The result was the expected series-low finale for the aging singing show, which plunged from last year’s ender, though it did finish second for the night overall and improved on last week’s rating.

“Idol” averaged a 3.7 adults 18-49 rating from 8 to 10 p.m., according to Nielsen overnights, down 42 percent from a 6.4 for last year’s 11^th-season ender.

It also became the first finale in “Idol’s” 12 seasons to draw fewer than 20 million total viewers, finishing with 13.6 million.

Note that the finale did run until 10:08 p.m. As Nielsen fast national data includes only timeslot data, and not actual program data, the final 8 minutes of last night’s show are not included in “Idol’s” average, and so its rating should go up when final numbers come out later today.

“Idol” peaked with a 4.1 in its final half-hour at 9:30.

The show was up 28 percent from last week and was the night’s No. 2 show, behind CBS’s “The Big Bang Theory,” which also aired its finale and became the first competing show ever to finish ahead of an “Idol” finale.

“Bang” averaged a 4.4 at 8 p.m., flat to last year’s finale though also a season low for the show, undoubtedly reflecting the stronger competition from “Idol.”

The series finale of “The Office” on NBC at 9 p.m. averaged a season-high 2.9. The show ran until 10:15 p.m., and like “Idol” its final 15 minutes are not included in its rating. That will go up when final numbers come out.

It was the top-rated episode of “Office” since January of last year.

ABC’s “Scandal” stayed hot, matching last week’s series high with another 3.2 at 10 p.m. to finish as the hour’s top show. It also outrated lead-in “Grey’s Anatomy” for the second straight week, with the latter drawing a 3.0 for its finale.

Fox was first for the night among 18-49s with a 3.4 average overnight rating and an 11 share. CBS was second at 2.6/8, ABC third at 2.4/7, NBC fourth at 2.2/6, Univision fifth at 1.5/4, CW sixth at 0.8/2 and Telemundo seventh at 0.7/2.

As a reminder, all ratings are based on live-plus-same-day DVR playback, which includes shows replayed before 3 a.m. the night before. Seven-day DVR data won’t be available for several weeks. Forty-eight percent of Nielsen households have DVRs.

CBS started the night in the lead with a 3.8 at 8 p.m. for the “Bang” finale (4.4) followed by a repeat of the show (3.2). Fox took second with a 3.0 for the first hour of “Idol.” NBC was third with a 2.0 for “The Office Retrospective,” Univision fourth with a 1.3 for “Porque el Amor Manda,” and ABC and CW tied for fifth at 1.0, ABC for “Wipeout” and CW for “The Vampire Diaries.” Telemundo was seventh with a 0.4 for “Pasion Prohibida.”

Fox took the lead at 9 p.m. with a 3.9 for more “Idol,” while ABC moved to second with a 3.0 for “Grey’s.” NBC was third with a 2.9 for “Office,” CBS fourth with a 2.1 for the first hour of the two-hour “Elementary” finale, Univision fifth with a 1.7 for “Amores Verdaderos,” Telemundo sixth with a 0.8 for “La Patrona” and CW seventh with a 0.5 for “Beauty and the Beast.”

ABC was first at 10 p.m. with a 3.2 for “Scandal,” with CBS second with a 1.9 for more “Elementary.” NBC was third with a 1.7 for the end of “Office” and an abbreviated 45-minute episode of “Hannibal,” Univision fourth with a 1.3 for “Que Bonito Amor” and Telemundo fifth with a 0.9 for “El Señor de los Cielos.”

Fox also finished first for the night among households with an 8.3 average overnight rating and a 14 share. CBS was second at 6.5/11, ABC third at 4.8/8, NBC fourth at 2.7/4, Univision fifth at 1.8/3, CW sixth at 1.2/2 and Telemundo seventh at 0.9/1.

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With a schedule that combines strong returning shows with new ones propped up by existing hits, CBS is already the favorite to win next season among adults 18-49.

Media buyers find little to quibble with in its fall schedule.

Even without the Super Bowl, which gave CBS a jolt on its way to this year’s 18-49 title, the network has the strongest, most consistent schedule on broadcast, and it has a couple of very promising new shows.

No surprise that CBS is poised to win the biggest year-to-year CPM increases in a year when upfront sales are expected to be tepid.

“CBS positions themselves as the network with strong and stable shows, which provide excellent support in surrounding and launching new hits,” says Monica Olivio Crane, director of national broadcast at Harmelin Media.

“The reaction of the ad community was positive.”

The network has four new sitcom for fall and is adding a second hour of comedy on Thursday, where it has long run dramas.

It has an excellent platform to launch those new shows with “The Big Bang Theory,” broadcast’s top scripted show in 18-49s, leading off the night.

