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NBC held onto No. 1 on Thursday by a decent margin with “Friends” and “ER,” but the night was perhaps most notable for the relative strength of “Star Search,” CBS’s entry into “American Idol-“ type talent shows. The show ranked No. 2 at 8 p.m., with a decisive loss against “Friends,” but improved its adult 18-49 rating by 43 percent in its second half-hour against NBC’s “Scrubs.” It still trailed by some 3 rating points, though. CBS did better at 9 p.m. with “CSI,” the No. 1 show in that hour but fell back into second place with “Without a Trace.” That show had slightly better than half the rating of “ER” at 10 p.m. NBC averaged a 9.2 adult 18-49 rating, based on preliminary Nielsen ratings. CBS had a 6.3. Fox had a 3.5 with a two-hour “Cops: The Top 15 Moments of All Time.” ABC was in last place for all of primetime with the movie “Snow Day” and “Primetime Thursday.” The network averaged a 2.1 adult 18-49 rating. NBC also ranked No. 1 in households with a 12.2 rating and 19 share. CBS had an 11.5/18, Fox had a 5.1/8 and ABC had a 4.3/7.
ABC
scores with 'Bachelorette' and 'Mole' debuts
The
premieres of reality shows “The Bachelorette” and “Celebrity Mole”
on ABC carried the network to a 5.9 adult 18-49 average rating Wednesday
night, .6 ahead of second-place NBC. CBS averaged 3.8 and Fox averaged
3.5. “The Bachelorette,” a new spin on last fall’s bride-wannabe
“The Bachelor,” scored even bigger debut ratings than its predecessor,
rating an 8.4 and 20 share in 18-49s against NBC’s fading “West
Wing” at 9 p.m. “West Wing” averaged a 4.7 and 11 share. NBC
workhorse “Law & Order” at 10 p.m. improved to a 7.1 rating and 19
share, but “Celebrity Mole” stayed close with a 5.2/13. At 8 p.m.,
CBS’s revival of “Star Search” returned to solid numbers, rating a
5.1/14, by far the network’s highest-rated show among 18-49s for the
night. On Fox, the special presentation of “Austin Powers: The Spy Who
Shagged Me” averaged 3.5/9. NBC had the best household average for the
night, a 10.1 to ABC’s 8.3. CBS averaged 7.6 and Fox averaged 5.0.
Poll: Martha Stewart
is perfectly annoying
As if the past year hadn't already
cost Martha Stewart enough of her dignity, the domestic guru has now
officially been crowned the most annoying celebrity alive. Stewart
received more than 434,000 votes to top a poll conducted by the web site
www.AmIAnnoying.com to determine who was the most annoying person of 2002.
Runners-up included "Crossing Over" psychic John Edwards (No.
7), moralistic radio host Dr. Laura Schlessinger (No. 13), Fox News
correspondent and all-around macho man Geraldo Rivera (No. 14) and TV
judge Judy Sheindlin (No. 20). In a poll conducted last month, Media Life
readers named Stewart as Media Villain of the Year.
New
TNN president has eyes for the guys
It was only a matter of time before someone followed the
example of Lifetime's "Television for Women" to create a network
for the other half of the population. TNN, the network that began as The
Nashville Network, later repositioning itself as the youth-oriented
National Network, announced plans Thursday to reposition itself again –
this time as an entertainment channel for men. As part of this change,
Albie Hecht, the producer behind animated hit "SpongeBob SquarePants,"
has been named president of TNN. The network will also be introducing
several more adult-themed animated programs in 2003 and a Video Game
Awards Show. The network already airs such male-friendly offerings as
"Star Trek," "CSI," James Bond movies and the WWE.
Rigas and sons will
face trial next January
Aldelphia Communications founder
John Rigas will stand trial next January on charges of perpetrating
massive financial fraud at Aldephia Communications. Rigas's two sons
Timothy and Michael and associate Michael Mulcahey will also be charged as
part of the trial. The Adelphia executives are charges with looting the
cable operator's corporate accounts, building a golf course with company
money, and using company jets for personal reasons. Altogether, their
shenanigans cost the company an estimated $2.5 billion. If convicted, they
could face up to 20 years in prison. The trial is currently set to take
place in New York, but Rigas is lobbying to get it moved to his home state
of Pennsylvania. Rigas's lawyer told reporters that moving the trial would
keep the Aldelphia case from being lumped together with other New York
companies under the broad banner of corporate greed.
No more solo flights
for Time Inc.'s Huey?
Corporate perks don’t come much sweeter than the
round-trip private plane flights between New York City and South Carolina
enjoyed by Time Inc. editorial director John Huey. They also don't come
much more expensive, a fact of which the bean counters at Time Inc. are
said to be acutely aware these days. With pressure mounting from on high
to cut $100 million in costs this year, the company has decided to stop
picking up the tab for Huey's trips, according to the New York Post's
Keith Kelly. One published estimate put the cost of each round-trip flight
to Sullivan's Island, S.C. at $13,000. Huey's family reportedly moved to
Sullivan's Island after clashing with their Bronxville neighbors. A Time
Inc. spokesman told Kelly that both the $13,000 estimate and the current
gossip are off the mark.
January 10, 2003© 2003 Media Life
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