A TV summer
when comfort ruled
Viewers chose the familiar, and ratings reflected that
By Toni Fitzgerald
Sep 8, 2010
Judging by the list of TV winners and losers this summer, the country is still in the mood to be comforted.
The summer's big winners shared the theme of familiarity. From the top new shows on broadcast and cable to aging shows that saw ratings resurgences, everything that was old was new again on television.
On the flip side, shows that tried to break new ground or pull viewers out of their comfort zones didn't do nearly as well, and it's probably not a big reach to tie these trends to the recession.
With the uncertainty of the economy hanging over them in their real lives, viewers like the comfort of escaping into something they already know and understand rather than investing time in something unfamiliar that could be a disappointment.
Here's a look at this summer's broadcast and cable TV winners and losers:
Winners
Aging reality shows on broadcast: "The Bachelorette," "Hell's Kitchen" and "Big Brother 12" all had strong seasons, with "Bachelorette" and "Brother" hitting their highest ratings in years. It continues a trend of strong reality show results during the regular season for familiar shows like "The Bachelor" and "Dancing With the Stars."
"Jersey Shore" and "Real Housewives of New Jersey:" Both shows hit series highs in recent weeks, proving once again that cattiness, backstabbing and jealous rages never go out of style on reality TV.
"True Blood:" People love vampires. If "Blood" is exhibit A, then "Twilight" and "The Vampire Diaries" are exhibits B and C.
"Rizzoli & Isles:" Who says procedurals are over and done with? By putting a slightly different spin on a tired genre, in pairing a woman detective and a woman medical examiner, TNT got the biggest new hit of the summer.
Preseason NFL football: Ratings hit their highest levels in years, suggesting it will be another huge year for pigskin.
Fox's "MasterChef:" Yet another cooking show with Gordon Ramsey was the summer's top new broadcast show.
Univision's "Soy Tu Duena:" Univision's top telenovela helped the network to second place in adults 18-34 this summer.
USA: With 17 straight quarterly wins in primetime to its credit, it added another hit show about odd characters, "Covert Affairs," while hits like "Royal Pains," "White Collar" and "Burn Notice" kept humming along.
Disney Channel's "Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam:" A sequel to the 2008 film "Camp Rock," "Jam" became the most-watched movie on cable this year with 8 million viewers.
Nick Cannon: The "America's Got Talent" host presides over the summer's most-watched show and his wife, Mariah Carey, is rumored to be pregnant.
Losers
Scripted series on broadcast: From "The Gates" to "The Bridge" to "The Good Guys," they still aren't working. Maybe viewers couldn't tell them apart because of those similar "The" titles.
ABC's "Downfall:" Note to broadcast programmers: Watching cash and prizes crash sadly to the grown via a conveyer belt is not good entertainment during a recession.
CW's "18 To Life:" Apparently Canadian drama translates well to U.S. audiences (see "Flashpoint" and "Rookie Blue"). Comedy, not so much.
Beauty pageants: Months after TLC evicted the Miss America pageant, Miss Universe hit an all-time low on NBC.
CNN: August was its least-watched month since May 2000 in primetime, with soon-to-exit "Larry King Live" off 50 percent from last year.
Viewer IQs: Sensational reality shows "Jersey Shore," "RHONJ" and "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" all drew more viewers than three-time Emmy best drama winner "Mad Men."
"American Idol" judge wannabes: We're at summer's end and the three empty seats still aren't filled.
|
|
|