The network seems very high on the new Robin Williams comedy “The Crazy Ones,” which will air at 9 on Thursday. But buyers seem more enthusiastic about another new comedy on the night, “The Millers,” which will air behind “Bang” at 8:30.

They also like CBS’s new approach to drama on Monday night at 10 p.m., where it will air a full season of the new “Hostages,” followed by a full season of the new “Intelligence” without any reruns in the timeslot.

Of course, no network is perfect, and CBS still relies on a lot of aging shows whose ratings are well down from their peak. And it had a terrible track record with new shows last year.

But right now on broadcast it’s as close to perfect as there is.

Best new show

The drama “Hostages” has a gripping trailer and two terrific stars, “United States of Tara’s” Toni Collette and “The Practice’s” Dylan McDermott, who clearly relishes the chance to play a villain.

Worst new show

“We Are Men,” about a foursome of male roommates, has great stars in Tony Shalhoub and Kal Penn. Too bad the jokes aren’t funny. Several buyers tell Media Life this looks like CBS’s weakest new program.

Best scheduling move

Putting another hour of comedy on Thursday night. It’s a bold move to shake up a night with lots of ad dollars at stake. It could be the smartest programming move of the season.

Most puzzling scheduling move

Moving “Hawaii Five-0” to Friday, essentially the kiss of death for any scripted show. It might have been a better fit on Sundays, which saw steep declines this season. Instead CBS elected to return the Sunday schedule intact.

Bubble show that should have survived

Not a bubble show per se but a pilot that was not ordered: “NCIS: Red,” the proposed third show in a franchise that continues to thrive. Tossing it onto Tuesday night with the other “NCIS” programs might have worked considering how eagerly people watch three “NCIS” reruns in a row on cable.

Returning show that should have been axed

“The Mentalist” isn’t doing much in terms of ratings. CBS probably could have found a new drama with a bigger upside for the 10 p.m. Sunday slot.

Overall fall schedule grade

B+

With the best schedule and the best upfront presentation, CBS is in great shape for fall.

The post CBS upfront analysis: Cruising at full speed appeared first on Media Life Magazine.

The U.S. Open tennis tournament is saying goodbye to CBS after more than 40 years.

ESPN has made a new 11-year agreement with the United States Tennis Association to exclusively broadcast the tournament beginning in 2015, after previously sharing coverage with CBS.

CBS has carried the U.S. Open since 1968.

When the new deal kicks in ESPN will expand its U.S. Open TV coverage from 100 hours to 130 each year, and its digital coverage will also increase. Every match from all 17 tournament courts will be available online on ESPN3 or through the WatchESPN app, up from six courts of coverage under the current deal.

ESPN also gets the broadcast rights for the Emirates Airline U.S. Open Series, a five-week series of tournaments leading up the U.S. Open.

Additionally, the deal expands ESPN’s international coverage of the tournament in Latin America and the Caribbean and on TSN in Canada.

It’s the latest in a long line of events to move to cable in recent years, including the British Open, Wimbledon, the Bowl Championship Series and, very soon, the Final Four.

The post ESPN snags U.S. Open rights away from CBS appeared first on Media Life Magazine.

For the first time in years, Anheuser-Busch will not be advertising on the television broadcast of the upcoming Winter Games.

But even with the loss of the traditional sponsor, as well as another big advertiser, Hilton, NBC is on pace for record ad sales.

The network said this week that it expects to pull in $800 million from the two-week event, which will air Feb. 6 to 24.

That far exceeds the $700 million made by the 2010 Vancouver Games, then a record for a Winter Olympics.

And that’s despite the fact that next year’s Games from Sochi, Russia, are expected to be shown largely on tape delay in primetime because of the time difference.

NBC broadcast events on a tape delay last summer from London for the Winter Olympics and still saw ratings gains over its 2008 Beijing coverage.

Advertisers who have already signed on for Sochi include Smuckers, AT&T, Coca-Cola, General Motors and Liberty Mutual.

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But if this summer’s reboot of the ABC series “Whose Line Is It Anyway” shows any promise, there could be comedy in the young-skewing network’s future.

President Mark Pedowitz said during yesterday’s upfront presentation that the network is mulling comedy development for the first time in years.

Some of UPN’s old comedies transitioned to the CW when UPN and the WB merged in 2006, and the network did develop new sitcoms for a couple years afterward. But in recent years it’s pursued drama single-mindedly, with a few reality shows tossed in.

Also yesterday, Pedowitz said that the network would premiere its shows in October for the second straight year, hoping to avoid the crush of debuts on the Big Four networks during September.

He confirmed that “The Selection,” the “Hunger Games”-like pilot that survived two development cycles, is finally officially dead.

And he said that a young Samantha will be introduced to young Carrie during the second season of the “Sex and the City” prequel “The Carrie Diaries.”

