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CBS’s “Survivor” may still be potent on Thursdays, but it also seems to be a little passé. The reality series trailed NBC’s “Friends” by a mere 25 percent in household ratings last night, but by 55 percent among adults 18-49. At 8:30 p.m., when “Inside Schwartz” lost four full rating points, or 33 percent, from “Friends’” lead-in adult 18-49 audience, “Survivor” edged up by only 2.2 rating points, or 25 percent among adults 18-49. “CSI” built on “Survivor’s” lead-in audience to win the 9 p.m. hour in households and the 9:30 p.m. half-hour among adults 18-49. At 10 p.m., ABC’s “Primetime Thursday” jumped 58 percent in household rating and 48 percent in adult 18-49 rating from the week before, but finished second in the hour to NBC’s “ER.” The preliminary Nielsen household rating and share and adult 18-49 rating for Thursday night were: NBC 13.4/20 and 10.7, CBS 11.8/18 and 6.9, ABC 7.6/12 and 3.3, and Fox 3.4/5 and 1.9. On Wednesday, NBC won households and adults 18-49, but lost the 8 p.m. hour to CBS and ABC. CBS won households with “60 Minutes II,” and ABC won the hour in the demographic, with commanding wins by the sitcoms “My Wife and Kids” and “According to Jim.” NBC’s 8 p.m. show, “Ed,” was third in households and second among adults 18-49. ABC’s rescheduled “Bob Patterson” had a good news-bad news debut in its new time slot at 9:30 p.m., after “Drew Carey.” The good news was for “Bob Patterson,” whose household rating increased 18 percent and adult 18-49 rating 21 percent from its last Tuesday episode. The bad news was for ABC, since “Bob Patterson” lost 21 percent of “Drew Carey’s” lead-in household rating and 30 percent of its adult 18-49 rating. The show also dropped 10 percent in households and 22 percent in adults 18-49 from what “Whose Line is it Anyway” earned in the time period last week. The preliminary Nielsen household rating and share and adult 18-49 rating for Wednesday night were: NBC 12.0/19 and 6.5, ABC 7.6/12 and 4.8, CBS 6.4/10 and 3.2, and Fox 3.5/5 and 2.9.
More anthrax at NBC; NYT letter tests negative
Another case of anthrax has been confirmed at NBC News. A second NBC staffer who handled the anthrax-ridden letter sent to Tom Brokaw last month has been diagnosed with the skin form of anthrax. The employee began to suffer from headaches, fever, malaise and skin bumps on Sept. 28, and was put on a regimen of the antibiotic Cipro on Oct. 1. The employee is expected to recover fully. That brings the count of confirmed cutaneous anthrax cases in New York to five: two assistants to Tom Brokaw at NBC, one assistant to Dan Rather at CBS, one infant child of an ABC producer and an editorial assistant at the New York Post. One additional case of skin anthrax is suspected in a second Post employee. Meanwhile, at The New York Times, where an envelope containing white powder closed the mailroom for two days, test results have come in negative for anthrax. The Times is still testing all mailroom workers as a precaution.
WB gives full-year pickup to 'Smallville'
The WB went a long way toward making up for losing its flagship show "Buffy" by picking up the back nine episodes of its new frontrunner, "Smallville." The tale of the young Superman will now unfold for a full 22 episodes this season. The Adolescent of Steel's debut broke several records for the network, bringing in 8.4 million total viewers and the highest household and adult 18-49 ratings for any premiere for the WB. Its numbers among men 18-34 and 18-49 bested any program in the network's history. Most importantly, the show's second episode retained 90 percent of the premiere's audience, even with hefty competition in the 9 p.m. Tuesday night arena, which also features NBC's "Frasier," CBS's hit rookie, "The Guardian," and ABC's "NYPD Blue." On Nov. 6 Fox's much-hyped "24" rolls out. Media Life's Elizabeth White praised "Smallville" but questioned whether younger viewers would respond to a darker vision of Superman. "Teenage Clark doesn't have the sense of noble purpose that Superman does," she said, "and his character is full of potentially destructive angst."
Primedia to freeze salaries, cut staff
Drastic measures are the order of the day at Primedia, where widening losses have spurred a freeze on all salaries and new hires as well as extensive staff cuts. The news was released in conjunction with third-quarter results, which revealed net losses of $293 million, four times the $56.3 million lost in the same period last year. While new media sales vaulted to $20.8 million, up from $8.6 million, this still failed to push the sector into the black. How much of the loss comes from About.com remains unclear, but the damage has been reduced by a 60 percent cut in staff within the subsidiary this year, slashing costs by 70 percent. Approximately 12 percent of the personnel at the recently acquired Emap USA were eliminated following its absorption into the company's consumer magazines group. Total staff reductions amounted to about 8 percent. The company said it would seek to sell off some new media properties if they don't become profitable in the next few months.
News execs ask White House to lift chopper ban
A group of broadcast news officials has appealed to the White House to lift the ban on news helicopters flying over the nation's 30 largest cities. The ban was originally part of the across-the-board grounding of air traffic ordered by the Federal Aviation Administration after hijacked airliners crashed into targets in New York and Washington, D.C., on Sept. 11. Small aircraft have returned to the skies above all U.S. cities except for New York, Boston and Washington, D.C. Arguing that better news coverage would increase, not threaten, security, the Radio-Television News Directors Association has sent letters to Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge, National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice, White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card and White House Communications Director Karen Hughes.
Miss America dropped from Macy's parade
Miss America will have a slightly different vantage point on this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade: She'll be watching it on TV, just like the rest of us. After some behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing, real estate mogul and sometime-Presidential-hopeful Donald Trump has convinced the event's organizers to drop America's sweetheart in favor of Miss Universe 2001, Puerto Rico's Denise Quinones August. Trump co-owns the Miss Universe Organization, together with CBS. (Hold your fire, conspiracy theorists: The Macy's parade is on NBC this year.) Miss America 2002, Katie Harman, told the New York Post that she didn't learn of the switch until this week. "I can remember as a young girl watching the parade and seeing Miss America," said Harman. "It's very disappointing, and we haven't really been given any reasons for the change."
October 26, 2001 © 2001 Media Life
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