Prime-Time Ratings:
Wednesday 4/16/08

The following results are based on the fast affiliate ratings (Live Plus Same Day data)

-Total Viewers:
Fox: 14.58 million, CBS: 10.78, ABC: 9.17, NBC: 6.75, CW: 2.78

-Adults 18-49:
Fox: 5.4 rating/15 share, CBS: 3.2/ 9, ABC: 2.4/ 6, NBC: 1.9/ 5, CW: 1.4/ 4

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Note: Any prior rating results are based on the final nationals. Since the level of DVR penetration has increased from 13 percent at this same point last year to approximately 23 percent at present, the overall results may be negatively impacted.

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-Yesterday’s Winners:
American Idol (Fox), Democratic Presidential Candidate Debate (ABC), Criminal Minds (CBS), CSI: NY (CBS)

-Honorable Mention:
Deal or No Deal (NBC)

-Losing Steam:
America’s Next Top Model (CW)

-Yesterday’s Losers (Excluding Repeats):
Big Brother 9 (CBS), ‘Til Death (Fox), Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious (CW), Men in Trees (ABC)

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-Ratings Breakdown:
With American Idol in the mix, there is no stopping Fox, which dominated in both total viewers and adults 18-49. Second overall was CBS, followed by ABC, NBC and the CW.

American Idol, of course, stood well above anything else on Wednesday, with 22.74 million viewers and an 8.5 rating/21 share among adults 18-49 from 9-10 p.m. Comparably, that built from relocated lead-in Back To You (Viewers: #3, 7.00 million; A18-49: #3, 2.4/ 7 at 8:30 p.m.) by a mammoth 15.74 million viewers and 254 percent among adults 18-49. Leading off the night for Fox was relocated ‘Til Death at a disappointing (and fourth-place) 5.85 million viewers and a 2.0/ 7 among adults 18-49 at 8 p.m. On average, ‘Til Death and Back To You trailed a repeat of year-ago occupant Bones (Viewers: 8.09 million; A18-49: 2.6/ 8 on April 18, 2007) by an average of 1.67 million viewers and 15 percent among adults 18-49.

As for American Idol, while the departure of Kristy Lee Cook comes as no big surprise, pouting Brooke White has just got to go. Each week she seems to get more obnoxious.

ABC got plenty of mileage out of the Democratic Presidential Candidate Debate, which averaged a very respectable 10.70 million viewers and a 2.8/ 8 among adults 18-49 from 8-10 p.m., with the half-hour breakdown as follows:

Democratic Presidential Candidate Debate
8:00 p.m. – Viewers: 9.95 million (#1), A18-49: 2.4/ 8 (#1)
8:30 p.m. – Viewers: 11.84 million (#1), A18-49: 3.0/ 8 (#1)
9:00 p.m. – Viewers: 11.26 million (#3), A18-49: 3.0/ 8 (#2)
9:30 p.m. – Viewers: 9.76 million (#3), A18-49: 2.6/ 6 (#3)

Despite the inflated lead-in support, hiatus-bound Men in Trees dipped to a last-place 6.11 million viewers and a 1.6/ 4 among adults 18-49 at 10 p.m. Comparably, that put the retention for Men in Trees out of the last half-hour of the Presidential Candidate Debate at just63 percent in total viewers and 62 percent in the demo.

CBS had a typical Wednesday with its combination of Big Brother 9 (Viewers: #4, 6.14 million; A18-49: #3, 2.3/ 7), Criminal Minds (Viewers: #2, 12.85 million; A18-49: #2, 3.5/ 9), which built from Big Brother by a hefty 6.71 million viewers and 52 percent in the demo, and CSI: NY (Viewers: #1, 13.35 million; A18-49: #1, 3.7/10). As for Big Brother, Natalie is gone. Hallelujah!!! Too bad that Sharon did not win HOH, though.

