

7

FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN

CW

5.8

1109

9

BARBARA WALTERS SP-2/25(S)-02/25/2007

ABC

4.9

876

10

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

4.6

731

* Nielsen Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 11.63 million Hispanic TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

AFRICAN AMERICAN AUDIENCE ESTIMATES
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Feb. 25

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Rtg

P2+(000)

1

ACADEMY AWARDS

ABC

24.6

4882

2

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

21.3

4391

3

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

21.3

4390

4

AMERICAN IDOL THU SP-2/22

FOX

18.2

3624

5

ROAD TO OSCARS 2007

ABC

18.0

3457

6

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

13.3

2462

7

BARBARA WALTERS SP-2/25

ABC

12.2

2117

8

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

12.2

2214

9

CSI: NY

CBS

10.6

1742

10

CSI

CBS

10.2

1898

* Ratings based on 13.45 million African American TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

NETWORK SPORTS PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending Feb. 11

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Episode

Households

Persons 2+

US Rtg%

Shr

(000)

(000)

1

BUDWEISER SHOOT-OUT(S)-02/10/2007

FOX

 

4.8

9

5322

8441

2

AFC/NFC PRO BOWL(S)-02/10/2007

CBS

 

4.6

9

5127

6983

3

AT&T PBL BCH NTL PRO-SUN(S)-02/11/2007

CBS

 

3.0

6

3335

4345

4

FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN

CW

 

3.0

5

3332

4829

5

ESTADOS UNIDOS MEXICO 2/7(S)-02/07/2007

UNI

USA VS MEXICO AT PHOENIX

2.9

5

3209

6131

6

FOX NASCAR DAYTONA QUAL(S)-02/11/2007

FOX

 

2.8

7

3161

4401

7

NBA ON ABC-SUN 2

ABC

LA LAKERS AT CLEVELAND

2.7

6

2974

3845

8

AT&T PBL BCH NTL PRO-SAT(S)-02/10/2007

CBS

 

2.1

5

2371

2862

9

NBA ON ABC-SUN 1

ABC

SAN ANTONIO AT MIAMI

1.9

5

2148

2737

10

NCAA BASKETBALL-SAT-1

CBS

UCLA AT WVA/ILL AT INDIANA

1.6

4

1746

2127

11

ABC NCAA BASKETBALL-SAT.

ABC

AZ AT ORGON/KANSAS AT MISSOURI

1.2

3

1378

1794

12

NBC SPORTS SPECIAL 2/10(S)-02/10/2007

NBC

PRO BULL RIDING

1.2

3

1354

1853

13

NCAA BASKETBALL-SUN-1

CBS

UCONN AT GA TECH

1.0

2

1129

1385

14

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR-SU

CBS

AMA SUPERCROSS - HOUSTON

0.9

2

1040

1365

15

POKER AFTER DARK MO-SAT

NBC

 

0.9

5

1053

1226

16

NBC SPORTS SPECIAL 2/11(S)-02/11/2007

NBC

SNOWBOARD GP

0.9

2

976

1172

17

NBC NHL

NBC

VARIOUS TEAMS AND TIMES

0.8

2

908

1181

18

FUTBOL LIGA MEXICANA SUN

UNI

TOLUCA VS UNAM

0.8

2

896

1437

19

HONDA SKI TOUR SAT(S)-02/10/2007

ABC

 

0.6

2

712

734

20

FLM SAT 2

AZA

CRUZ AZUL VS GUADALAJARA

0.5

1

529

748

21

FLM SAT 3

AZA

VERACRUZ VS AMERICA

0.5

1

516

768

22

SOLO BOXEO TECATE FRI

TF

JUAREZ/LUCERO-MRTINEZ/VLNZUELA

0.4

1

453

520

23

WWE - RAW

TEL

 

0.3

1

334

454

24

FUTBOL LIGA MEX SAT

TF

ATLAS VS MORELIA

0.3

1

387

603

25

FLM SAT 1

AZA

JAGUARES VS U.A. DE G.

0.2

0

195

269

26

FLM SUN 2

AZA

SANTOS VS QUERETARO

0.2

0

253

379

27

FLM SUN 1

AZA

PACHUCA VS NECAXA

0.1

0

74

<< 

28

SABADO DE FUTBOL

TEL

FRANCE VS ARGENTINA

0.1

0

167

249

29

FUTBOL TELEMUNDO

TEL

COLOMBIA VS URUGUAY

0.1

0

64

<< 

* Note: The chart for the week ended Sept. 3 was delayed.

Source: Nielsen Media Research

 



Toni Fitzgerald is a staff writer for Media Life.




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