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As strike fades,
CBS reclaims lost turf


Network ties up with Fox in household ratings

Apr 16, 2008
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Fox pulled ahead in households during the writers’ strike, but with the strike over and scripted programming returning to the air, longtime leader CBS is reasserting its strength.

CBS won its second straight week among households despite Fox airing four hours of “American Idol” last week, double the amount it usually carries.

For the week ended April 13, CBS averaged a 6.6 household rating and 11 share, just ahead of Fox’s 6.1/10 and well ahead of ABC at 5.3/9 and NBC at 4.3/7.

CBS was the only network to see a ratings increase compared with the same week a year ago.

CBS is now tied with Fox for the season-to-date lead among households at 6.7/11, with ABC trailing at 5.9/10 and NBC fourth at 5.3/9.

Season to date, CBS is still down a hefty 17 percent from last year, but the comparison is slightly misleading. Last year the network carried the Super Bowl, which was on Fox this year.

CBS's revival is not all that surprising. More than any other network, CBS was decimated by the writers’ strike precisely because it had that many more strong scripted shows.

With the strike over, it means it has that many more solid shows returning to the air.

During last year’s February sweeps, for example, 56 percent of CBS’s schedule was first-run scripted series; during this year’s sweeps, that plummeted to 16 percent, according to a Magna Global analysis.

Last week, with nearly all of CBS’s series back in originals, the network had eight of the top 15 programs in households, including the NCAA championship last Monday. Of course some top shows have yet to come back from the strike, like ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” and Fox’s “House,” which means less competition for now.

But while ratings for some of those CBS programs were off from last fall, that merely continued a pattern of viewer erosion that’s been seen across every network.

Several returning hit shows have even posted series-low ratings, such as ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” and NBC’s “ER.” In this environment, it seems a bit unfair to single CBS out for its ratings, as recent articles in The New York Times and New York Post did in painting a picture of a company in trouble.

CBS still may finish second for the season among households behind Fox, unless “Idol’s” ratings start falling at a faster clip. That show hit season lows last week for its annual “Idol Gives Back” charity event.

***

Meanwhile, in broadcast ratings for the week ended April 13:
 
Among adults 18-49, Fox was first with a 3.8 rating and an 11 share, followed by CBS at 3.0/8, ABC at 2.4/7, NBC at 2.1/6, Univision at 1.5/4, CW at 0.8/2, Telemundo at 0.5/1, MyNetworkTV and TeleFutura at 0.4/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 18-34, Fox was first with a 3.1 rating and a 10 share, followed by CBS at 2.1/7, Univision at 1.8/5, ABC and NBC at 1.7/5, CW at 0.8/2, Telemundo and TeleFutura at 0.5/1, MyNetworkTV at 0.3/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 25-54, Fox was first with a 4.4 rating and an 11 share, followed by CBS at 3.7/9, ABC at 2.9/7, NBC at 2.5/6, Univision at 1.4/4, CW at 0.8/2, Telemundo at 0.5/1, MyNetworkTV and TeleFutura at 0.4/1, Ion at 0.2/0 and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (18-49s): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 9.2; 2. CBS’s “NCAA Basketball Championship” 7.3; 3. Fox’s “American Idol - Thursday” 7.0; 4. Fox’s “Idol Gives Back” 6.8; Tie-5. CBS’s “CSI” and ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 5.9.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (total viewers): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 24.67 million; 2. Fox’s “American Idol – Thursday” 20.13 million; 3. CBS’s “CSI” 20.09 million; 4. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 19.68 million; 5. CBS’s “NCAA Basketball Championship” 19.50 million.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (households, week ended March 30): Fox’s “American Idol – Wednesday” 15.8; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 14.7; 3. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 13.3; 4. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars Results” 11.3; 5. CBS’s “CSI: Miami” 11.0.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (18-49s, week ended March 30): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 10.4; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 10.2; 3. CBS’s “Two and a Half Men” 5.6; Tie-4. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” and CBS’s “CSI: Miami” 5.4.
 
Show on the rise: “Medium,” NBC, Monday 10 p.m. The supernatural drama posted a season-high 3.5 rating among viewers 18-49 last week, up 13 percent from a 3.1 the previous week.
 
