“Ice Road Truckers” may be the summer’s unlikeliest hit. It’s a narrowly focused reality show about a rather obscure profession, and it airs on a network, the History Channel, better known for its war documentaries, not contemporary adventure stories.
But somehow “Truckers” has become the most-watched show in History’s history, and it’s also the summer’s top-rated cable reality show with the adults 25-54 the network thrives among.
“Truckers” averaged 3.89 million total viewers in its most recent outing Sunday at 10 p.m., according to Nielsen, up 14 percent over the 3.4 million who watched the debut in June.
In 25-54s, the show drew 2.47 million viewers, ranking third for the week on basic cable and ahead of such hits as USA’s “WWE Entertainment,” Lifetime’s “Army Wives” and TBS’s “The Bill Engvall Show.”
“Truckers” has drawn many comparisons to Discovery’s smash “Deadliest Catch,” about a group of Alaskan crab fishermen. As on “Catch,” the men in “Truckers” fight against time and the elements to do their job, a potentially fatal one.
The drivers deliver equipment to the diamond mines in Northern Canada, where driving over frozen lakes offers the most direct route to the Arctic Circle where the mines are located. The hurried drivers are constantly in danger, should the lakes crack open and suck the rigs into the freezing water below.
“Truckers” capitalizes on the adventure reality programming that “Catch” has helped popularize. That genre, which has deep roots in CBS’s “Survivor” and “Amazing Race,” also includes Discovery’s “Man vs. Wild,” “Dirtiest Jobs” and a previous History offering, “Dangerous Missions.”
These shows appeal to a surprisingly wide audience, considering their niche topics. History has said that “Truckers” and other such programs tie into the theme of exploration, a popular topic for the network that includes shows like “Lost Worlds,” “The Universe” and “Digging for the Truth.”
“Truckers” also draws a younger crowd than the usual History programs, something the network has been chasing with recent specials on “Star Wars” and other pop-culture topics.
Paced by “Truckers,” History built its adults 18-49 average by 15 percent year-over-year in July. And "Truckers" was History's only show in the top 40 among adults 18-34 last week.
Meanwhile, in other cable ratings for the week ended Aug. 12:
Top five networks in primetime (18-49s): USA, TBS, TNT, FX, Discovery
Top five networks in primetime (total viewers): USA, TNT, TBS, Lifetime, Cartoon Network
Top movie (18-49s): TBS’s “Mean Girls” (Sunday, 8 p.m.) 1.48 million
Top sporting event (total viewers): TNT’s “NASCAR Nextel Cup” (Sunday, 2 p.m.) 5.56 million
Shows making the top 10 among 18-34s, 18-49s and 25-54s: Comedy Central’s “Comedy Central Roast” (Sunday, 10 p.m.); USA’s “WWE Entertainment” (Monday, 9 and 10 p.m.); History Channel’s “Ice Road Truckers” (Sunday 10 p.m.).
Show on the rise: USA’s “WWE Entertainment,” Monday 10 p.m. The second half of USA’s WWE coverage grew big time week-to-week among viewers 18-34, jumping 43 percent from 897,000 viewers to 1.29 million.
Show on the decline: TNT’s “Saving Grace,” Monday 10 p.m. The Holly Hunter cop drama fell 16 percent versus the previous week among viewers 25-54, from 2.26 million viewers to 1.90 million.
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TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Ranked on Household Rating
Week Ending August 12 |
|
Rank |
Primetime |
Total Day |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
2126
|
NICK
|
1824
|
|
2
|
TNT
|
1772
|
TNT
|
1048
|
|
3
|
TBSC
|
1235
|
NAN
*
|
988
|
|
4
|
LIF
|
1121
|
TOON
|
987
|
|
5
|
TOON
|
1114
|
USA
|
983
|
|
6
|
FOXN
|
1087
|
ADSM*
|
948
|
|
7
|
HGTV
|
1073
|
FOXN
|
743
|
|
8
|
HALL
|
1071
|
LIF
|
732
|
|
9
|
AEN
|
1035
|
TBSC
|
705
|
|
10
|
NAN
|
971
|
ESPN
|
631
|
|
11
|
CORT
|
962
|
HALL
|
607
|
|
12
|
DISC
|
959
|
DISC
|
606
|
|
13
|
FX
|
952
|
AEN
|
593
|
|
14
|
ESPN
|
918
|
HGTV
|
578
|
|
15
|
HIST
|
908
|
MTV
|
539
|
|
16
|
SPK
|
874
|
FX
|
526
|
|
17
|
FAM
|
823
|
HIST
|
522
|
|
18
|
CMDY
|
800
|
CMDY
|
510
|
|
19
|
SCIF
|
790
|
SPK
|
504
|
|
20
|
AMC
|
789
|
CORT
|
503
|
|
21
|
MTV
|
764
|
TVLD
|
497
|
|
22
|
TLC
|
724
|
FAM
|
475
|
|
23
|
TVLD
|
718
|
FOOD
|
472
|
|
24
|
CNN
|
678
|
CNN
|
460
|
|
25
|
FOOD
|
637
|
AMC
|
415
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 25 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending August 12 |
