View Full Version : Hot Off The Press! The Latest Television News and Info
miiller344
11-02-05, 07:15 PM
fredfa,
I was wondering if you know (or a link to) how the ratings for the 2005 NFL season on FOX, CBS, ESPN, ABC have been thus far into the season! I've researched this extensively and It's hard to find any info on this! I'd also be interested in how it compares with last year!!
Mike
I will see if I can find some info for you, miller344.
Fred, thanks for all the "Over There" articles, much appreciated.
gsg8838
11-02-05, 09:29 PM
NBC UNIVERSAL CABLE ENTERTAINMENT UNCLOAKS 'SLEUTH' - NEW CRIME/MYSTERY/SUSPENSE GENRE CABLE NETWORK
Released by NBC Universal Television Studios
Burbank, CA - November 2, 2005 - NBC Universal Cable Entertainment announces the launch of SLEUTH, a 24-hour entertainment cable channel dedicated to the popular - and enduring - crime, mystery and suspense genre. The announcement was made today by Jeff Gaspin, President, NBC Universal Cable Entertainment, Digital Content and Cross Network Strategy and David Zaslav, President, NBC Universal Cable.
SLEUTH, launching January 1, 2006, will be the first network to offer a digital triple pack service, which features a standard definition digital channel (SD), hi-definition simulcast channel (HD), and a video-on-demand (VOD) channel offered as a digital bundle. The SD digital channel will be available January 1, 2006, with the VOD and HD offerings available later in 2006.
Full story at thefutoncritic[dot]com
NBC UNIVERSAL CABLE ENTERTAINMENT UNCLOAKS 'SLEUTH' - NEW CRIME/MYSTERY/SUSPENSE GENRE CABLE NETWORK
Released by NBC Universal Television Studios
Burbank, CA - November 2, 2005 - NBC Universal Cable Entertainment announces the launch of SLEUTH, a 24-hour entertainment cable channel dedicated to the popular - and enduring - crime, mystery and suspense genre. The announcement was made today by Jeff Gaspin, President, NBC Universal Cable Entertainment, Digital Content and Cross Network Strategy and David Zaslav, President, NBC Universal Cable.
SLEUTH, launching January 1, 2006, will be the first network to offer a digital triple pack service, which features a standard definition digital channel (SD), hi-definition simulcast channel (HD), and a video-on-demand (VOD) channel offered as a digital bundle. The SD digital channel will be available January 1, 2006, with the VOD and HD offerings available later in 2006.
Full story at thefutoncritic[dot]com
Balance of article below,
At launch the network will have more than 5 million subscribers through distribution deals with Time Warner Cable, the first affiliate to carry SLEUTH.
The new channel will feature crime and mystery classics from NBC Universal's extensive library of feature films, classic television shows, reality series and documentaries. Programming includes popular and cult television series like "Miami Vice," "The A-Team," and "Knight Rider." Crime, mystery and suspense films like "Scarface," "The Jackal," "Casino," "Sneakers" and "Mercury Rising" will be in the SD and HD lineups, with at least 20 hours of content from the channels offered on demand at any given time to consumers.
"We're thrilled to offer one core channel with three digital products with Sleuth," said Gaspin. "Crime, mystery and suspense are the all time most popular television genres and Sleuth will be a network devoted exclusively to these genres. The programming on Sleuth, tapped from NBC Universal's vast library, will appeal to a broad audience who will be able to enjoy everything from classic films and nostalgic TV shows to current documentaries and series."
"When we closed the deal with Universal, we were focused on launching a new channel utilizing the valuable library that was available and that was highly appealing to consumers and to our distributors," said Zaslav. "After talking to our customers and looking at the research regarding programming that people want, we decided to focus on Sleuth. We have received a lot of support from our distributors and Time Warner was the first affiliate to commit to launching Sleuth to more than 5 million subscribers."
The specific programming schedule for SLEUTH will be announced at a later date.
About NBC Universal Cable
NBC Universal Cable, a division of NBC Universal, one of the world's preeminent media companies, drives the company's cable strategic development and growth including video-on-demand, pay-per-view, HDTV and retransmission consent, and oversees the cable distribution, marketing and local ad sales of fifteen properties (Bravo, CNBC, CNBC World, MSNBC, mun2, NBC Weather Plus, SCI FI, ShopNBC, Sleuth Telemundo, Telemundo Puerto Rico, Trio, Universal HD, USA and the Olympics on cable). NBC Universal Cable also directs and manages the company's cable and new media investments including A&E, The History Channel, History Channel International, The Biography Channel, National Geographic International, the Sundance Channel and Tivo.