Show on the decline: “Idol Gives Back,” Fox, Wednesday 7:30 p.m. The annual charity telecast posted a 6.8 among viewers 18-49, good for No. 4 for the week in the demo but off 33 percent from a 10.2 for last year’s edition.

WEEKLY PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 13

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

6.6

7420

11

3.6

10250

9

3.0

3890

8

FOX

6.1

6890

10

3.6

10270

9

3.8

4970

11

ABC

5.3

5960

9

2.8

8080

7

2.4

3140

7

NBC

4.3

4880

7

2.3

6640

6

2.1

2810

6

UNI

1.8

2030

3

1.2

3550

3

1.5

2020

4

CW

1.3

1510

2

0.7

2010

2

0.8

1020

2

MNT

0.7

820

1

0.4

1050

1

0.4

510

1

TEL

0.7

750

1

0.4

1190

1

0.5

670

1

TF

0.4

470

1

0.3

860

1

0.4

550

1

ION

0.4

400

1

0.2

550

1

0.1

140

0

AZA

0.1

90

0

0.1

150

0

0.1

100

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research 

 

SEASON-TO-DATE PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 13

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

FOX

6.7

7550

11

4.0

11370

10

4.3

5640

11

CBS

6.7

7540

11

3.7

10500

9

3.0

3940

8

ABC

5.9

6680

10

3.2

9180

8

3.0

3950

8

NBC

5.3

6000

9

2.9

8360

7

2.9

3840

8

UNI

1.8

2040

3

1.2

3540

3

1.5

1990

4

CW

1.7

1880

3

0.9

2570

2

1.0

1360

3

MNT

0.8

860

1

0.4

1130

1

0.4

550

1

TEL

0.6

650

1

0.4

1050

1

0.4

580

1

ION

0.4

420

1

0.2

550

0

0.1

160

0

TF

0.4

400

1

0.2

670

1

0.3

430

1

AZA

0.1

100

0

0.1

150

0

0.1

100

0

* Each rating point is equivalent to 1. 114 million homes
Source: Nielsen Media Research 

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 13

#

PROGRAMS

Net

HOUSEHOLDS

PERSONS 2+

Rtg%

Shr

(000)

#

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

14.2

22

15966

1

8.6

24668

2

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

12.8

20

14385

4

6.9

19684

3

CSI

CBS

12.5

19

14137

2

7.0

20094

4

CBS NCAA BSKBL CHAMPSHIPS(S)

CBS

12.1

20

13692

5

6.8

19501

5

AMER IDL THU RSLT SP-4/10(S)

FOX

12.0

19

13536

2

7.0

20133

6

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

11.1

17

12502

7

5.9

17017

7

IDOL GIVES BACK 2-SP 8P(S)

FOX

10.4

16

11683

6

6.2

17751

8

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

10.3

15

11565

8

5.7

16371

9

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

9.7

16

10940

9

5.1

14493

10

NCIS

CBS

8.8

14

9964

10

4.9

14048

11

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

8.4

13

9498

11

4.7

13325

12

60 MINUTES

CBS

8.1

13

9100

12

4.3

12168

13

CSI: NY

CBS

8.0

13

9036

12

4.3

12383

14

PRELUDE TO A CHAMPIONSHIP(S)

CBS

7.9

12

8890

14

4.2

12037

15

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

7.3

11

8204

19

3.6

10421

16

MEDIUM

NBC

7.0

11

7940

17

3.8

10858

17

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

6.8

11

7677

15

4.0

11587

18

DON'T FORGET THE LYRICS

FOX

6.6

10

7494

17

3.8

10895

19

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

6.5

10

7346

16

3.9

11208

20

BOSTON LEGAL

ABC

6.4

11

7203

22

3.3

9585

21

COLD CASE

CBS

6.2

10

7037

22

3.3

9434

21

DEAL OR NO DEAL-MON

NBC

6.2

9

7040

19

3.6

10223

21

NUMB3RS

CBS

6.2

11

6973

22

3.3

9536

24

DEAL OR NO DEAL-WED

NBC

6.1

10

6879

21

3.4

9763

25

ELI STONE SP-4/13(S)

