The Programming Insider

-By Marc Berman

Prime-Time Metered Market Wednesday Ratings:
Idol Rules, Soft Start for Top Model Season Opener

Wednesday 2/20/08

Household Rating/Share
Fox: 16.6/25, NBC: 6.5/10, CBS: 4.6/ 7, ABC: 3.9/ 6, CW: 2.4/ 4

----------

-Percent Change From the Year-Ago Evening (Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2007)
NBC: +30, CW: +14, Fox: - 8, ABC: -25, CBS: -44

----------

Note: The fast affiliate results for Wednesday will be posted at PIFeedback by 12 p.m. ET. Go to the website, click on Ratings Box (the first category), then Last Night’s Results, and Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2008.

----------

-Yesterday’s Winners:
American Idol (Fox)

-Honorable Mention:
Law & Order (NBC)

-Yesterday’s Losers (Excluding Repeats):
Big Brother 9 (CBS), Wife Swap (ABC), Cashmere Mafia (ABC)

----------

-Ratings Breakdown:
With American Idol on board there is no stopping Fox, which beat the Big 3 networks combined on this February sweeps Wednesday (does anyone even know this is a sweeps period?). American Idol averaged a stellar 16.6 rating/25 share in the overnights from 8-10 p.m., building by half hour as follows:

American Idol (Fox)
8:00 p.m. 14.7/23
8:30 p.m. 16.4/25
9:00 p.m. 17.5/26
9:30 p.m. 17.8/27

As for this first night of female competition, my picks to get the boot tonight: Joanne Borgella and Amy Davis. For more on American Idol, listen to today’s PIPodcast at www.marcberman.tv.

NBC finished in the distant No. 2 spot with its combination of Deal or No Deal (#2: 6.1/ 9), Law & Order: Criminal Intent (#2: 5.7/ 8) and Law & Order (#1: 7.9/13). Considering that Law & Order faced a repeat of CBS’ CSI: NY (5.3/ 9), the overnight results could have been better.

CBS’ winter edition of Big Brother remains a bust, with a fourth-place 3.3/ 5 from 8-9 p.m. Personally, I do not think the couples concept works, particularly with this lackluster combination of people. Big Brother led into a repeat of Criminal Minds at a third-place 5.2/ 8 in the overnights at 9 p.m., followed by the aforementioned CSI: NY encore at a second-place 5.3/ 9 at 10 p.m.

In season-premiere news, the CW’s golden goose, America’s Next Top Model, got off to a modest start, with a last-place 3.1/ 5 at 8 p.m. Although there should be interest among the target young females, comparatively this was down by 16 percent in the overnights from its fall season-premiere on Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007 (3.7/ 6). Top Model led into a repeat of Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious at a 1.8/ 3 (#5) from 9-10 p.m., which beat its original telecast on Monday (1.6/ 2) by 12 percent.

ABC capped off the evening with its line-up of Wife Swap (#3: 3.7/ 5), which has taken a big hit opposite American Idol, Supernanny (#4: 4.4/ 7), which always manages to spark some interest among adults 18-49, and dud Cashmere Mafia (#3: 3.6/ 6). If anyone is interested in a good dramedy about four female friends, Sex and the City comes out on the big screen in May.

Source: Nielsen Media Research data


Ratings Box:
What’s Hot/What’s Not

-USA Continues to Dominate:
Based on ratings for the week of Feb. 11, USA finished first among all basic cable networks for the 7th consecutive week in households (2.32 million), total viewers (3.17 million) and adults 25-54 (1.41 million). Seven of the top-rated entertainment telecasts of the week among adults 25-54 (including Monk and Psych) were on USA.

-National Ratings in Syndication – Week of Feb. 4, 2008:
Here are the top 10 rated programs in syndication based on households for the week of Feb. 4, 2008, followed by any program highlights of note (including demographics):

Wheel of Fortune (CBS Television Distribution): 8.3 rating
Jeopardy (CBS): 6.9
Oprah (CBS): 5.7
Judge Judy (CBS) and Two and a Half Men (Warner Bros): 5.3 each
Entertainment Tonight (CBS): 4.8
Dr. Phil (CBS): 4.7
Wheel of Fortune – Weekend (CBS): 4.5
CSI: Miami (CBS) and Family Guy (Twentieth Television): 4.4 each

-Two and a Half Men was the top-rated off-network sitcom for the week in households (5.3), adults 18-49 (3.1), adults 25-54 (3.4), women 18-49 (3.2), women 25-54 (3.5) and men 25-54 (3.4).