I'm always up for more HD, but really, isn't that was Universal-HD was for? UHD has practically nothing compelling on it anymore. It would have benefited nicely from the the programming that is set to appear on Sleuth.
THE 2005-2006 TV SEASON
November sweeps: Day by day
By Robert Bianco USA TODAY
Prepare to be swept away. Starting today, we'll be engulfed by the November sweeps, one of those quarterly ratings periods that the networks stuff with specials, stunts and guest-star stints. USA TODAY helps you plan your sweeps time (all times ET/PT):
Thursday, Nov. 3
Smallville (WB, 8 p.m.) Taking that Good Old Boys theme song to heart, Tom Wopat joins John Schneider for a mini-Dukes reunion. With Catherine Bach missing, one of them will have to wear the shorts.
Sunday, Nov. 6
The Simpsons (Fox, 8 p.m.) The annual "Treehouse of Horror" faces West Wing's live debate (NBC, 8 p.m. ). But the real terror is CBS' two-part Category 7: The End of the World (9 p.m.). Think of it as last season's Category 6 storm with delusions of grandeur.
Monday, Nov. 7-Thursday, Nov. 11
Here's a pretty picture: It's Next Top Model week on UPN, with contestants from the first five editions on every show except Everybody Hates Chris.
Monday, Nov. 7
CSI: Miami (CBS, 10 p.m.) What would sweeps be without a goofy crossover? For November, Miami folks trade places with CSI: NY (Wednesday, 10 p.m.). For Miami, that's slumming.
Wednesday, Nov. 9
Lost (ABC, 9 p.m.) TV's best series returns from a brief break with an episode that reshapes the fate of one of the castaways. That's all I'm saying.
Saturday, Nov. 12
MADtv (Fox, 11 p.m.) And they said it wouldn't last. The late-night comedy celebrates its 250th episode with host Pamela Anderson.
Sunday, Nov. 13
SNL in the '80s: Lost and Found (NBC, 9 p.m.) A day after Mad's celebration, its older Saturday rival gets a special of its own. The same writer/director did last season's Live from New York, one of the year's best specials.
Tuesday, Nov. 15
Vibe Awards (UPN, 8 p.m.) Choose your music: The hip-hop awards air opposite CBS' Country Music Association Awards (8 p.m.). Or wait till Wednesday for CBS' I Walk the Line: A Night for Johnny Cash (8 p.m.).
Wednesday, Nov. 16
That '70s Show (Fox, 8 p.m.) In probably the biggest guest-star get of the sweeps, '70s teams Ashton Kutcher with Bruce Willis for reasons that are obvious to anyone who has ever seen a celebrity column.
Sunday, Nov. 20
The Poseidon Adventure (NBC, 8 p.m.)
Is it possible to remake without Shelley Winters? Maybe, but can those new Poseidonites survive a far graver threat than a flipped ship: a wedding on ABC's Desperate Housewives (9 p.m.)?
Monday, Nov. 21
Medium (NBC, 10 p.m.) What's the goofiest stunt of the sweeps? A 3-D episode of a show that's usually lucky to achieve 2-D.
Tuesday, Nov. 22
The American Music Awards (ABC, 8 p.m.) Cedric the Entertainer hosts one of the season's more reliably popular specials. Boomers take note: The Stones will perform live.
Sunday, Nov. 27
Silver Bells (CBS, 9 p.m.) What would November be without at least one sappy CBS movie? This year, it's a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie for Anne Heche and Tate Donovan.
Monday, Nov. 28
Prison Break (Fox, 9 p.m.) Don't miss the "fall finale," after which Break takes a break until May. Which is an odd way to treat folks who love you.
Tuesday, Nov. 29
Felicity/American Girl Adventure (WB, 8 p.m.) It's valley of the dolls time on WB. Meanwhile, the new commander at Commander in Chief (ABC, 9), Steven Bochco, brings NYPD Blue's Mark-Paul Gosselaar aboard.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/reviews/2005-11-02-sweeps-guide_x.htm
Marcus Carr
11-03-05, 01:39 AM
NBC UNIVERSAL CABLE ENTERTAINMENT UNCLOAKS 'SLEUTH' - NEW CRIME/MYSTERY/SUSPENSE GENRE CABLE NETWORK
I wonder if this channel is part of the negotiations with Comcast.
