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TV sets go dimmer
Broadcast networks see dramatic ratings drop
By Kevin Downey
Summer
is here, and there's no better sign of it than the retreat of viewers from
broadcast television.
Ratings on all the networks last week were down
anywhere from 13 percent
to as much as 43 percent from the regular season.
And while there's much talk of the networks beefing up
their summer schedules with original programs, none of it was in evidence
last week.
The top-rated shows included a
mix of low-rated repeats, basketball playoffs, newsmagazines, and
specials with too little going for them to air in the regular season.
Case in point: the No. 10 ranked show, CBS’s "Funny Flubs & Screw Ups."
The special's high ranking spoke less of the enduring star
power of host Cheech Marin from his halcyon "Up in
Smoke" days than viewers' disinclination to sit through yet another
repeat of "Friends" over on NBC.
What saved the week for NBC were the NBA playoff games.
Although ratings were down by nearly a third compared to
last year, the games were competitive enough to give the network a
commanding lead in the 18-49 demo.
Game seven between Philadelphia and Milwaukee, in fact,
was the highest-rated show in the demo.
Against that lineup, CBS’s "Tony Awards,"
which carried the extra buzz of "The Producers," improved its
rating in the 18-49 demo by 32 percent from last year. But it ranked last
for the night and hobbled in at No. 59 for the week.
NBC’s relatively strong performance resulted in a 3.9
rating last week, which was more than a full point ahead of its nearest
competition.
CBS came in second with a 2.8.
Its highest-rated shows
in the demo included "Everybody Loves Raymond" and
"CSI," which was also the third-most-watched program on CBS last
week, proving it can still draw viewers even in the absence of the boost
it received from lead-in "Survivor" through the just-concluded season.
ABC had a 2.7, Fox had a 2.5, UPN had a 1.4, and the WB had a
1.3.
But even though NBC led the week, its ratings were
still down by 15 percent
from the previous week, which marked the end of the season, and 19 percent
below its regular-season average.
And NBC fared relatively well compared to
most other networks.
CBS was down 30 percent, ABC dropped 39 percent, Fox was down
43 percent, UPN fell 13 percent, and the WB was
down 19 percent.
Each of the networks had its share of faltering
regular-season shows that fared even worse.
Fox’s "Lone Gunmen" and "FreakyLinks,"
both of which have been canceled, were among the lowest-rated shows. "Lone" came in at No. 74 and "Freaky" rolled
in at No. 78.
Even network specials failed to generate much viewer
interest.
The "Backstreet Boys: Larger than Life" on
CBS came in fourth place last Wednesday, with a rating in the younger demo
in line with that of the typically older-skewing "Diagnosis
Murder." And, perhaps the ultimate insult, it was beaten by a guest
appearance by *NSync on "The Simpsons."
CBS did do better in household ratings, which are of
considerably less interest to advertisers.
It had the No. 1 show with "60 Minutes" and
was the highest-rated network overall.
CBS had a 6.9 rating and 12 share to NBC’s 6.1/11, ABC’s
5.0/9, Fox’s 3.9/7, UPN’s 2.2/4, and the WB’s 2.2/4.