-Warner Bros.’ TMZ continues to dominate among all freshman strips in households (2.3) and all key demos -- adults 18-49 (1.4), adults 25-54 (1.5), adults 18-34 (1.3), women 18-49 (1.6), women 25-54 (1.7) and women 18-34 (1.5). TMZ’ advantage over the nearest freshman competitor was as much as 225 percent among adults 18-34.

-Tyra Banks, also from Warner Bros., rose to a season-high 1.4 in households -- up 17 percent from one week earlier.

-Judge Judy was one of the few established strips to increase year-to-year, with growth of four percent in households. Judy, in addition, is up six percent season to-date (and not on the downside as incorrectly reported yesterday).

-Disney-ABC’s Live With Regis & Kelly, featuring its annual wedding week, grew three percent in households (3.1) and as much as 22 percent among women 18-34 from one week earlier.

Source: Nielsen Media Research data (* = canceled)


National Ratings in Prime-Time:
Week of Feb. 11, 2008

Led by American Idol, Fox’s winning streak continued with another first-place finish in households, total viewers and the three key demos -- adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and adults 18-34. Next was NBC, which benefited by three nights of Deal or No Deal and the success of made-for movie/backdoor pilot Knight Rider at 12.72 million viewers (#8 overall) and a 5.0 rating/12 share among adults 18-49 (#5) in the Sunday 9-11 p.m. block. That should be more than enough for NBC to issue a series order for next season. Comparably, both Fox and NBC were close to year-ago levels.

Elsewhere, double-digit year-to-year percent losses remained the ongoing pattern. CBS continues to take a hit minus original episodes of the CSI franchise, NCIS, Two and a Half Men and Without a Trace (to name a few). But the return of the Eye net’s now sophomore Jericho netted marginal results, with 7.08 million viewers (#44) and a 2.6/ 7 among adults 18-49 (#30t) in the Tuesday 10 p.m. hour. And the winter edition of Big Brother is a bust, with the three weekly editions performing as follows:

Big Brother 9: ‘Til Death Do Us Part (CBS)
-Tuesday, Feb. 12, 9 p.m. ET – Viewers: 6.88 million (#47), A18-49: 2.5/ 6 (#34t) – season premiere
-Wednesday, Feb. 13, 8 p.m. ET – Viewers: 5.65 million (#62), A18-49: 2.0/ 5 (#52t)
-Sunday, Feb. 17, 8 p.m. ET – Viewers: 6.58 million (#52), A18-49: 2.2/ 5 (#45t)

Also on CBS was the network premiere of Showtime drama Dexter at a respectable 8.21 million viewers (#30) and a 2.3/ 6 in the demo (#41t) in the Sunday 10 p.m. hour.

ABC, meanwhile, continues to feel the absence of original episodes of hit shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Desperate Housewives. And struggling the CW probably wishes this whole season was nothing more than a bad dream.

Here are the final national ratings for the week of Feb. 11, 2008 (with percent change versus the comparable year-ago week in parentheses), followed by a listing of the freshman midseason scorecard and the top 20 ranked programs of the week.

-Households:
Fox: 6.7 rating/11 share (- 7), NBC: 5.5/ 9 (- 2), CBS: 5.2/ 8 (-33), ABC: 4.4/ 7 (-28), CW: 1.5/ 2 (-32)

-Total Viewers:
Fox: 11.49 million (- 6), NBC: 8.90 (+ 3), CBS: 8.05 (-34), ABC: 6.95 (-27), CW: 2.23 (-36)

-Adults 18-49:
Fox: 4.6 rating/12 share (-10), NBC: 3.0/ 8 (no change), ABC: 2.3/ 6 (-36), CBS: 2.2/ 6 (-37), CW: 0.8/ 2 (-43)

