|
|
its Super Bowl edge
Great post-game time slot. But 'Alias?' Bummer.
By Toni Fitzgerald
No time slot may be as dear to TV programmers as the one after Super Bowl, a fact CBS well appreciated two years when it aired "Survivor: The Australian Outback" to a huge audience.
Last Sunday, ABC, though no less aware of the advantage, chose to air a show with a far less broad appeal, the cult favorite "Alias." It was a gamble intended to expose a new army of viewers to the critically acclaimed show.
Call it a major programming fumble.
“Alias” had the lowest ratings of any post-game show since at least 1987, even though sexy star Jennifer Garner appeared in bra and underwear in several promotions during the game.
The episode pulled 17.4 million viewers, twice its normal audience, but nearly 30 million fewer than "Survivor" hauled in two years ago.
ABC did not help its case by airing the special "Alias" episode at 11 p.m., more than 40 minutes after the game ended, for the latest post-Super Bowl program start in history.
Instead it chose to air 40 minutes of post-game coverage, effectively clearing living rooms across America of anything by diehard football fans.
And that’s too bad for ABC, which saw this as a chance to introduce the critically acclaimed but ratings-challenged “Alias” to a broader audience.
The show’s audience of about 9.3 million per week is down 9 percent from last year. The network made series creator J.J. Abrams promise that, if it aired “Alias” in the post-Super Bowl slot, future episodes would be more self-contained, less cliffhanger-driven and thus more viewer-friendly. In essence, “Alias” will be dumbed down.
Sunday’s broadcast did haul “Alias’” biggest audience ever. But that was a far cry from even Fox’s disappointing “Malcolm” episode last year (21 million) or “Survivor: The Australian Outback” (45 million).
Even ABC’s last post-Super Bowl special, “The Practice,” fared better. “The Practice” retained 27 percent of its lead-in despite a lower game rating than this year. “Alias” retained only 19 percent.
No previous post-Super Bowl show had ever scored a single-digit rating among 18-49s, not even ABC’s “Extreme” back in 1995.
“Alias” doubled its usual Sunday night 18-49 adult rating to an 8.3. That tells you why ABC wanted this program to get a ratings boost.
Maybe fans just aren’t ready for a primetime broadcast female action hero. By not tuning in after the Super Bowl, non-“Alias” fans seemed to offer a resounding no thank you. Yet by delaying the start until 11 p.m., ABC has no one to blame but itself.
There was some cheerier news for the network. With terrific numbers for the actual game, ABC finished No. 1 among households and 18-49s for the week. Its season-to-date 18-49 average jumped from 3.8 last week to a third-place 4.1 this week -- a good thing, too, because fourth-place Fox is also surging.
The return of “American Idol” boosted Fox to second last week among 18-49s. Fox had the four highest-rated non-football shows among 18-49s last week with three “American Idols” and a “Joe Millionaire.”
Fox’s impressive 5.6 weekly primetime average would have won a non-Super Bowl week. It’s the best non-playoffs weekly 18-49 average of the season on any network. Only Fox’s World Series-enhanced 5.6 in late October has matched it. The next-highest average was a November 5.1 by NBC.
Speaking of NBC, its halftime “Saturday Night Live” special was a ratings dud. The show attracted a 2.5 18-49 rating. Last year’s “Fear Factor” special starring the Playboy Playmates drew a 4.6.