The post CW upfront leftovers: Comedy in the wings appeared first on Media Life Magazine.

For months the producers of “The Office” and even Steve Carell himself denied that he’d make an appearance during the show’s series finale.

But when Carell showed up in photos from the final days of shooting, and his face was on the promos NBC showed for last night’s series ender, it became pretty obvious that they were lying.

And indeed Carell, who departed the series two years ago, did show up last night to play Michael Scott for one final time.

He dropped by for a brief appearance at Dwight and Angela’s wedding. And yes, he made a “That’s what she said” joke.

The speculation over Carell’s return probably helped goose ratings for last night’s episode.

The show has averaged a 2.2 adults 18-49 rating this season, according to Nielsen live-plus-same-day-DVR-playback data.

The post Carell returns for ‘The Office’ finale appeared first on Media Life Magazine.

The network will introduce three new series, with two on tap for midseason and the final season of “Nikita” coming off the bench at midseason as well.

This is not the same CW as in years past.

This fall’s lineup features science fiction and fantasy prominently, with new shows about vampires, teleporting teenagers and historical queens.

It builds on the two most successful shows on the CW lineup, “The Vampire Diaries” and “Arrow,” which have broadened the network’s appeal beyond its traditional target women 18-34 demo.

Gone are shows like “Gossip Girl” and “90210,” which played to that audience for years. The lone holdover from that era, the second-year drama “The Carrie Diaries,” has been banished to little-watched Friday night.

The network also has a new reality show, “Famous in 12,” on tap for midseason, hoping to address media buyers’ longtime biggest complaint about the network, its lack of original content. It relies on reruns far more than the other English-language broadcasters.

Here’s the fall lineup that the CW will be presenting to buyers at its upfront presentation this afternoon.

On Monday “Hart of Dixie” will head into its third season, moving from Tuesday into the 8 p.m. lead-off spot.

“Beauty and the Beast,” which just wrapped its first season, will follow at 9 p.m., creating what the CW is calling a night of Southern charm and epic romance.

The new “Diaries” spinoff “The Originals,” about the original family of vampires, takes over the 8 p.m. spot on Tuesday after a strong showing for a backdoor pilot earlier this spring.

That will lead into the thematically compatible “Supernatural,” about evil-fighting brothers, returning for season nine at 9 p.m. Tuesday after a strong run behind “Arrow” at 9 on Wednesdays this season.

“Arrow” keeps its 8 p.m. slot and leads into the new “The Tomorrow People,” a supernatural drama about a teen who begins to exhibit puzzling abilities. It’s the strongest spot on the CW schedule for a launch, with “Arrow” the network’s No. 1 show in total viewers.

“Diaries” remains at 8 p.m. on Thursday and for the third straight year gets a new show behind it. This time it’s “Reign,” a drama about the young Mary, Queen of Scots. The network seems to be going for a gothic-y vibe on the night.

Fridays will see “Carrie” slide into the 8 p.m. hour where “Nikita” struggled this past season.

It will lead into season 20 of “America’s Next Top Model” at 9 p.m., an hour later than last fall. “Model” is coming off its lowest-rated season, largely because of the Friday timeslot, and it took this spring off for the first time in years.

The CW has two dramas on tape for midseason in addition to the six-episode conclusion of “Nikita.”

“Star-Crossed” follows a human teen and an alien who fall in love in a society deeply divided over the alien presence.

And “The 100” tells the story of 100 kids who are sent back to earth generations after it became uninhabitable.

The post For the CW, changes on every night appeared first on Media Life Magazine.

In fact, the show is a kind of real-life “Survivor” in which employees at a small company are supposedly given the power to vote someone out of the office — in other words, have him or her fired. Revealing the company’s dysfunction, the show has some documentary interest and may cause smiles of recognition as viewers see annoying co-workers who remind them of their own cubicle neighbors.

But by encouraging the employees to point out one another’s flaws, the show may capture too well the gloom of an unhappy workplace. Since the final firing decision doesn’t occur in the first episode — the only one made available for review —we don’t know whether the story will end on an uplifting note next week. It’s unlikely that enough viewers who sample the premiere will be driven to tune in to find out.

The premiere episode, airing next Thursday, May 23, at 9 p.m., is set in a credit-card-processing company called Velocity Merchant Services, located near Chicago. An opening montage shows the employees badmouthing and bickering with one another.

We learn that the company has an unusual source of friction: Founded by a woman named Dema when she was only 19, it employs her husband, mother, brother and assorted cousins. The nonfamily staffers feel that the family members get preferential treatment.

The narrator says that Dema may be too close to make the right decision about personnel changes, so a group of 16 employees will be given two days to vote for three among them who could be fired. But demotion and a salary cut are also mentioned as possibilities.

The company employs more than 70 people, and we don’t hear why these 16 are picked.