|
Rank
|
Program |
Net
|
(000) |
|
1
|
The Closer
|
TNT
|
5519
|
|
2
|
NASCAR Nextel Cup
|
ESPN
|
3898
|
|
3
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
3715
|
|
4
|
Saving Grace
|
TNT
|
3694
|
|
5
|
Monk
|
USA
|
3637
|
|
6
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
3467
|
|
7
|
Psych
|
USA
|
3143
|
|
8
|
Draek & Kosh: Really Big Shrimp
|
NICK
|
3071
|
|
9
|
Army Wives
|
LIF
|
2978
|
|
10
|
Burn Notice
|
USA
|
2909
|
|
11
|
Drake & Josh
|
NICK
|
2845
|
|
12
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2796
|
|
13
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2775
|
|
14
|
Drake & Josh
|
NICK
|
2773
|
|
15
|
Drake & Josh
|
NICK
|
2750
|
|
16
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2749
|
|
17
|
Drake & Josh
|
NICK
|
2747
|
|
18
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
2742
|
|
19
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2737
|
|
20
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2685
|
|
21
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
2671
|
|
22
|
Comedy Central Roast
|
CMDY
|
2670
|
|
23
|
Spongebob
|
NICK
|
2667
|
|
24
|
Drake & Josh
|
NICK
|
2658
|
|
25
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
2632
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending August 12 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
561
|
ADSM*
|
412
|
|
2
|
TBSC
|
468
|
NICK
|
308
|
|
3
|
MTV
|
459
|
TBSC
|
279
|
|
4
|
CMDY
|
437
|
MTV
|
273
|
|
5
|
FX
|
365
|
CMDY
|
264
|
|
6
|
DISC
|
339
|
USA
|
264
|
|
7
|
AEN
|
332
|
NAN
*
|
254
|
|
8
|
FAM
|
315
|
DISC
|
217
|
|
9
|
VH1
|
288
|
ESPN
|
215
|
|
10
|
TLC
|
280
|
FX
|
212
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-34
Week Ending August 12 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
Comedy Central Roast
|
CMDY
|
1986
|
|
2
|
Schools of Life
|
TLC
|
1466
|
|
3
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
1286
|
|
4
|
Making The Band 4
|
MTV
|
1261
|
|
5
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1201
|
|
6
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1190
|
|
7
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1187
|
|
8
|
Comedy Central Roast
|
CMDY
|
1173
|
|
9
|
Ice Road Truckers
|
HIST
|
1109
|
|
10
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
1108
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending August 12 |
|
Rank |
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
1262
|
USA
|
589
|
|
2
|
TBSC
|
917
|
ADSM*
|
554
|
|
3
|
TNT
|
764
|
TNT
|
498
|
|
4
|
FX
|
744
|
TBSC
|
497
|
|
5
|
DISC
|
694
|
NICK
|
496
|
|
6
|
AEN
|
680
|
NAN
*
|
492
|
|
7
|
CMDY
|
661
|
ESPN
|
430
|
|
8
|
LIF
|
612
|
LIF
|
412
|
|
9
|
SPK
|
598
|
DISC
|
405
|
|
10
|
MTV
|
586
|
FX
|
394
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 18-49
Week Ending August 12 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
NASCAR Nextel Cup
|
ESPN
|
2742
|
|
2
|
Comedy Central Roast
|
CMDY
|
2725
|
|
3
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2530
|
|
4
|
Ice Road Truckers
|
HIST
|
2371
|
|
5
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2244
|
|
6
|
Schools of Life
|
TLC
|
2191
|
|
7
|
The Closer
|
TNT
|
2106
|
|
8
|
Burn Notice
|
USA
|
2044
|
|
9
|
Family Guy
|
ADSM
|
1758
|
|
10
|
Rescue Me
|
FX
|
1717
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE NETWORKS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending August 12 |
|
|
PRIME TIME |
TOTAL DAY |
|
Rank
|
Net |
(000) |
Net |
(000) |
|
1
|
USA
|
1303
|
USA
|
594
|
|
2
|
TNT
|
951
|
TNT
|
576
|
|
3
|
TBSC
|
836
|
TBSC
|
438
|
|
4
|
FX
|
718
|
NAN
*
|
432
|
|
5
|
AEN
|
682
|
LIF
|
428
|
|
6
|
DISC
|
682
|
ESPN
|
416
|
|
7
|
LIF
|
663
|
NICK
|
416
|
|
8
|
SPK
|
648
|
DISC
|
377
|
|
9
|
HGTV
|
643
|
AEN
|
366
|
|
10
|
HIST
|
641
|
FX
|
356
|
|
* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
|
|
TOP 10 AD-SUPPORTED CABLE SHOWS
Adults 25-54
Week Ending August 12 |
|
Rank |
PROGRAM |
NET |
(000) |
|
1
|
The Closer
|
TNT
|
2970
|
|
2
|
NASCAR Nextel Cup
|
ESPN
|
2965
|
|
3
|
Ice Road Truckers
|
HIST
|
2472
|
|
4
|
Burn Notice
|
USA
|
2309
|
|
5
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2279
|
|
6
|
WWE Entertainment
|
USA
|
2061
|
|
7
|
Comedy Central Roast
|
CMDY
|
2023
|
|
8
|
Psych
|
USA
|
1913
|
|
9
|
Saving Grace
|
TNT
|
1904
|
|
10
|
Monk
|
USA
|
1864
|
|
Source: Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
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