|
PRIMETIME AVERAGES BY NETWORK |
|||||||||
|
Network |
Households* |
People 2+ |
Adults 18-49 |
||||||
|
Rtg% |
(000) |
Shr |
Rtg% |
(000) |
Shr |
Rtg% |
(000) |
Shr |
|
|
ABC |
11.7 |
12470 |
18 |
8.3 |
22510 |
20 |
9.1 |
11770 |
22 |
|
CBS |
7.2 |
7670 |
11 |
3.9 |
10690 |
9 |
3.0 |
3920 |
7 |
|
FOX |
7.1 |
7600 |
11 |
4.5 |
12190 |
10 |
5.6 |
7150 |
13 |
|
NBC |
6.6 |
7060 |
10 |
3.7 |
9990 |
9 |
4.0 |
5150 |
10 |
|
WB |
2.5 |
2700 |
4 |
1.5 |
3990 |
3 |
1.8 |
2260 |
4 |
|
UPN |
2.1 |
2270 |
3 |
1.2 |
3390 |
3 |
1.5 |
1920 |
4 |
|
PAX |
0.8 |
890 |
1 |
0.4 |
1140 |
1 |
0.3 |
330 |
1 |
|
* Each rating
point is equivalent to 1.067 million homes |
|||||||||
|
SEASON-TO-DATE PRIMETIME |
|||||||||
|
Network |
Households* |
People 2+ |
Adults 18-49 |
||||||
|
Rtg% |
(000) |
Shr |
Rtg% |
(000) |
Shr |
Rtg% |
(000) |
Shr |
|
|
CBS |
8.4 |
8960 |
14 |
4.7 |
12800 |
12 |
4.0 |
5120 |
11 |
|
NBC |
7.8 |
8320 |
13 |
4.3 |
11800 |
11 |
4.5 |
5850 |
12 |
|
ABC |
6.7 |
7170 |
11 |
4.0 |
10770 |
10 |
4.1 |
5300 |
11 |
|
FOX |
5.8 |
6160 |
9 |
3.4 |
9320 |
9 |
3.8 |
4910 |
10 |
|
WB |
2.7 |
2860 |
4 |
1.6 |
4300 |
4 |
1.8 |
2370 |
5 |
|
UPN |
2.4 |
2510 |
4 |
1.4 |
3750 |
3 |
1.6 |
2050 |
4 |
|
PAX |
0.9 |
930 |
1 |
0.5 |
1230 |
1 |
0.3 |
400 |
1 |
|
* Each rating
point is equivalent to 1.067 million homes |
|||||||||
|
NETWORK TV |
||||||||
|
# |
PROGRAMS |
Net |
HOUSEHOLDS |
PERSONS 2+ |
||||
|
Rtg% |
Shr |
(000) |
RANK |
Rtg% |
(000) |
|||
|
1 |
SUPER BOWL XXXVII(S) |
ABC |
40.7 |
61 |
43433 |
1 |
32.6 |
88637 |
|
2 |
SUPER BOWL POST GUN(S) |
ABC |
33.1 |
50 |
35361 |
2 |
26.3 |
71634 |
|
3 |
SUPER BOWL POST GAME(S) |
ABC |
23.4 |
38 |
25007 |
3 |
17.7 |
48192 |
|
4 |
CSI |
CBS |
15.2 |
23 |
16236 |
6 |
9.0 |
24459 |
|
5 |
AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY |
FOX |
14.3 |
21 |
15274 |
4 |
9.7 |
26502 |
|
6 |
AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY |
FOX |
13.8 |
20 |
14776 |
5 |
9.2 |
24915 |
|
7 |
AMERICAN IDOL SPECIAL(S) |
FOX |
13.1 |
19 |
14027 |
7 |
8.7 |
23599 |
|
8 |
JOE MILLIONAIRE |
FOX |
11.5 |
17 |
12299 |
8 |
6.9 |
18821 |
|
9 |
LAW AND ORDER |
NBC |
11.1 |
18 |
11826 |
9 |
6.1 |
16603 |
|
10 |
FRIENDS |
NBC |
11.0 |
17 |
11731 |
9 |
6.1 |
16649 |
|
10 |
LAW AND ORDER:SVU |
NBC |
11.0 |
19 |
11789 |
11 |
5.9 |
16081 |
|
12 |
EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND |
CBS |
10.5 |
15 |
11198 |
11 |
5.9 |
15925 |
|
13 |
WITHOUT A TRACE |
CBS |
10.4 |
17 |
11104 |
13 |
5.7 |
15496 |
|
14 |
CSI: MIAMI |
CBS |
9.8 |
16 |
10409 |
16 |
5.3 |
14399 |
|
15 |