In the first of two nightmare scenarios, the 16 participants gets to hear what the others think of them, through clips taken from what were supposedly confidential interviews.

Everyone agrees that a man named Zoe, who handles collections, is lazy. Many people say Dema’s mother, Kout, the company’s accountant, doesn’t do her job. Someone says Kout has been nicknamed CNN because she’s constantly ratting out co-workers to Dema.

Shawn, the director of sales, who in an earlier scene was labeled with a graphic saying “The Jerk,” is set up as the potential villain. He’s negative about everyone else, and his co-workers say that he is “argumentative” and “can be perverted.”

When Shawn says that Zoe never comes up with new ideas, Zoe turns to him and says, “I’ve got a new idea for you.”

After watching all this trash talk, the participants get a break, which they spend fighting over the things they said in the interviews.

Then, in the second nightmare scenario, they reconvene to watch a video that shows everyone’s salaries. An older salesman who is called Uncle Mike earns only $25,000, which some people think is too much because Mike wastes so much time chatting. They’re shocked to learn that Kout earns $77,000.

With their remaining time before the vote, the participants indulge in some “Survivor”-style negotiations. Naveid, the IT manager, who says his motto is “Getting it done” even though everyone accuses him of procrastinating, tries to start a groundswell against Kout. Her relatives assess the risks of turning against one of their own.

If we believe that someone might actually get fired, the stakes in this show are high, but the infighting is actually less vicious than that on some competition shows on which contestants are vying for, say, $50,000.

That’s a refreshing change, as is the sight of people essentially being themselves. The participants’ actions and reactions feel real, in marked contrast to most reality shows set at workplaces, which prefer eccentricity and conflict to truth. But the relative civility seems to spring from timidity and weariness, not camaraderie.

At the end of the premiere episode, we learn the identities of the three people who might be eliminated, some of whom are surprising. But we’re told we have to tune in next week to learn their fates.

If the show were called “Someone Has to Go” and we were sure that one of the three is going to get fired, morbid curiosity would make more of us watch next time. But most viewers will finish the episode thinking either that everyone is going to get a reprieve or that the bosses will fire the one who can best afford it and is most ready for it.

This show doesn’t have to go, but it doesn’t have to stay either.

The post ‘Does Someone Have to Go?,’ yikes appeared first on Media Life Magazine.

Now it’s planning to support that investment with a big push into comedy, a genre it’s never fully explored before.

At today’s upfront presentation to media buyers and planners, USA announced the pickup of its first two original half-hour comedies, as well as ordering another comedy pilot.

The two shows, which will launch in first quarter 2014, will complement the acquisition of “Family,” which debuts Sept. 24 at 8 p.m., and they mark a shift in strategy for USA, which is best known for its quirky dramas.

Though the network has finished No. 1 among total viewers for seven years, its viewership has declined as some of its top shows, such as “Burn Notice” and “Royal Pains,” age.

USA has long built around original hits, but after seeing the type of success TBS has had with off-network reruns of “The Big Bang Theory,” cable’s No. 1 comedy, it’s not hard to see what motivated USA to get into the repeat business.

The first new comedy is “Sirens,” from Denis Leary (“Rescue Me”) and Bob Fisher (“Wedding Crashers”). It follows a trio of EMTs in Chicago whose self-destructive personalities make the other parts of their lives difficult.

Leary won’t star but he did co-write the pilot.

“Playing House” focuses on two best friends who reunite as one of them is about to have a baby. It stars Jessica St. Clair (“Bridesmaids”) and Lennon Parham (“Accidentally On Purpose”), real-life BFFs who also co-wrote the pilot and executive produce the show.

The pilot order is for “Love is Dead,” about a company that will break things off with your significant other for you, for the right price.

USA will unveil other details of the schedule during today’s presentation, which is expected to include a new daytime show and several drama pilots in development.

USA averaged 2.98 million total viewers in primetime last year, according to Nielsen, off 9 percent from the previous year, and 1.09 million adults 18-49, down 13 percent.

It finished first on cable on both measures.

The post For USA, a new focus on laughs appeared first on Media Life Magazine.

Why not a sale of the Tribune Co. newspapers?

That’s apparently the thinking behind a campaign launched recently on the crowdfunding site Indiegogo.com.

The group The Other 98% is behind the campaign, called Free The Press, arguing that Tribune Co. newspapers will suffer if they are sold to the current bidders, which are rumored to include the Koch Brothers and Rupert Murdoch.

Instead, says the group, the newspapers should be democratized and made into community publications.

Crowdfunding has proven effective for relatively small ventures. The “Mars” effort raised $5.7 million and Braff has taken in more than $2.5 million.

Alas, The Other 98% is trying to raise $660 million, which probably won’t be possible. As of this morning, it had raised just under $52,000 from 687 donors.

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