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grim and grimmer
Ratings rout as new shows whither before viewers
By Kevin Downey
With the exception of NBC, the major broadcast networks have a big problem on their hands.
It’s called Friday night, and already this early in the new season, and with a host of new shows, it's doing dismal numbers.
The overall adult 18-49 rating for the networks has fallen 17 percent in the first three weeks of this season.
CBS’s "Danny" has already been canceled and ABC’s "The Mole 2" has been put on hiatus.
And with ratings that are among the lowest on primetime, CBS’s "Ellen" and "That’s Life," and Fox’s "Pasadena" are thought by media buyers to be in deep trouble.
"The programming isn’t that big of a draw," says Shari Anne Brill, vice president and director of programming services at Carat.
"Friday is just a problematic night, in terms of the quality of programs, and there are fewer viewers to go around."
Of Friday night’s 17 shows, only NBC’s lineup and Fox’s "Dark Angel" and a special terrorist-themed episode of "America’s Most Wanted," which replaced "Pasadena" last week, ranked higher than No. 68 among adults 18-49.
NBC alone has kept its schedule intact since last season, and it now has a 1.3 rating-point lead over its nearest competitor.
Its schedule is dominated by the top-15 ranked "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," but it also has the highly rated combination of "Providence" and "Dateline."
"NBC is so strong that everybody else has to share what little is left," says Brill.
"The ‘Law & Order’ franchise is unbelievable. No matter which one they put on, it does well because it appeals to both men and women."
The problem for the other networks, CBS and ABC in particular, comes down to a simple matter of weak shows.
Lackluster programs like CBS’s "Ellen" have replaced decently rated shows like last season’s "The Fugitive" and "CSI," which moved to Thursday earlier this year. And ABC got rid of "Millionaire" and put on shows like "The Mole 2" and "Thieves," which did only modestly well last week at No. 73.
"There’s a perception that people don’t want to watch TV on Friday," says Robert Thompson, director of the Center for the Study of Popular Television at Syracuse University.
"But there have been so many historical hits. The combination of ‘Dallas’ and ‘Falcon Crest’ was one of the biggest one-two punches in television history.
"And 'Miami Vice' proved that not only can you keep older people at home, but you can keep young, hip, single people home on Friday night."
The networks, perhaps understandably, seem reluctant to put their best shows on Friday because it’s the second least-watched night of the week.
There are, however, 83 million viewers up for grabs, compared to about 99 million on Thursday.
"It is true that it’s harder to get people on Friday night," says Thompson.
"Consequently, most network executives don’t want to waste any of their good programming on potentially graveyard-shift nights. That becomes self-fulfilling because if you don’t want to waste your good programming, you’re putting your weaker shows there at the very time you need the strongest ones."
One thing the networks have done is to boldly kill off what hasn’t worked, though.
Out of 18 shows on last season’s schedule, 12 were ultimately canceled; CBS’s "CSI" moved behind "Survivor," and ABC’s "20/20" was moved to Wednesday until it returns to Friday in midseason.
All that remains of last season’s schedule, in fact, is NBC’s lineup of "Providence," "Dateline," "Law & Order: SVU," and the WB’s "Sabrina."
Still, this season’s attempt to make fixes has mostly backfired.
ABC’s adult 18-49 rating is down 21 percent, CBS’s is down 45 percent, and Fox’s rating is down 18 percent. NBC is up 8 percent and both UPN and the WB have had increases from small bases.
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Friday
Primetime Ratings |
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HOUSEHOLDS |
2001 |
2000 |
% Chg |
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ABC |
4.5 |
6.1 |
-26.2 |
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CBS |
4.9 |
9.2 |
-46.7 |
|
NBC |
9.6 |
7.9 |
21.5 |
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FOX |
4.0 |
4.3 |
-7.0 |
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WB |
2.2 |
1.9 |
15.8 |
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UPN |
2.0 |
2.0 |
- |
|
6-Network Average |
4.9 |
5.7 |
-14.0 |
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ADULTS 18-49 |
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ABC |
2.6 |
3.3 |
-21.2 |
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CBS |
2.3 |
4.2 |
-45.2 |
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NBC |
4.1 |
3.8 |
7.9 |
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FOX |
2.8 |
3.4 |
-17.6 |
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WB |
1.2 |
1.0 |
20.0 |
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UPN |
1.3 |
1.2 |
8.3 |
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6-Network Average |
2.5 |
3.0 |
-16.7 |
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* First 3 weeks of season |
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October 19, 2001 © 2001 Media Life
-Kevin Downey is a staff writer for Media Life.
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