SCRUBS |
NBC |
9.7 |
14 |
10297 |
19 |
5.2 |
14087 |
|
16 |
JAG |
CBS |
9.5 |
14 |
10128 |
16 |
5.3 |
14304 |
|
16 |
JUDGING AMY |
CBS |
9.5 |
15 |
10088 |
22 |
4.9 |
13398 |
|
18 |
KING OF QUEENS |
CBS |
9.4 |
14 |
10071 |
19 |
5.2 |
14197 |
|
18 |
STAR SEARCH |
CBS |
9.4 |
14 |
10059 |
15 |
5.5 |
14862 |
|
18 |
YES, DEAR |
CBS |
9.4 |
14 |
10012 |
16 |
5.3 |
14469 |
|
21 |
FEAR FACTOR |
NBC |
8.8 |
13 |
9419 |
13 |
5.7 |
15537 |
|
21 |
PRIMETIME THURSDAY |
ABC |
8.8 |
14 |
9408 |
25 |
4.7 |
12660 |
|
23 |
WILL & GRACE |
NBC |
8.7 |
13 |
9275 |
27 |
4.5 |
12277 |
|
24 |
BACHELORETTE, THE |
ABC |
8.5 |
13 |
9071 |
22 |
4.9 |
13391 |
|
25 |
GUARDIAN, THE |
CBS |
8.4 |
12 |
8917 |
28 |
4.4 |
11902 |
|
25 |
STAR SEARCH-WED |
CBS |
8.4 |
13 |
8940 |
22 |
4.9 |
13406 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
||||||||
|
TOP 30 PROGRAMS - BROADCAST
& CABLE TV |
||||
|
Rank |
Program |
Net |
Adults 18-49 |
In Millions |
|
1 |
SUPER BOWL XXXVII(S)-1/26 |
ABC |
36.4 |
46.86 |
|
2 |
SUPER BOWL POST GUN(S)-1/26 |
ABC |
31.0 |
39.90 |
|
3 |
SUPER BOWL KICK-OFF III(S)-1/26 |
ABC |
24.2 |
31.09 |
|
4 |
SUPER BOWL POST GAME(S)-1/26 |
ABC |
21.0 |
27.01 |
|
5 |
AMERICAN IDOL-TUESDAY |
FOX |
12.4 |
15.90 |
|
6 |
AMERICAN IDOL-WEDNESDAY |
FOX |
11.8 |
15.20 |
|
7 |
AMERICAN IDOL SPECIAL(S)-1/21 |
FOX |
11.3 |
14.49 |
|
8 |
JOE MILLIONAIRE |
FOX |
10.0 |
12.82 |
|
9 |
CSI |
CBS |
8.4 |
10.86 |
|
10 |
ALIAS SPECIAL-1/26(S)-1/26 |
ABC |
8.2 |
10.59 |
|
11 |
FRIENDS |
NBC |
7.9 |
10.18 |
|
12 |
SCRUBS |
NBC |
7.1 |
9.08 |
|
13 |
MEET MY FOLKS 1/20(S)-1/20 |
NBC |
6.7 |
8.63 |
|
14 |
FEAR FACTOR |
NBC |
6.5 |
8.40 |
|
15 |
WILL & GRACE |
NBC |
6.4 |
8.22 |
|
16 |
GOOD MORNING MIAMI |
NBC |
6.0 |
7.77 |
|
17 |
LAW AND ORDER |
NBC |
6.0 |
7.76 |
|
18 |
THAT '70S SHOW |
FOX |
6.0 |
7.74 |
|
19 |
BACHELORETTE, THE |
ABC |
6.0 |
7.74 |
|
20 |
MEET MY FOLKS 1/21(S)-1/21 |
NBC |
5.6 |
7.17 |
|
21 |
LAW AND ORDER:SVU |
NBC |
5.5 |
7.13 |
|
22 |
YES, DEAR |
CBS |
5.4 |
6.95 |
|
23 |
FEAR FACTOR 1/20(S)-1/20 |
NBC |
5.3 |
6.87 |
|
24 |
EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND |
CBS |
5.2 |
6.64 |
|
25 |
PRIMETIME THURSDAY |
ABC |
5.1 |
6.59 |
|
26 |
WITHOUT A TRACE |
CBS |
5.1 |
6.50 |
|
27 |
CELEBRITY MOLE HAWAII |
ABC |
5.1 |
6.49 |
|
28 |
CSI: MIAMI |
CBS |
5.0 |
6.42 |
|
29 |
KING OF QUEENS |
CBS |
4.9 |
6.28 |
|
30 |
STAR SEARCH |
CBS |
4.8 |
6.18 |
|
Source: MTV Networks, based on data from Nielsen Media Research |
||||
|
CABLE TV |
|||||
|
BASIC CABLE |
|||||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