-Adults 25-54:
Fox: 5.0/12 (- 6), NBC: 3.4/ 8 (no change), CBS: 2.9/ 7 (-36), ABC: 2.7/ 7 (-31), CW: 0.8/ 2 (-38)

-Adults 18-34:
Fox: 4.3/13 (- 9), NBC: 2.3/ 7 (- 8), ABC: 1.8/ 5 (-44), CBS: 1.4/ 4 (-39), CW: 0.9/ 3 (-44)

----------

Freshman Scorecard

Moment of Truth (Fox) – Wed. 9 p.m.
Viewers: 14.01 million (#3), A18-49: 6.0/15 (#3)

Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann (ABC) – Mon. 8 p.m.
Viewers: 9.16 million (#20), A18-49: 2.4/ 6 (#38t)

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Fox) – Mon. 9 p.m.
Viewers: 8.32 million (#29), A18-49: 3.5/ 8 (#15t)

Eli Stone (ABC) – Thurs. 10 p.m.
Viewers: 7.46 million (#39), A18-49: 2.6/ 7 (#30t)

Welcome to the Captain (CBS) – Mon. 8:30 p.m.
Viewers: 7.03 million (#46), A18-49: 2.6/ 6 (#30t)

Lipstick Jungle (NBC) – Thurs. 10 p.m.
Viewers: 6.00 million (#60), A18-49: 2.5/ 7 (#34t)

----------

Top 20 Rankings

-Total Viewers:
American Idol – Tuesday (Fox): 29.96 million, American Idol –Wednesday (Fox): 24.75, Moment of Truth (Fox): 14.01, Lost (ABC): 13.76, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC): 13.49, Survivor: Micronesia (CBS): 13.18, Deal or No Deal – Monday (NBC): 13.15, Movie: Knight Rider (NBC): 12.72, 60 Minutes (CBS); 12.50, Deal or No Deal – Thursday (NBC): 12.18, Two and a Half Men R (CBS): 11.90, Daytona 500 Post Race (Fox): 11.76, NCIS R (CBS): 11.38, Deal or No Deal – Wednesday (NBC): 11.07, CSI R (CBS): 10.87, Law & Order (NBC): 10.22, The New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS): 9.89, Without a Trace R (CBS): 9.65, Cold Case (CBS): 9.57, Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann (ABC): 9.16

-Adults 18-49:
American Idol – Tuesday (Fox): 12.3 rating/29 share, American Idol –Wednesday (Fox): 9.8/26, Moment of Truth (Fox): 6.0/15, Lost (ABC): 5.8/15, Movie: Knight Rider (NBC): 5.0/12, Survivor: Micronesia (CBS): 4.6/13, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC): 4.6/11, Daytona 500 Post Race (Fox): 4.5/14, Deal or No Deal – Monday (NBC): 4.3.11, Two and a Half Men R (CBS): 3.9/ 9, Celebrity Apprentice (NBC): 3.7/10, American Gladiators (NBC): 3.7/ 9, The Simpsons (Fox): 3.6/ 9, Family Guy (Fox): 3.6/ 8, Supernanny (ABC): 3.5/ 9, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Fox): 3.5/ 8, Deal or No Deal – Thursday (NBC): 3.4/10, The New Adventures of Old Christine (CBS): 3.4/ 8, Prison Break (Fox): 3.3/ 8, Law & Order (NBC) and American Gladiators (NBC, Sun. 7 p.m.): 3.0/ 8 each, Brothers & Sisters (ABC): 3.0/ 7

Source: Nielsen Media Research data (R = repeat)


On the Air Tonight:
Prime-Time Programming Options

Thursday 2/21/08

ABC:
8:00 p.m. Lost (R)
9:00 p.m. Lost
10:00 p.m. Eli Stone

CBS:
8:00 p.m. Survivor: Micronesia
9:00 p.m. CSI (R)
10:00 p.m. Without a Trace (R)

NBC:
8:00 p.m. My Name is Earl (R)
8:30 p.m. My Name is Earl (R)
9:00 p.m. Celebrity Apprentice
10:00 p.m. Lipstick Jungle

Fox:
8:00 p.m. American Idol (Results Show)
9:00 p.m. Don’t Forget the Lyrics

CW:
8:00 p.m. Supernatural (R)
9:00 p.m. Supernatural

MTNV
8:00 p.m. Movie: Low Down Dirty Shame (R)


TV Tidbits:
Notes of Interest

-CBS Sitcoms Swap Time Periods:
CBS’ How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory will swap time periods, with freshman The Big Bang Theory moving into the Monday 8 p.m. anchor spot followed by three-year-old How I Met Your Mother at 8:30 p.m. effective on March 17.