Next up was NBC with its line-up of Deal or No Deal (Viewers: #2, 9.67 million; A18-49: #2, 2.6/ 8), a repeat of Law & Order: Criminal Intent (Viewers: #4, 4.37 million; A18-49: #4, 1.4/ 3), and a repeat of Law & Order (Viewers: #2, 6.20 million; A18-49: #2, 1.8/ 5). And last was the CW with its non-scripted roster of fading jewel America’s Next Top Model (Viewers: #5, 3.74 million; A18-49: #5, 1.8/ 6) and Pussycat Dolls Present: Girlicious (Viewers: #5, 1.81 million; A18-49: #5, 0.9/ 2). What concerns me about Top Model is the year-to-year erosion of 1.46 million viewers and 31 percent in the demo (Viewers: 5.20 million; A18-49: 2.6/ 8 on April 18, 2007). Should the CW be concerned?

Source: Nielsen Media Research data

Top Model needs to radically alter their format or get better contestants. Top Model has degenerated from a modeling contestant to a platform for Tyra's talk show and her "social movements." It obviously doesn't help that none of the winners have actually graduated to top model status. The falling tides are lowering all ships on the CW. Hopefully next week Supernatural would renew with good numbers and perhaps lead off a night next year, or another two seasons could be the end of the CW.

Could it be that America's Next Top Model suffered its drop last night due to the premieres of MyNetworkTV's "Under One Roof" and "The Best of In Living Color"?

Horrible numbers for FOX's comedies. Both Back 2 You and Til Death came back to subpar numbers. They both pulled in New Amsterdam numbers. FOX is correct in saying that they need to establish comedies on the network and create a night. Plugging two in whatever space is available is not working for them. That being said, Back 2 You is never going to be the huge comedy hit they wanted, no matter where they stick it in the lineup.

CW needs to be concerned. As I said before, ANTM is getting stale and it is reflecting in the numbers. They can't rely on ANTM to bring in the crowds and need to develop shows that can stand on their own. The real concern is how long the CW can last if all their shows are declining. The answer: not long. The Pussycat Dolls better start looking for a new home as it won't be broadcasted on the CW next year.

Just end Men In Trees. No matter where it is stuck in the lineup, it underperforms.

I completely agree. This year's crop of "models" are boring and at times cringeworthy. Whoever casted them did a horrible job. In terms of modeling, it has become completely irrelevent. If you watch Season 1, the production job was much worse but the relevancy to the industry was a lot higher. Somewhere along the journey, ANTM became Tyra's Platform with Models In the Background.

quote:

Originally posted by Suzaku:
Top Model needs to radically alter their format or get better contestants. Top Model has degenerated from a modeling contestant to a platform for Tyra's talk show and her "social movements." It obviously doesn't help that none of the winners have actually graduated to top model status. The falling tides are lowering all ships on the CW. Hopefully next week Supernatural would renew with good numbers and perhaps lead off a night next year, so another two seasons could be the end of the CW.

CSI NY has bounced back after the strike. Poor CMM, what a horrible lead-in, but even so its numbers should've been better.

Debate's numbers show the overnights are hardly indicative. But still 10 million is not bad

Just how many times is DOND airing every week?

fox should have Idol lead into the comedies.

A lot of BB fans are ticked off at the way the show ended- they think the HOH game was rigged.

Basically the last question was "Ryan/Jen and Sharon/Jacob were pre-existing couples when they entered the house. But there is a third pre-existing couple still in the house. Fact or Fiction?" The answer was Fact- there are no HUMAN relationships left....but the house guinea pigs are related! (apparently they came from the same litter).

The HG's are confused now (they haven't told them this), and people are ticked it was a trick question, plus it was the last question of the game, it forced a tie, and the person who was leading at the time lost the tiebreak.

They say the question could have had either answer, and the result was fixed to favor one person or disfavor another. I disagree- it was just a trick question, and they just haven't figured it out yet.

quote:

Originally posted by Suzaku:
Top Model needs to radically alter their format or get better contestants. Top Model has degenerated from a modeling contestant to a platform for Tyra's talk show and her "social movements." It obviously doesn't help that none of the winners have actually graduated to top model status. The falling tides are lowering all ships on the CW. Hopefully next week Supernatural would renew with good numbers and perhaps lead off a night next year, so another two seasons could be the end of the CW.

