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Bet on it: Fox wins
season by a length


With a 4.2 in adults 18-49. ABC and CBS will tie.

May 14, 2008
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“American Idol” has finally slipped and several of Fox’s new shows have already been chopped.

But Fox will easily win its fourth straight year among adults 18-49 when the regular season ends next week, as the only network to see year-to-year gains in this strike-ravaged season.

In fact, it will finish with its largest margin of victory ever.

Season to date through Sunday, the week ended May 11, Fox is averaging a 4.2 adults 18-49 rating and 11 share, up 5 percent from a 4.0/11 at this point last season. Even discounting the network’s record-setting Super Bowl in February, Fox is even to last year in the demographic. All the others are down.

ABC and CBS will tie for second for the season.

ABC is off 14 percent, to a 3.0/8 from a 3.5/9. CBS, also at 3.0/8, is down 19 percent from a 3.7/10, in part because it had the Super Bowl last season.

NBC will finish fourth for the fourth straight year, averaging a 2.8/8, down 10 percent from a 3.1/9 last season.

The CW will be fifth at 1.0/3, off 23 percent from a 1.3/3 in 18-49s last year. In the CW’s target adults 18-34, it’s down 27 percent, from to a 1.1/3 from a 1.5/4.

Fox’s margin of victory, 1.2, is four times its advantage over second-place CBS last year, and it’s the biggest gap between any first- and second-place network since NBC’s Olympic-fueled 2001-’02 win, when it averaged a 5.4 to second-place CBS’s 3.9.

The simple reason, of course, is the strike. Fox held up better than any other network during the season’s most defining months, January through March, when the lack of fresh shows really took its toll.

The network has won 18 straight weeks in 18-49s, largely due to the strength of “Idol.” Even a diluted “Idol,” which is down double-digit percentages from last season across every major demographic, is well ahead of the rest of the networks, especially their low-rated unscripted strike fodder and repeats.

“Idol” consistently bested the combined ratings of the other Big Five networks in its Tuesday and Wednesday timeslots.

The network also had the most successful unscripted shows of the strike. “The Moment of Truth” is the top-rated new show of the season on any network, averaging a 6.2 rating and ranking seventh overall.

And the network’s Thursday combination of “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” and “Don’t Forget the Lyrics” actually propelled Fox to its first non-“Idol” regular-season Thursday victory in 15 years.

That helped the network overcome a few scripted misfires, like the already canceled “Canterbury’s Law” and “The Return of Jezebel James.”

Meanwhile, the other broadcast networks had even more strike stinkers, like ABC’s “Cashmere Mafia” and “Dance Wars: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann,” NBC’s “My Dad is Better Than Your Dad” and “Psych,” and CBS’s “Big Brother” and “Welcome to the Captain.”

***

Meanwhile, in broadcast ratings for the week ended May 11:
 
Among adults 18-49, Fox was first with a 3.3 rating and a 10 share, followed by ABC at 3.0/9, CBS at 2.9/8, NBC at 1.9/5, Univision at 1.6/4, CW at 1.0/3, MyNetworkTV and Telemundo at 0.4/1, TeleFutura at 0.3/1 and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 18-34, Fox was first with a 2.7 rating and a 9 share, followed by ABC at 2.3/7, Univision and CBS at 1.8/6, NBC at 1.4/5, CW at 1.1/3, Telemundo, MyNetworkTV and TeleFutura at 0.4/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Among adults 25-54, Fox and CBS tied for first, each with a 3.8 rating and a 10 share, followed by ABC at 3.5/9, NBC at 2.2/6, Univision at 1.5/4, CW at 1.0/3, MyNetworkTV at 0.5/1, Telemundo at 0.4/1, TeleFutura at 0.3/1, and Ion and Azteca at 0.1/0.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (18-49s): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 8.4; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 8.2; 3. ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” 6.4; 4. ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 5.6; 5. Fox’s “Hell’s Kitchen” 5.2.
 
Top five English-language Big Five shows (total viewers): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 22.87 million; 2. Fox’s “American Idol – Tuesday” 21.76 million; 3. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars Results” 18.38 million; 4. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 18.11 million; 5. CBS’s “CSI” 18.07 million.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (households, week ended April 27): Fox’s “American Idol – Tuesday” 14.8; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 14.2; 3. ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” 12.1; 4. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” 12.0; 5. ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars Results” 11.8.
 
