From Vegas, the music of Latinos

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TV This Week
From Vegas, the music of Latinos
By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Nov 5, 2009 - 1:00:08 AM

It’s not unusual for Univision to rank second or even first in its timeslot among adults 18-34 during nights where the Big Five broadcast networks struggle, like Fridays.

But tonight, on the most competitive night of the week, Univision could well outdraw the competition in any number of demos with the 10th annual Latin Grammy Awards, which air live from Las Vegas starting at 8 p.m.

The awards have long showcased the top musical acts from Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries, with alternative acts from those countries becoming less and less visible as the Latin Grammy audience increased. Tonight there will be some big names from the U.S. as well.

Alicia Keys will perform, while actress Eva Longoria Parker will present an award. It’s just part of the effort by Univision to draw in a younger, more diverse crowd, four years after it inherited the telecast from CBS.

Last year’s show averaged a strong 5.7 million total viewers, but more importantly, it finished as the No. 1 show in several top markets among adults 18-34, 18-49 and teens.

As Univision increasingly positions itself as a competitor to the Big Five networks, as opposed to a competitor of Telemundo, which it has long dominated, events like the Latin Grammys are important because they prove Univision can draw comparable audiences to English-speaking networks.

Already this season Univision is well ahead of the CW across a number of demos, making an argument that the Big Five should really be ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and Univision.

A look at this week’s top TV draws
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	CW	“Vampire Diaries” (D)	Stefan gets a visit from an old friend, who provides some info about him to Elena.
8 p.m.	TNT	“NBA Basketball” (S)	The Bulls take on the Cavs in Cleveland.
8 p.m.	Univision	“Latin Grammy Awards 2009” (A)	Eugenio Derbez and Lucero host the 10th annual event.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Grey’s Anatomy” (D)	The rich parents of a young patient plan to donate $25 million to the hospital.
9 p.m.	NBC	“The Office” (C)	Jim and Pam finally agree to double date with Michael and Helene.
9 p.m.	CBS	“CSI” (D)	Two separate crimes turn out to be somehow connected.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 6
Time	Network	Program	Description
8 p.m.	CBS	“Ghost Whisperer” (D)	Jim thinks a co-worker might be involved in a student’s disappearance.
8 p.m.	NBC	“Law & Order” (D)	The detectives find cases full of drugs and money at a murder scene.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Ugly Betty” (D)	Daniel makes Natalie his assistant, and it doesn’t sit well with Betty.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Medium” (D)	Allison rents an SUV that has a strange satellite radio.
9 p.m.	Syfy	“Stargate Universe” (D)	A high-risk plan could yield high rewards.
10 p.m.	USA	“White Collar” (D)	A mob man turns to the FBI to find a stolen Bible.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 7
Time	Network	Program	Description
3:30 p.m.	CBS	“College Football” (S)	Huge SEC game between Alabama and LSU.
3:30 p.m.	ABC	“College Football” (S)	Big Ten game between Ohio State and Penn State.
8 p.m.	Fox	“Cops” (R)	Cops in Vegas try to chase down a suspected bank robber.
8 p.m.	Lifetime Movie Network	“Too Late to Say Goodbye” (M)	Rob Lowe and Lauren Holly star in a movie version of the Ann Rule book.
9 p.m.	CBS	“Strikeforce” (S)	MMA returns to CBS with a match between Brett Rogers and Fedor Emelianenko.
11:30 p.m.	NBC	“Saturday Night Live” (C)	Taylor Swift hosts and performs.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8
Time	Network	Program	Description
3:15 p.m.	ABC	“NASCAR Racing” (S)	A Sprint Cup race from Fort Worth, Texas.
8:15 p.m.	NBC	“NFL Football” (S)	NFC East rivalry game between Dallas and Philadelphia.
8:30 p.m.	Fox	“Family Guy Presents: Seth & Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show” (C)	The special formerly sponsored by Microsoft.
9 p.m.	ABC	“Desperate Housewives” (D)	Angie invites Bree and Orson to dinner, but they’re hesitant.
9 p.m.	HBO	“Curb Your Enthusiasm” (C)	Cheryl competes for a role on the “Seinfeld” reunion.
9:30 p.m.	Fox	“The Cleveland Show” (C)	Cleveland Jr. takes a purity pledge.
10 p.m.	AMC	“Mad Men” (D)	Pete sits down with some very important clients.
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.