I wonder if this channel is part of the negotiations with Comcast.
I suspect that this channel is more about NBC/Uni increasing their presence on cable and sat than any wealth of programming. I can't think of any other reason why this material would not be shown on the channel they already have, at least the HD component.
It's like at the supermarket, bring out as many products as you can to grab as much shelf space as possible. Ever look at the ingredients of the 5-6 different Excedrin boxes on the shelf..?
Marcus Carr
11-03-05, 09:53 AM
Yeah, I'd rather have an HD version of one of their existing channels, like Sci Fi.
Oh well, as long as there's enough bandwidth...
THE 2005-2006 TV SEASON
November sweeps: Upscale Season to-date Rankings:
ABC Moves into the Top 3
Based on the first five weeks of the 2005-06 season (Sept. 19 - Oct. 23, 2005), NBC has lost its dominance among upscale viewers, with ABC's Desperate Housewives, Lost and Grey's Anatomy holding the top 3 spots among adults 18-49 and adults 25-54 in $100k+ homes. Seven of the top 20 rated shows in upscale adults 18-49, and 8 of the top 20 among upscale adults 25-54 are on ABC. Three freshman series -- ABC's Commander in Chief and Invasion, and NBC's My Name is Earl -- have made the grade.
Take a look:
Upscale Programs ($100k+ Homes)
Adults 18-49:
Desperate Housewives (ABC: 16.3 rating)
1. Lost (ABC: 12.3)
2. Grey's Anatomy (ABC: 10.7)
3. CSI (CBS: 9.2)
4. ER (NBC: 8.4)
5. The Apprentice 4 (NBC: 7.5)
6. My Name is Earl (NBC: 7.2)
7. Law & Order: SVU (NBC: 7.0)
8. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC: 6.7)
9. Law & Order (NBC: 6.3)
10. Monday Night Football (ABC: 6.2)
12t Commander in Chief (ABC: 6.1)
12t Without A Trace (CBS 6.1)
12t Medium (NBC: 6.1)
15. CSI: Miami (CBS: 5.9)
16. Survivor: Guatemala (CBS: 5.8)
17. Two and a Half Men (CBS: 5.7)
18t Will & Grace (NBC 5.6)
18t The Office (NBC: 5.6)
20. Invasion (ABC: 5.4)
Adults 25-54:
1. Desperate Housewives (ABC: 18.4)
2. Lost (ABC: 13.8)
3. Grey's Anatomy (ABC: 12.3)
4. CSI (CBS: 11.7)
5. ER (NBC: 10.1)
6. Law & Order: SVU (NBC: 8.2)
7t Commander in Chief (ABC) 8.1
7t The Apprentice 4 (NBC) 8.1
9. My Name is Earl (NBC: 7.9)
10. Law & Order (NBC: 7.8)
11. Without A Trace (CBS: 7.5)
12t Survivor: Guatemala (CBS) 7.4
12t Medium (NBC: 7.4)
14t Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (ABC 7.3)
14t CSI: Miami (CBS)7.3
16. Two and a Half Men (CBS: 7.3)
17. Monday Night Football (ABC: 6.7)
18. Boston Legal (ABC: 6.6)
19. Invasion (ABC: 6.5)
20. House (Fox: 6.0)
Source: Nielsen Media Research data
Heads up on an interesting article which discusses the future viability of network TV.
How $2 downloads can revive network television
It has now been 20 days since Apple announced it would sell selected ABC-Disney television programs via iTunes. As of Monday, iTunes customers had bought more than than 1 million videos. At first glance, these sales figures seem like another nail in the coffin of broadcast television. If we can get television content online, on demand, whenever we want it, how will networks convince us to tune in on their schedules? For that matter, how can they be certain we'll tune in at all?
I’ve posted the entire article over here:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=92
(To fulfill a reader request. I'll post these syndication numbers occasionally.)