Top five Live+7 English-language Big Five shows (18-49s, week ended April 27): 1. Fox’s “American Idol - Tuesday” 9.6; 2. Fox’s “American Idol - Wednesday” 9.1; 3. ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” 7.7; 4. ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” 6.5; 5. ABC’s “Lost” 6.3.
 
Show on the rise: “Without a Trace,” CBS, Thursday 10 p.m. The crime procedural jumped 15 percent week-to-week among viewers 18-49, from a 3.3 rating to a 3.8.
 
Show on the decline: “Deal or No Deal,” NBC, Monday 8 p.m. Has “Deal” finally hit the “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” wall? Last Monday’s episode posted a 2.3 rating among 18-49s, down 20 percent from the previous week’s 2.9.

WEEKLY PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 11

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

6.7

7590

11

3.7

10640

10

2.9

3830

8

ABC

6.2

7030

11

3.3

9530

9

3.0

3870

9

FOX

5.5

6160

9

3.1

8930

8

3.3

4310

10

NBC

4.0

4510

7

2.1

6000

6

1.9

2430

5

UNI

1.8

2090

3

1.2

3560

3

1.6

2040

4

CW

1.7

1880

3

0.9

2560

2

1.0

1360

3

MNT

0.8

880

1

0.4

1180

1

0.4

580

1

TEL

0.6

630

1

0.3

950

1

0.4

520

1

TF

0.3

390

1

0.2

640

1

0.3

420

1

ION

0.3

320

0

0.1

410

0

0.1

130

0

AZA

0.1

90

0

0.0

130

0

0.1

90

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 May 11

Network

Households

People 2+

Adults 18-49

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

Rtg%

(000)

Shr

CBS

6.7

7510

11

3.7

10460

9

3.0

3910

8

FOX

6.6

7420

11

3.9

11140

10

4.2

5520

11

ABC

5.9

6700

10

3.2

9190

8

3.0

3930

8

NBC

5.2

5900

9

2.9

8190

7

2.8

3720

8

UNI

1.8

2050

3

1.2

3550

3

1.5

2000

4

CW

1.7

1890

3

0.9

2590

2

1.0

1370

3

MNT

0.8

860

1

0.4

1130

1

0.4

550

1

TEL

0.6

660

1

0.4

1050

1

0.4

580

1

ION

0.4

410

1

0.2

530

0

0.1

160

0

TF

0.4

390

1

0.2

660

1

0.3

420

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 May 11

#

PROGRAMS

Net

HOUSEHOLDS

PERSONS 2+

Rtg%

Shr

(000)

#

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

13.9

21

15709

1

8.0

22867

2

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

12.6

20

14231

2

7.6

21755

3

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

12.0

18

13575

3

6.4

18379

4

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

11.7

18

13230

4

6.3

18105

5

CSI

CBS

11.4

18

12808

4

6.3

18071

6

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

10.5

16

11890

6

5.6

16027

7

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

9.8

16

11005

8

5.1

14666

8

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

9.7

15

10987

7

5.4

15427

9

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

9.5

16

10684

9

4.9

14109

10

NCIS

CBS

8.9

14

10005

9

4.9

14042

11

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

8.5

13

9609

11

4.8

13610

12

CSI: NY

CBS

8.3

14

9372

15

4.4

12732

12

HOUSE-MON 9P

FOX

8.3

12

9355

12

4.7

13484

14

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

8.2

13

9283

13

4.5

12881

15

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

7.5

13

8516

15

4.4

12624

16

BROTHERS & SISTERS

ABC

7.2

12

8116

20

3.7

10693

16

DANCING W/STARS SP-5/6(S)

ABC

7.2

11

8123

20

3.7

10579

16

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA FINAL(S)

CBS

7.2

12

8107

13

4.5

12978

19

60 MINUTES

CBS

7.0

14

7871

23

3.6

10389

19

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

7.0

12

7931

20

3.7

10526

21

EXTREME MAKEOVER:HOME ED.

ABC

6.8

12

7659

17

4.2

11975

22

SAMANTHA WHO?