Agreed. CW is in serious trouble. I just can't see any of its new shows being a hit in any sort of real network way. Too many people don't receive CW, (except if they have digital cable) don't know the CW exists after all this time (plenty of those people) or simply discount any new offerings the CW might have because it's considered a subpar teenybopper network.

Supernatural needs to make a big splash upon its
return with new episodes next week but.....surprise, surprise.....its first new episode in two months is being preempted in the #3 market in the country for a Chicago Cubs game. That'll inflate the fast nationals, and cost it about 300,000 viewers in the final ratings. CSI and The Office are back, too. Are Original Greys' back? Such is life on the CW. It's a subpar network that will continue to get preempted on a regular basis in the spring for sports.

Top Model should be a once a year event. It's completely stale and has worn out its formula. How many times can you watch an uber thin girl win a modeling contest that will lead to fifteen minutes of fame? Oh well, I'm sure Farmer Wants a Wife will pick up the slack.

These seem like really bad numbers for American Idol, even after the breathtakingly low ratings for "Idol Gives Back."
What were its ratings at this time last year?

quote:

Originally posted by Marc Berman:
Prime-Time Ratings:
Wednesday 4/16/08

American Idol, of course, stood well above anything else on Wednesday, with 22.74 million viewers and an 8.5 rating/21 share among adults 18-49 from 9-10 p.m.

Agreed. Tyra is hardly on the show anymore and the program has been just total crap for the last few seasons. The show is just boring. Even the (staged?) catfights suck (hey, throw some actual fists!) Meanwhile, Tyra just keeps on feeding her big fat ego.

quote:

Originally posted by Suzaku:
Top Model needs to radically alter their format or get better contestants. Top Model has degenerated from a modeling contestant to a platform for Tyra's talk show and her "social movements." It obviously doesn't help that none of the winners have actually graduated to top model status. The falling tides are lowering all ships on the CW. Hopefully next week Supernatural would renew with good numbers and perhaps lead off a night next year, so another two seasons could be the end of the CW.

Apart from a few programs, it seems like EVERYTHING is really taking a big nosedive in ratings this spring. American Idol especially is really soft this year, despite the lackluster competetion against it. Apparently last night was a season low, and I think there's lower lows to be set.

A horrible leadin, Spring time declines and facing AI, those numbers are pretty good.

quote:

Originally posted by robert:
CSI NY has bounced back after the strike. Poor CMM, what a horrible lead-in, but even so its numbers should've been better.

Debate's numbers show the overnights are hardly indicative. But still 10 million is not bad

quote:

Originally posted by galveston:
Agreed. CW is in serious trouble. I just can't see any of its new shows being a hit in any sort of real network way. Too many people don't receive CW, (except if they have digital cable) don't know the CW exists after all this time (plenty of those people) or simply discount any new offerings the CW might have because it's considered a subpar teenybopper network.

Especially since the CW is now offering a new show named How to Teach Filthy Rich Girls, which runs along the same vein as Gossip Girl except this show is about what happens when a poor girl meets extremely rich girls. Obviously iTune sales must count for plenty of revenue, since besides being one of the best sellers on iTune there is really nothing else going for Gossip Girl. The viewers would never know the exact number, because it's all kept secret.

quote:

Supernatural needs to make a big splash upon its
return with new episodes next week but.....surprise, surprise.....its first new episode in two months is being preempted in the #3 market in the country for a Chicago Cubs game. That'll inflate the fast nationals, and cost it about 300,000 viewers in the final ratings. CSI and The Office are back, too. Are Original Greys' back? Such is life on the CW. It's a subpar network that will continue to get preempted on a regular basis in the spring for sports.

Supernatural doesn't deliver the numbers it did in Season 1, and it started to decline during Season 2. Sometimes I think that Supernatural should expand and throw something new into the mix such as new mythology, even sex (they do have good looking actors why not use them) or depart from the myth arc after this season.