|
PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK |
|||||||||
|
|
HOUSEHOLDS |
PERSONS 2+ |
ADULTS 18-49 |
||||||
|
Net |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
|
CBS |
6.9 |
7070 |
12 |
3.7 |
9720 |
11 |
2.8 |
3520 |
9 |
|
NBC |
6.1 |
6210 |
11 |
3.4 |
8880 |
10 |
3.9 |
4900 |
12 |
|
ABC |
5.0 |
5100 |
9 |
2.7 |
7180 |
8 |
2.7 |
3320 |
8 |
|
FOX |
3.9 |
4020 |
7 |
2.2 |
5860 |
6 |
2.5 |
3120 |
8 |
|
UPN |
2.2 |
2220 |
4 |
1.3 |
3320 |
4 |
1.4 |
1790 |
4 |
|
WB |
2.2 |
2220 |
4 |
1.2 |
3110 |
3 |
1.3 |
1660 |
4 |
|
PAX |
1.1 |
1090 |
2 |
0.6 |
1500 |
2 |
0.4 |
510 |
1 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
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|
SEASON-TO-DATE |
|||||||||
|
|
HOUSEHOLDS |
PERSONS 2+ |
ADULTS 18-49 |
||||||
|
Net |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
Rtg |
(000) |
SHR |
|
CBS |
8.5 |
8680 |
14 |
4.7 |
12380 |
12 |
4.0 |
4930 |
11 |
|
ABC |
8.2 |
8390 |
14 |
4.7 |
12250 |
12 |
4.3 |
5400 |
12 |
|
NBC |
7.9 |
8050 |
13 |
4.4 |
11480 |
11 |
4.7 |
5890 |
13 |
|
FOX |
6.0 |
6150 |
10 |
3.6 |
9440 |
9 |
4.4 |
5440 |
12 |
|
WB |
2.5 |
2560 |
4 |
1.4 |
3710 |
4 |
1.6 |
1990 |
4 |
|
UPN |
2.4 |
2500 |
4 |
1.4 |
3740 |
4 |
1.6 |
1970 |
4 |
|
PAX |
1.0 |
970 |
2 |
0.5 |
1370 |
1 |
0.4 |
460 |
1 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
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|
NETWORK TV |
||||||||
|
|
|
|
HOUSEHOLDS |
PERSONS 2+ |
||||
|
# |
PROGRAMS |
Net |
Rtg% |
Shr |
(000) |
# |
Rtg% |
(000) |
|
1 |
60 MINUTES |
CBS |
10.5 |
20 |
10717 |
1 |
5.7 |
14860 |
|
2 |
MILLIONAIRE- SUN |
ABC |
10.1 |
16 |
10297 |
2 |
5.6 |
14700 |
|
2 |
MILLIONAIRE- TUE |
ABC |
10.1 |
17 |
10293 |
4 |
5.3 |
13980 |
|
4 |
CSI |
CBS |
9.5 |
16 |
9719 |
4 |
5.3 |
13830 |
|
4 |
EVERYBDY LOVES RAYMND- SPL(S) |
CBS |
9.5 |
16 |
9721 |
2 |
5.6 |
14668 |
|
6 |
NBA PLAYOFF SUNDAY(S) Milwaukee vs Philadelphia |
NBC |
8.7 |
15 |
8869 |
6 |
5.2 |
13516 |
|
7 |
TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL |
CBS |
8.3 |
14 |
8471 |
10 |
4.4 |
11632 |
|
8 |
48 HOURS- SPCL(S) |
CBS |
8.1 |
14 |
8264 |
12 |
4.2 |
10952 |
|
8 |
BECKER - SPECIAL(S) |
CBS |
8.1 |
13 |
8303 |
8 |
4.6 |
12034 |
|
10 |
FUNNY FLUBS & SCREW UPS 7(S) |
CBS |
8.0 |
14 |
8139 |
9 |
4.5 |
11739 |
|
11 |
48 HOURS |
CBS |
7.9 |
14 |
8115 |
12 |
4.2 |
10902 |
|
11 |
WEAKEST LINK |
NBC |
7.9 |
13 |
8068 |
7 |
4.9 |
12852 |
|
13 |
FRIENDS |
NBC |
7.6 |
14 |
7809 |
10 |
4.4 |
11388 |
|
13 |
PRACTICE, THE |
ABC |
7.6 |
13 |
7717 |
14 |
4.1 |
10746 |
|
15 |
WILL & GRACE |
NBC |
7.5 |
13 |
7620 |
17 |
3.9 |
10150 |
|
16 |
DHARMA & GREG |
ABC |
7.4 |
12 |
7580 |
14 |
4.1 |
10747 |
|
16 |
JUDGING AMY |
CBS |
7.4 |
13 |
7559 |
20 |
3.7 |
9570 |
|
18 |
E.R. |
NBC |
7.3 |
13 |
7451 |
22 |
3.6 |
9518 |
|
19 |
60 MINUTES II |
CBS |
7.1 |
12 |
7300 |
22 |
3.6 |
9351 |
|
19 |
CBS WEDNESDAY MOVIE ("Now and Then") |
CBS |
7.1 |
12 |
7299 |
17 |
3.9 |
10169 |
|
19 |
