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For 'Swamp People,'
a moment of glory


The History channel show was among distinguished company

Feb 9, 2012
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Amid the myriad car, beer and soft drink commercials during Sunday's Super Bowl on NBC was one that stood out from the rest: a spot advertising the third-season premiere of History's "Swamp People."

It's rare that a cable network makes a Super Bowl buy, and so media people will be interested to see whether the risky strategy helps goose ratings for "Swamp," which returns tonight at 9 p.m.

History targets men 18-54, which makes sporting events a logical advertising venue, and in fact it has made local Super Bowl ad buys in previous years. It advertised the premiere of "Only in America with Larry the Cable Guy" in Los Angeles and New York last year.

But this was the first time History paid the huge premium to advertise nationally in the game, which cost a reported $3.5 million for a 30-second spot.

The strategy got a lot of attention not just from trade magazines but also from consumer media outlets like the Chicago Tribune and USA Today. Though the spot didn't do particularly well in the postgame ad polls, the extra media hype probably helped raise awareness of tonight's premiere, and History will be studying the ratings carefully to decide if the big outlay was worth it.

"Swamp" already draws strong numbers for History.

It's the network's No. 3 series, behind "Pawn Stars" and "American Pickers," averaging 4.1 million viewers during season two, according to Nielsen. It was also cable's No. 7 reality series last year among adults 25-54, averaging 2.1 million viewers.

The show films in a Louisiana swamp, where the residents, mostly alligator hunters, maintain the same way of life as their great-grandparents.  


A look at this week’s top TV draws

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9

Time

Network

Program

Description

8 p.m.

Fox

"American Idol" (R)

Another Hollywood round episode.

8 p.m.

NBC

"30 Rock" (C)

The first of back-to-back Valentine's Day-themed episodes.

8:30 p.m.

Showtime

"On the Shoulders of Giants" (N)

Documentary about an all-black basketball team in the 1940s.

9 p.m.

ABC

"Grey's Anatomy" (D)

Lexie and Mark both have to babysit on Valentine's Day.

9 p.m.

History

"Swamp People" (R)

Season premiere. First episode of the season promises plenty of alligators.

10 p.m.

MTV

"Jersey Shore" (R)

J-Woww has BF drama when Roger won't return her calls.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10

Time

Network

Program

Description

7 p.m.

USA

"NFL Characters Unite" (A)

Football personalities tell their tales of discrimination.

8 p.m.

ABC

"Shark Tank" (R)

Inventions include a towel used for changing bathing suits and a combination sweater-quilt.

8 p.m.

ESPN

"NBA Basketball" (S)

The Lakers take on the Knicks in New York.

9 p.m.

CBS

"CSI: NY" (D)

Two seemingly random deaths turn out to be related.

10 p.m.

Animal Planet

"Confessions: Animal Hoarding" (R)

A man secretly keeps way too many dogs in a junkyard.

10:30 p.m.

ESPN

"NBA Basketball" (S)

Western Conference matchup between the Thunder and Jazz.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11

Time

Network

Program

Description

1 p.m.

CBS

"College Basketball" (S)

Big East rivalry game between Connecticut and Syracuse.

2 p.m.

NBC

"Winter Dew Tour" (S)

The season-ending Toyota Championship featuring men's snowboarding.

3 p.m.

CBS

"PGA Golf" (S)

Tiger Woods should help boost ratings for the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

6 p.m.

ESPN

"College Basketball" (S)

Good Big Ten matchup between Michigan State and Ohio State.

8 p.m.

Fox

"America's Most Wanted" (N)

Special "Crimes of Passion" edition.

10:30 p.m.

DIY

"The Bronson Pinchot Project" (R)

Series premiere. Is that Balki? Yes, yes it is.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 12

Time

Network

Program

Description

3 p.m.

CBS

"PGA Golf" (S)

Final round from Pebble Beach, which of course will do well if Tiger's in contention.

3:30 p.m.

ABC

"NBA Basketball" (S)

Good Eastern Conference game between the Bulls and Celtics.

8 p.m.

CBS

"Grammy Awards" (A)

The 54th annual ceremony, hosted by LL Cool J.

9 p.m.

AMC

"The Walking Dead" (D)

The second half of season two has Rick trying to calm things down a bit.

10 p.m.

Discovery Channel

"The 9/11 Tapes: Chaos in the Sky" (N)

A new look at the Sept. 11 attacks.

10:30 p.m.

HBO

"Angry Boys" (C)

Season finale. Blake gives surfing another try.

A = awards show or special, C = comedy, D = drama, DD = daytime drama, G = game show, K = kids, M = movie, N = news/documentary, R = reality, S = sports, T = talk/variety show.


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Louisa Ada Seltzer is a staff writer for Media Life.




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