NET |
Households |
Persons 2+ |
|
|
(000) |
Rtg% |
(000) |
|||
|
1 |
TNT ORIGINAL(S)-1/17 (MONTE WALSH) |
TNT |
4914 |
4.6 |
7516 |
|
2 |
TRADING SPACES |
TLC |
3758 |
3.5 |
5926 |
|
3 |
TNT ORIGINAL(S)-1/18 (MONTE WALSH) |
TNT |
3493 |
3.3 |
5234 |
|
4 |
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW ZONE) |
TNN |
3427 |
3.2 |
4903 |
|
5 |
NBA REGULAR SEASON FRI L (LAKERS/ROCKETS) |
ESPN |
3326 |
3.1 |
4882 |
|
6 |
WWE ENTERTAINMENT (WWE RAW) |
TNN |
3288 |
3.1 |
4573 |
|
7 |
PRIME MOVIE (HUNGER POINT) |
LIF |
2968 |
2.8 |
3983 |
|
8 |
SPONGEBOB |
NICK |
2905 |
2.7 |
4101 |
|
9 |
JIMMY NEUTRON |
NICK |
2872 |
2.7 |
3959 |
|
10 |
FAIRLY ODD PARENTS |
NICK |
2818 |
2.6 |
3952 |
|
11 |
SATURDAY MOVIE (A MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE) |
LIF |
2766 |
2.6 |
3167 |
|
12 |
SPONGEBOB |
NICK |
2698 |
2.5 |
3792 |
|
13 |
MOVIE, USA (NEXT FRIDAY) |
USA |
2627 |
2.5 |
3891 |
|
14 |
REAL WORLD XII |
MTV |
2623 |
2.5 |
3652 |
|
15 |
SPONGEBOB |
NICK |
2593 |
2.4 |
3806 |
|
PAY CABLE |
|||||
|
# |
PROGRAM NAME |
NET |
Households |
Persons 2+ |
|
|
(000) |
Rtg% |
(000) |
|||
|
1 |
ROLLING STONES LIVE |
HBO |
2283 |
2.1 |
3383 |
|
2 |
TRAINING DAY |
HBO |
2204 |
2.1 |
3023 |
|
3 |
SHOCK VIDEO 2002 (AU) |
HBO |
2086 |
2.0 |
2633 |
|
4 |
TAXICAB CONFESSIONS 2003 |
HBO |
1979 |
1.9 |
2856 |
|
5 |
WALK TO REMEMBER, A |
HBO |
1920 |
1.8 |
2686 |
|
Total U.S. ratings and
household projections are based on 106.7 million TV homes. |
|||||
|
SYNDICATION |
||||
|
# |
PROGRAMS |
Syndicator |
Households |
|
|
US Rtg% |
(000) |
|||
|
1 |
WHEEL OF FORTUNE |
KIN |
9.9 |
10577 |
|
2 |
FRIENDS-SYN (AT) |
WB |
7.9 |
8376 |
|
3 |
SEINFELD (AT) |
SPT |
7.8 |
8274 |
|
3 |
JEOPARDY |
KIN |
7.8 |
8270 |
|
5 |
EVRY LVS RAYMOND-SYN (AT) |
KIN |
6.6 |
7017 |
|
6 |
SEINFELD-WKND (AT) |
SPT |
6.2 |
6620 |
|
7 |
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT(AT) |
PRM |
5.8 |
6220 |
|
8 |
OPRAH WINFREY SHOW (AT) |
KIN |
5.7 |
6051 |
|
9 |
JUDGE JUDY (AT) |
PRM |
5.6 |
5968 |
|
10 |
DR. PHIL SHOW |
KIN |
4.8 |
5074 |
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
||||
|
SPANISH-LANGUAGE TELEVISION |
|||||
|
# |
PROGRAMS |
Net |
NHTI* |
Projection |
|
|
1 |
ENTRE EL AMOR Y ODIO MON |
UNI |
25.5 |
2480 |
|
|
2 |
VIAS DEL AMOR MON |
UNI |
25.2 |
2453 |
|
|
2 |
VIAS DEL AMOR WED |
UNI |
25.2 |
2448 |
|
|
4 |
SUPER BOWL POST GUN(S)-1/26 |
ABC |
25.1 |
2440 |
|
|
5 |
VIAS DEL AMOR TUE |
UNI |
24.3 |
2362 |
|
|
6 |
ENTRE EL AMOR Y ODIO TUE |
UNI |
24.1 |
2347 |
|
|
7 |
VIAS DEL AMOR THU |
UNI |
23.9 |