ABC

6.7

10

7612

26

3.5

9890

23

LOST

ABC

6.6

11

7453

18

3.8

10782

23

SHARK

CBS

6.6

10

7412

26

3.5

10051

25

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

6.5

10

7281

18

3.8

11004

25

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CBS

6.5

10

7339

23

3.6

10389

Source: Nielsen Media Research

TOP 25 PROGRAMS – BROADCAST
Adults 18-49
Week Ending May 11

Rank

Program

Net

Rtg%

(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

8.4

10981

2

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

8.2

10746

3

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

6.4

8338

4

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

5.6

7317

5

HELL'S KITCHEN

FOX

5.2

6755

6

HOUSE-MON 9P

FOX

5.1

6675

7

CSI

CBS

5.0

6544

8

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

4.9

6380

9

LOST

ABC

4.7

6129

10

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

4.4

5830

10

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA FINAL(S)

CBS

4.4

5788

12

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

4.3

5617

13

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA

CBS

4.1

5403

14

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

4.0

5288

14

EXTREME MAKEOVER:HOME ED.

ABC

4.0

5263

16

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

CBS

3.9

5054

17

BROTHERS & SISTERS

ABC

3.8

5028

17

SURVIVOR: MICRONESIA RNION(S)

CBS

3.8

5045

17

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

3.8

4999

20

HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER

CBS

3.6

4667

20

LAW AND ORDER:SVU

NBC

3.6

4672

20

OFFICE

NBC

3.6

4710

23

CSI: NY

CBS

3.3

4354

24

MEDIUM

NBC

3.2

4226

25

CRIMINAL MINDS

CBS

3.1

4046

Source: Nielsen Media Research

  

SPANISH-LANGUAGE TELEVISION (WEEKLY COLLAPSED)
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 11

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+ (000)

1

FUEGO EN LA SANGRE M-F

UNI

21.1

4616

2

AL DIABLO CON GUAPOS M-F

UNI

20.6

4393

3

CRISTINA MON

UNI

18.3

3442

4

DON FRANCISCO PRESENTA WE

UNI

17.2

3284

5

NUESTRA BELLEZA FRI

UNI

16.7

3278

6

AQUI Y AHORA TUE

UNI

16.0

3152

7

J. GABRIEL TRYCTRIA 5/11(S)-05/11/2008

UNI

13.6

2708

8

AMAS CASA DESESPERADS THU

UNI

12.9

2661

9

YO AMO JUAN QUERENDON M-F

UNI

12.8

2465

10

INDIA MARIA:AMOR INCL5/11(S)-05/11/2008

UNI

11.9

2372

11

SABADO GIGANTE SAT

UNI

11.6

2202

12

HISTORIAS PARA CONTAR5/11(S)-05/11/2008

UNI

10.0

2045

13

FAMILIA P. LUCHE SUN

UNI

9.5

2097

14

HORA PICO SUN

UNI

8.7

1684

15

VICTORIA M-F

TEL

7.0

1192

16

MAS ALLA P TV Y NOV 5/10(S)-05/10/2008

UNI

6.0

1077

17

PECADOS AJENOS M-F

TEL

5.5

986

18

TRAICION M-F

TEL

4.4

732

19

INDIANA JONES III 5/10(S)-05/10/2008

TEL

4.1

977

20

VIDEOS ASOMBROSOS MDO THR

TF

4.0

773

21

12 CORAZONES M-F

TEL

3.9

771

21

CINE MILLONARIO

TEL

3.9

901

23

VIDEOS ASOMBROSOS MDO MN

TF

3.4

711

23

CINE DE LAS ESTRELLAS M-THU

TF

3.4

678

25

VIDEOS ASOMBROSOS MDO TU

TF

3.3

643

* 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 May 11

#

PROGRAMS

Net

NHTI

P2+(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

5.9

1057

2

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

5.0

939

3

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES

ABC

4.9

828

4

FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN

CW

4.7

1037

4

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

4.7

768

6

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

4.5

871

6

FAMILY GUY

FOX

4.5

793

8

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

4.3

705

9

AMERICAN DAD

FOX

4.2

783

10

BROTHERS & SISTERS

ABC

3.8

624

10

TWO AND A HALF MEN

CBS

3.8

572

* 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 May 11

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Rtg

P2+(000)