ABC

5.9

10

6676

26

3.1

8810

Source: Nielsen Media Research

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Adults 18-49
Week Ending April 13

Rank

Program

Net

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

9.2

12008

2

CBS NCAA BSKBL CHAMPSHIPS(S)

CBS

7.3

9520

3

AMER IDL THU RSLT SP-4/10(S)

FOX

7.0

9132

4

IDOL GIVES BACK 2-SP 8P(S)

FOX

6.8

8861

5

CSI

CBS

5.9

7726

5

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

5.9

7668

7

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

5.3

6897

8

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

4.9

6398

8

OFFICE

NBC

4.9

6421

10

PRELUDE TO A CHAMPIONSHIP(S)

CBS

4.2

5484

11

DON'T FORGET THE LYRICS

FOX

4.0

5197

12

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

3.9

5114

13

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

3.8

4971

14

BIGGEST LOSER 5

NBC

3.7

4853

15

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

3.6

4766

16

MEDIUM

NBC

3.5

4583

17

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

3.4

4495

17

SCRUBS

NBC

3.4

4512

19

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

3.3

4329

19

SIMPSONS

FOX

3.3

4342

21

CSI: NY

CBS

3.2

4153

22

E.R.

NBC

3.1

4041

22

MY NAME IS EARL

NBC

3.1

4022

22

TWO AND A HALF MEN 830-SP(S)

CBS

3.1

4043

25

FAMILY GUY

FOX

3.0

3972

25

NCIS

CBS

3.0

3881

Source: Nielsen Media Research

  

SPANISH-LANGUAGE TELEVISION (WEEKLY COLLAPSED)
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 13

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+ (000)

1

AL DIABLO CON GUAPOS M-F

UNI

21.9

4996

2

PASION M-F

UNI

19.8

4420

3

NUESTRA BELLEZA FRI

UNI

16.8

3362

4

CRISTINA MON

UNI

16.7

3118

5

DON FRANCISCO PRESENTA WE

UNI

15.9

3004

6

AQUI Y AHORA TUE

UNI

15.6

3000

7

YO AMO JUAN QUERENDON M-F

UNI

14.5

2897

8

AMAS CASA DESESPERADS THU

UNI

12.4

2515

9

SABADO GIGANTE SAT

UNI

11.7

2151

10

FUTBOL LIGA MEXICAN SUN

TF

11.3

2959

11

FAMILIA P. LUCHE SUN

UNI

10.2

1943

12

NOCHE DE ESTRELLAS SUN

UNI

9.9

1991

13

PREMIOS BILLBOARD 4/10(S)-04/10/2008

TEL

9.6

2001

14

PANTERA SUN

UNI

9.1

1859

15

HORA PICO SUN

UNI

8.5

1604

16

VICTORIA M-F

TEL

7.7

1350

17

FAMILIA DE DIEZ SAT

UNI

6.9

1130

18

CHAVO ANIMADO SAT

UNI

6.8

1258

19

PECADOS AJENOS M-F

TEL

5.6

1046

19

ALFOMBRA BILLBOARD 4/10(S)-04/10/2008

TEL

5.6

1020

21

VIDEOS ASOMBROSOS MDO SUN

TF

5.5

1419

21

CINE MILLONARIO

TEL

5.5

1236

23

CINE NUESTRO SUN

TEL

4.5

1100

24

TRAICION M-F

TEL

4.3

691

25

CINE DE IMPACTO

TEL

4.0

851

* Nielsen Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 11.63 million Hispanic TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

HISPANIC ENGLISH-LANGUAGE VIEWING
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 13

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+(000)

1

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

6.0

952

2

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

5.3

975

3

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

4.7

828

4

CBS NCAA BSKBL CHAMPSHIPS(S)-04/07/2008

CBS

4.6

713

5

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

4.4

849

6

FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN

CW

4.3

855

7

AMER IDL THU RSLT SP-4/10(S)-04/10/2008

FOX

4.1

711

8

IDOL GIVES BACK 2-SP 8P(S)-04/09/2008

FOX

4.0

750

9

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

3.8

582

9

CSI

CBS

3.8

649

* Nielsen Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 11.63 million Hispanic TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