NBA PLAYOFF WED(S) Milwaukee vs Philadelphia |
NBC |
7.1 |
13 |
7255 |
17 |
3.9 |
10319 |
|
22 |
JUST SHOOT ME |
NBC |
6.9 |
11 |
7067 |
22 |
3.6 |
9435 |
|
22 |
VANISHED SP-5/30(S) ("Dangerous Obsession") |
ABC |
6.9 |
12 |
7095 |
31 |
3.5 |
9177 |
|
24 |
DISTRICT, THE |
CBS |
6.8 |
13 |
6915 |
22 |
3.6 |
9395 |
|
25 |
THREE SISTERS |
NBC |
6.6 |
12 |
6789 |
22 |
3.6 |
9393 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
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|
CABLE TV |
|||||
| BASIC CABLE | |||||
|
House- |
House- holds |
Persons 2+ |
|||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
Net |
(000) |
US Rating % |
(000) |
|
1 |
NBA PLAYOFFS |
TNT |
3638 |
3.6 |
4887 |
|
2 |
WWF ENTERTAINMENT |
TNN |
3584 |
3.5 |
5806 |
|
3 |
WWF ENTERTAINMENT |
TNN |
3271 |
3.2 |
5638 |
|
4 |
NBA PLAYOFFS |
TNT |
3179 |
3.1 |
4388 |
|
5 |
NBA PLAYOFFS |
TNT |
2892 |
2.8 |
4067 |
|
6 |
SUNDAY MOVIE III (DEGREE OF GUILT, PT. II) |
Life |
2476 |
2.4 |
3131 |
|
7 |
LAW & ORDER SUN SPECIAL(S)- 05/27/2001 |
A&E |
2315 |
2.3 |
3403 |
|
8 |
RUGRATS |
Nick |
2171 |
2.1 |
3282 |
|
9 |
JAG |
USA |
2169 |
2.1 |
2923 |
|
10 |
LAW & ORDER SUN SPECIAL(S)- 05/27/2001 |
A&E |
2154 |
2.1 |
2821 |
|
11 |
LAW & ORDER SUN SPECIAL(S)- 05/27/2001 |
A&E |
2111 |
2.1 |
2977 |
|
12 |
RUGRATS |
Nick |
2099 |
2.1 |
3190 |
|
13 |
RUGRATS |
Nick |
2072 |
2.0 |
3223 |
|
14 |
ROCKET POWER |
Nick |
2048 |
2.0 |
2519 |
|
15 |
RUGRATS |
Nick |
2046 |
2.0 |
3099 |
|
PAY CABLE |
|||||
|
House- |
House- holds |
Persons 2+ |
|||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
(000) |
US Rating % |
(000) |
|
|
1 |
WCB:DOUBLEHEADER 5/26/01 (MAYWEATHER VS HERNANDEZ) |
1973 |
1.9 |
2681 |
|
|
2 |
WCB:DOUBLEHEADER 5/26/01 (POST 2) |
1883 |
1.8 |
2517 |
|
|
3 |
GIRL, INTERRUPTED |
1750 |
1.7 |
2420 |
|
|
4 |
WCB:DOUBLEHEADER 5/26/01 (CHAVEZ VS ARIA) |
1746 |
1.7 |
2329 |
|
|
5 |
WCB:DOUBLEHEADER 5/26/01 (PRE 2) |
1716 |
1.7 |
2393 |
|
| *Total U.S. ratings and household projections are based on 102.2
million TV homes. *For inclusion in the rankings, telecasts must be promoted as distinct programs and must be of 5 minutes minimum duration. Source: Nielsen Media Research |
|||||
|
SYNDICATION |
|||
|
Households |
Households |
||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
US Rating % |
(000) |
|
1 |
WHEEL OF FORTUNE |
9.2 |
9435 |
|
2 |
JEOPARDY |
7.9 |
8104 |
|
3 |
OPRAH WINFREY SHOW (AT) |
5.7 |
5856 |
|
3 |
JUDGE JUDY (AT) |
5.7 |
5841 |
|
5 |
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT(AT) |
5.6 |
5678 |
|
6 |
FRIENDS-SYN (AT) |
5.5 |
5603 |
|
7 |
FRASIER-SYN (AT) |
5.1 |
5191 |
|
8 |
SEINFELD-WKND |
5 |
5096 |
|
9 |
WHEEL OF FORTUNE WKND |
4.1 |
4201 |
|
9 |
SEINFELD |
4.1 |
4178 |
| Source:
Nielsen Media Research
|
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June 6, 2001 © 2001 Media Life
-Kevin Downey is a staff writer for Media Life.
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