1

AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY

FOX

11.5

2108

2

AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY

FOX

11.0

2106

3

DANCING WITH THE STARS

ABC

10.5

1884

4

CSI: MIAMI

CBS

10.0

1662

5

WITHOUT A TRACE

CBS

9.8

1647

6

DANCING W/STARS RESULTS

ABC

9.4

1633

7

NBA PLAYOFFS ON ABC-SAT 2

ABC

8.8

1570

8

GREY'S ANATOMY-THU 9PM

ABC

8.5

1492

9

CSI

CBS

8.1

1407

10

CSI: NY

CBS

8.0

1378

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

 

TOP 30 NETWORK SPORTS PROGRAMS
Ranked on Households
Week Ending May 4

#

PROGRAMS

Net

Episode

Households

Persons 2+

US Rtg%

Shr

(000)

(000)

1

KENTUCKY DERBY(S)-05/03/2008

NBC

 

8.8

21

9957

14203

2

KENTUCKY DERBY PRE(S)-05/03/2008

NBC

 

5.3

13

5979

8023

3

FOX NASCAR SPRINT CUP (S)(S)-05/03/2008

FOX

LIVE FROM RICHMOND

4.5

9

5038

7273

4

NBA PLAYOFFS ON ABC-SU 3(S)-05/04/2008

ABC

UTAH AT LA LAKERS

4.1

10

4660

5890

5

NBA PLAYOFFS ON ABC-SUN 1

ABC

ATLANTA AT BOSTON

3.5

10

3919

4795

6

FOX NASCAR SPRINT (S)-PRE(S)-05/03/2008

FOX

 

3.3

7

3718

5206

7

FRIDAY NIGHT SMACKDOWN

CW

 

2.2

4

2482

3762

8

FOX SATURDAY BASEBALL

FOX

VARIOUS TEAMS AND TIMES

2.0

5

2289

2924

9

FOX NASCAR SPRINT-PRE5/03(S)-05/03/2008

FOX

 

2.0

5

2294

3238

10

WACHOVIA CHAMPIONSHIP-SU(S)-05/04/2008

CBS

 

1.6

4

1819

2244

11

NBC NHL PLAYOFFS-SUN

NBC

NY RANGERS AT PITTSBURGH

1.3

3

1488

2333

12

GMC NBA-SUN 1 PLAYOFFS

ABC

 

1.2

4

1336

1596

13

WACHOVIA CHAMPIONSHIP-SA(S)-05/03/2008

CBS

 

1.1

3

1282

1521

14

NBC POKER SERIES

NBC

 

1.0

3

1107

1435

15

CBS SPORTS-SPECTACULR-SU2(S)-05/04/2008

CBS

RULES OF THE GAME

0.7

2

760

913

16

POKER AFTER DARK MO-SAT

NBC

 

0.7

4

795

877

17

NBC SPORTS SPECIAL 5/4(S)-05/04/2008

NBC

EQUESTRIAN

0.7

2

813

986

18

NBA ACCESS W/AHMAD RASHAD

ABC

 

0.6

2

682

743

19

CBS SPORTS SPECTACLR SU

CBS

AMA SUPERCROSS: YEAR-REVIEW

0.6

2

701

918

20

THIS WEEK IN BASEBALL

FOX

 

0.6

2

675

766

21

PGA TOUR 2008-SA(S)-05/03/2008

CBS

THE BEST SHOT IN GOLF

0.5

1

550

642

22

PGA OF AMERICA SPECIAL(S)-05/04/2008

CBS

PGA TEE TIME 2008

0.5

1

528

721

23

STRIKE FORCE SATURDY NITE

NBC

 

0.5

3

537

602

24

REPUBLICA DEPORTIVA SUN

UNI

 

0.5

2

605

919

25

FUTBOL LIGA MEXICANA SUN

UNI

UNAM VS PACHUCA

0.5

1

560

956

26

CBS SPORTS SPECIAL(S)-05/03/2008

CBS

CHAMPS-NCAA: WINTER SEASON

0.4

1

433

555

27

FLM SAT 1

AZA

JAGUARES VS GUADALAJARA

0.3

1

368

609

28

NBC SPORTS SPECIAL 5/3A(S)-05/03/2008

NBC

WORLD ADVENTURE

0.3

1

309

363

29

NBC SPORTS SPECIAL 5/3B(S)-05/03/2008

NBC

WORLD ADVENTURE

0.3

1

383

428

30

SOLO BOXEO TECATE FRI

TF

ESCOBEDO/ARRIETA-RESTO/ALATORE

0.3

0

297

486

Source: Nielsen Media Research

 

***
 
 
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