AFRICAN AMERICAN AUDIENCE ESTIMATES
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 6

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Rtg

P2+(000)

1

CBS NCAA BSKBL CHAMP SA-2

CBS

11.8

2218

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

11.5

2166

3

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

11.2

2270

4

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

10.9

2010

5

CBS NCAA BSKBL-BRIDGE

CBS

10.6

1997

6

CSI: MIAMI - TUESDAY SP

CBS

9.9

1917

7

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

9.6

1799

8

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

9.3

1643

9

CSI

CBS

8.9

1608

10

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

8.4

1441

* Ratings based on 13.45 million African American TV homes.
Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

TOP 30 NETWORK SPORTS PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending April 6

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Episode

Households

Persons 2+

US Rtg%

Shr

(000)

(000)

1

CBS NCAA BSKBL CHAMP SA-2(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

KANSAS VS UNC

8.8

16

9979

14435

2

CBS NCAA BSKBL CHAMP-SA-1(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

UCLA VS MEMPHIS

7.2

16

8171

11770

3

CBS NCAA BSKBL-BRIDGE(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

 

6.8

13

7651

11265

4

CBS NCAA BSKBL POST(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

 

5.5

10

6218

8295

5

FOX NASCAR SPRINT CUP

FOX

LIVE FROM TEXAS

5.4

12

6121

8612

6

FOX NASCAR SPRINT PRE

FOX

 

3.1

8

3519

4827

7

FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN

CW

 

2.7

5

2993

4722

8

NBA ON ABC-SUN 2

ABC

DALLAS AT PHOENIX

2.2

5

2461

3110

9

FOX SATURDAY BASEBALL

FOX

VARIOUS TEAMS AND TIMES

2.2

5

2481

3233

10

SANTA ANITA DERBY(S)-04/05/2008

NBC

 

1.5

4

1723

2037

11

HOUSTON OPEN GOLF-SUN(S)-04/06/2008

NBC

 

1.5

3

1718

2136

12

NBA ON ABC-SUN 1

ABC

GOLDEN STATE AT NEW ORLEANS

1.4

4

1562

2018

13

FINAL FOUR SHOW(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

 

1.3

3

1500

1910

14

HOUSTON OPEN GOLF-SAT(S)-04/05/2008

NBC

 

1.1

3

1258

1456

15

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR-SA

CBS

SONY OPEN TENNIS: WMN FINAL

0.9

3

1035

1250

16

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULR SU(S)-04/06/2008

CBS

CLLG BSKBL: TEN GREAT DUNKERS

0.9

2

978

1255

17

GMC NBA COUNTDOWN-SUN

ABC

 

0.8

2

885

1075

18

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR-SU

CBS

SONY OPEN TENNIS: MEN FINAL

0.8

2

898

1238

19

NABISCO CHAMP-LPGA GOLF(S)-04/06/2008

CBS

 

0.8

2

935

1160

20

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULR SA(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

COAST-COAST: CLG BSK YR-REVIEW

0.7

2

800

958

21

CBS SPORTS SPECTACULR-SA2(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

COACHES' ALL-AMERICA TEAM SPCL

0.7

2

829

974

22

ROAD TO FINAL FOUR SPCL(S)-04/05/2008

CBS

OUTSIDE THE GAMES

0.7

2

812

953

23

NBA ACCESS W/AHMAD RASHAD

ABC

 

0.6

2

642

697

24

GRAND PRIX-ST. PETERSBURG(S)-04/05/2008

ABC

 

0.6

2

644

807

25

THIS WEEK IN BASEBALL

FOX

 

0.6

2

632

715

26

POKER AFTER DARK MO-SAT

NBC

 

0.6

3

724

759

27

NBC NHL

NBC

CHICAGO AT DETROIT

0.6

2

688

810

28

D. VITALE'S ALL AMER SP(S)-04/05/2008

ABC

 

0.5

1

573

678

29

FUTBOL LIGA MEX SAT

TF

ATLANTE VS GUADALAJARA

0.5

1

521

846

30

FUTBOL LIGA MEXICAN SUN

TF

AMERICA VS PACHUCA

0.5

1

586

947

Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

***
 
 
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Toni Fitzgerald is a staff writer for Media Life.




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