-Friday Night Lights – Season Three:
No, the renewal for 2008-09 is not official yet. But executives at NBC Universal are reported to be in search of multiple broadcast platforms for the critically acclaimed drama. The network has had conversations, to-date, with the CW, Comcast Entertainment Networks, DirecTV and TNT about sharing a window.

-Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner on Oxygen:
Cable net Oxygen will celebrate Black History Month with an airing of theatrical classic Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner on Sunday, March 24 at 2 p.m. ET. The movie, of course, stars Sidney Poitier, Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy in his final role. Also featured is Isabel “Weezie” Sanford.

-Coming Up on Cartoon Network:
The home of animated hits, Cartoon Network, will introduce a new series called Chop Socky Chooks on Friday, March 7 at 9 p.m. ET. The premise: Chuckie Chan, KO Joe and Chick P are the mysterious Chop Socky Chooks, Kung Fu Chickens who live and work a shopping mall called Wasabi World. The trio dedicates their lives to opposing Wasabi World’s owner, Doctor Wasabi, who’s set on world domination.

-ABC Announces Series Return Dates:
ABC has confirmed the following return dates and times for its strike-delayed roster of prime-time series:

Samantha Who?: Monday, April 7, 9:30 p.m. ET (six additional episodes)
Boston Legal: Tuesday, April 8, 10 p.m. ET (six episodes)
Desperate Housewives: Sunday, April 13, 9 p.m. ET (five one-hour episodes plus a two-hour season-finale)
Brothers & Sisters: Sunday, April 20, 10 p.m. ET (four episodes)
Ugly Betty: Thursday, April 24, 8 p.m. ET (five episodes)
Grey’s Anatomy: Thursday, April 24, 9 p.m. ET (five episodes)

Lost, in addition, will move to a new time period, 10 p.m. Thursday out of Grey’s Anatomy, effective on April 24. Thirteen episodes are now scheduled. And freshman dramas Pushing Daisies, Private Practice and Dirty Sexy Money are all scheduled to return next fall.

----------

Correction:
Upcoming half-hour series Unhitched on Fox is a scripted sitcom (and not non-scripted as incorrectly reported yesterday). Executive-produced by the Farrelly Brothers, Unhitched focuses on four newly single 30something friends who live together in Boston and attempt to restart their romantic lives. The series stars Craig Bierko, Rashida Jones, Johnny Sneed and Shaun Majumder, and it premieres on Sunday, March 2 at 9:30 p.m. ET.


TV Trivia Time:
That’s a Whole Mess of Flap Jacks!

Which TV character once ate 57 pancakes in a contest?

a) Dan Conner
b) Oswald Harvey
c) Ralph Malph
d) Goober Pyle
e) Dwight White

Which character on Knots Landing was killed off first?

a) Jill Bennett
b) Ciji Dunne
c) Sid Fairgate
d) Peter Hollister
e) Patricia Williams

Is: c) Sid Fairgate. After Don Murray foolishly quit the series, the writers sent him packing in a teary-eyed death scene early in season three.


-Current kudos goes to:
Ed Beach, Barbara Berman, Gerry Bixenspan, Kevin Brault, John Carlo, Larry Collins, Gus Curran, Bob Ingersoll, Deb Kainer, Kathryn Kieser, James Maxim, Kathy McClung, Anne Moynihan, Tony Naldrett, Greg Phelan, Rusty Ricketts, Lisa Tatum-Roehrig, Joe Rubi, Jason Shelley, DeWayne Snype, Michelle Stanton, Andrew Stearn, Ronnie Tallant, Rick Wagar, Paul Ward, Carol Zenone