Apparently TV viewers aren’t interested in reruns this summer. With almost no original content on the English-language broadcast networks last night, the Big Five had an atrocious first Sunday of June.
ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and the CW combined for just a 6.6 rating and 20 share last night among adults 18-49, according to Nielsen overnights, down 26 percent from an 8.9 rating and 26 share on the same night last year.
As with last year, original programming last night was limited to newsmagazines. CBS’s “60 Minutes” and NBC’s “Dateline” both averaged under a 2.0.
No network averaged better than a 1.7 for the night. Last year ABC managed a 2.4 on the evening.
And while repeats rarely draw big numbers during the summer, several of last night’s reruns fell to simply awful numbers. NBC’s “Friday Night Lights” at 9 p.m. averaged just a 0.8, while the CW’s replay of the “Hidden Palms” pilot at 8 p.m. pulled only a 0.4.
That could be an ominous sign for repeats this summer. With digital video recorders and shows available online, there’s less and less reason to watch them, as there are now so many other ways to catch up.
Fox and CBS tied for first last night among viewers 18-49, each with a 1.7 average rating and a 5 share. ABC was third at 1.6/5, NBC fourth at 1.2/4, Univision fifth at 1.1/3 and CW sixth at 0.4/1.
ABC started the night in the lead with a 1.8 rating at 7 p.m. for a repeat of “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” followed by CBS with a 1.5 for “60 Minutes.” NBC and Fox tied for third at 1.1, NBC for “Dateline” and Fox for a repeat of “The War at Home” and the first 30 minutes of the movie “Bad Boys 2,” with Univision fifth with a 0.9 for the first hour of the movie “Okey, Mister Pancho” and CW sixth with a 0.4 for a repeat of “7th Heaven.”
At 8 p.m. ABC led again with a 2.2 rating for a repeat of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” with Fox moving to second with a 1.7 for another hour of “Boys.” NBC was third with a 1.6 for another hour of “Dateline,” CBS fourth with a 1.4 for a repeat of “Without a Trace,” Univision fifth with a 1.2 for the second half of its movie and CW sixth with a 0.4 for a repeat of “Palms.”
Fox took the lead at 9 p.m. with a 2.3 for the last hour of “Boys,” while CBS moved to second with a 1.9 for a “Cold Case” rerun. ABC fell to third that hour with a 1.3 for a repeat of “Desperate Housewives,” with Univision fourth with a 1.1 for the first hour of the movie “La Presidenta Municipal,” NBC fifth with a 0.8 for a repeat of “Lights” and CW sixth with a 0.5 for a “Supernatural” rerun.
Finally, at 10 p.m., CBS led with a 2.0 for another “Without a Trace” repeat, with NBC second with a 1.4 for a repeat of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” ABC third with a 1.2 for a repeat of “Brothers & Sisters” and Univision fourth with a 1.1 for the second hour of its movie.
Among households, CBS led the night with a 5.8 average rating and a 10 share, with ABC second at 3.1/5, NBC third at 2.8/5, Fox fourth at 2.6/5, Univision fifth at 1.2/2 and CW sixth at 0.8/1.