2323 |
|
|
8 |
ENTRE EL AMOR Y ODIO WED |
UNI |
23.8 |
2315 |
|
|
9 |
ENTRE EL AMOR Y ODIO THU |
UNI |
23.1 |
2243 |
|
|
10 |
GATA SALVAJE-THU |
UNI |
22.7 |
2212 |
|
|
11 |
CRISTINA-MON |
UNI |
22.5 |
2191 |
|
|
12 |
GATA SALVAJE-WED |
UNI |
21.8 |
2123 |
|
|
13 |
GATA SALVAJE-MON |
UNI |
21.7 |
2107 |
|
|
14 |
ENTRE EL AMOR Y ODIO FRI |
UNI |
21.0 |
2045 |
|
|
15 |
GATA SALVAJE-TUE |
UNI |
20.9 |
2032 |
|
|
16 |
VIAS DEL AMOR FRI |
UNI |
20.6 |
2005 |
|
|
17 |
CASOS VIDA R: ED. ESP FRI |
UNI |
19.5 |
1899 |
|
|
18 |
GATA SALVAJE-FRI |
UNI |
18.7 |
1816 |
|
|
19 |
DON FRANCISCO PRESENTA-WE |
UNI |
18.4 |
1786 |
|
|
20 |
PICA Y SE EXTIENDE TUE |
UNI |
16.3 |
1587 |
|
|
* Nielsen
Hispanic Television Index; ratings based on 9.7 million Hispanic TV
homes. |
|||||
| NETWORK
SPORTS Ranked on Households Week Ending Jan. 19, 2003 |
|||||||
|
# |
PROGRAMS |
Net |
Episode |
Households |
Persons 2+ |
||
|
US Rtg% |
Shr |
(000) |
(000) |
||||
|
1 |
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP |
CBS |
TENN. AT OAK |
24.6 |
38 |
26243 |
41456 |
|
2 |
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP |
FOX |
TAMPA BAY AT PHILA |
23.8 |
45 |
25392 |
38741 |
|
3 |
AFC CHMP POST GAME |
CBS |
TENN. AT OAK |
13.2 |
20 |
14038 |
21029 |
|
4 |
NFC |
FOX |
TAMPA BAY AT PHILA |
8.6 |
21 |
9179 |
12457 |
|
5 |
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP-POST |
FOX |
TAMPA BAY AT PHILA |
7.6 |
13 |
8137 |
12103 |
|
6 |
AFC CHAMPIONSHIP PRE-GAME |
CBS |
6.5 |
11 |
6947 |
10703 |
|
|
7 |
U.S. FIGURE SKTNG CH-8PM |
ABC |
6.0 |
10 |
6366 |
9020 |
|
|
8 |
WWE SMACKDOWN! |
UPN |
3.4 |
5 |
3627 |
5344 |
|
|
9 |
U.S. FIGURE SKTNG CH-4PM |
ABC |
3.0 |
7 |
3217 |
4213 |
|
|
10 |
CHEVY SKATING SPECT |
ABC |
3.0 |
6 |
3230 |
3990 |
|
|
11 |
FOX NFL SATURDAY NIGHT |
FOX |
2.5 |
4 |
2688 |
4041 |
|
|
12 |
ABC NCAA BASKETBALL |
ABC |
DUKE AT MD |
2.0 |
5 |
2105 |
2767 |
|
13 |
NCAA BBALL |
CBS |
ILL AT IND |
2.0 |
5 |
2145 |
2740 |
|
14 |
ABC NCAA BSKTBL POST-SAT |
ABC |
DUKE AT MD |
1.5 |
4 |
1555 |
1978 |
|
15 |
NCAA BBAL |
CBS |
NOTRE DAME AT KTY |
1.4 |
4 |
1456 |
2016 |
|
16 |
NBC SPORTS SPECIL |
NBC |
1.1 |
3 |
1192 |
1573 |
|
|
17 |
NBA INSIDE STUFF |
ABC |
1.0 |
3 |
1040 |
1274 |
|
|
18 |
UNDER |
FOX |
1.0 |
3 |
1033 |
1248 |
|
|
19 |
NBC SPORTS SPECIL |
NBC |
1.0 |
2 |
1072 |
1338 |
|
|
20 |
PGA SPECIAL |
NBC |
0.8 |
2 |
826 |
1085 |
|
|
Source: Nielsen Media Research |
|||||||
January 29, 2003© 2003 Media Life
-Toni Fitzgerald is a staff writer for Media Life
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