THE 2005-2006 TV SEASON
National Syndication Ratings
Week Ending October 23, 2005
# Programs Rtg Households(in thousands)
1. WHEEL OF FORTUNE 7.8 8,623
2. OPRAH WINFREY SHOW 7.0 7,745
3. JEOPARDY 6.2 6,808
4. EVRY LVS RAYMOND-SYN 5.9 6,539
5. SEINFELD 5.1 5,628
6. SEINFELD-WKND 5.1 5,619
7. DR. PHIL SHOW 5.0 5,541
8. ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT 5.0 5,524
9. FRIENDS 4.7 5,206
10. JUDGE JUDY 4.6 5,099
11. CSI-SYN 4.5 4,941
12. THAT 70S SHOW-MF-SYN 3.9 4,290
13. EVBDY LVS RAYMOND-WKD-SYN 3.7 4,059
14. INSIDE EDITION 3.4 3,753
15. LIVE WITH REGIS AND KELLY 3.3 3,626
16. ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT WKD 3.2 3,534
17. JUDGE JOE BROWN 3.1 3,399
18. MILLIONAIRE 2.9 3,167
19. WHEEL OF FORTUNE WKND 2.8 3,064
20. PEOPLE'S COURT 2.7 2,962
21. INSIDER 2.7 2,936
22. KING OF QUEENS-SYN 2.6 2,917
23. ACCESS HOLLYWOOD 2.6 2,857
24. MAURY 2.6 2,843
25. EXTRA 2.4 2,648
Source: Nielsen Media Research
Nielsen Ratings: Oops!
On eve of sweeps, big Nielsen snafu
'Processing problem' delays television ratings
By Diego Vasquez MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Nov 3, 2005
Nielsen began releasing ratings again this morning after a processing glitch delayed Tuesday’s ratings for more than 24 hours.
The ratings service expects delivery to be back to normal by tomorrow morning, with November sweeps beginning tonight.
This morning, Tuesday night’s ratings, which are usually released Wednesday morning, were released at 11:30 a.m., still a half hour after Nielsen had expected them. Wednesday night ratings won’t be released until later today.
Nielsen alerted its clients of a potential problem yesterday at 10:30 a.m., and though several networks said they expected ratings by 1 p.m., nothing came. By 3:30, Nielsen said processing problems had delayed both the fast nationals and the final ratings, which are usually released in the afternoon.
Nielsen still has not fully explained the processing problems or what they entail. Multiple calls to the company went unreturned this morning.
“With sweeps starting tonight, it’s imperative that they get past these delays,” says one network spokesperson.
Nielsen also told its clients yesterday that it will suspend local November sweeps surveys in Miami-Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm Beach-Ft. Pierce after Hurricane Wilma.
“As a result of this lack of fundamental services, the current Set-Meter in-tab counts are significantly below the levels to which Nielsen Media Research would normally use to measure tuning in these markets,” said a release sent to clients. “As of October 31st 2005, the local market Set-Meter in-tab count for Miami-Ft. Lauderdale was 218 homes while West Palm Beach-Ft. Pierce is at 191 sample households.
“In November 2004, the Miami market had an average meter in-tab count of 465 while West Palm Beach had 350 on average. The Miami Hispanic Sample count was a 174 compared to 273 in November 2004.”
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/article_1090.asp
FCC ADVANCES TUNER MANDATE
The FCC announced it has amended rules requiring TV manufacturers to include digital tuners in their receivers.
The change will require digital tuners in all new TV receivers regardless of size by March 1, 2007. The original mandate didn't apply to sets with screens smaller than 13 inches, but in a press release, "the Commission noted the particular value of ... portable, typically battery-powered products for enabling the reception of news and public safety information in times of emergency."
Full press release (.pdf format): http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-262013A1.pdf
Tuesday’s network prime-time ratings are now (finally) at the top of RATINGS NEWS the second post in this thread. Hopefully yesterday’s ratings will be available later today.
Nielsen Ratings:
NBC's latest woe: Flight of the affluent
ABC now reaches more high-income viewers
By Kevin Downey MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Nov 3, 2005
One might think NBC couldn’t sink any lower from its onetime dominance in the ratings and ad revenue.
It can and has. Nielsen data for the new broadcast season reveal the network is now suffering its biggest and potentially most devastating humiliation.
NBC is losing hold of the affluent viewers that advertisers most prize.
Through the first six weeks of the new season, ABC has surpassed NBC in reaching adults 25-54 in homes with household incomes of $100,000 or more. And it has matched NBC in the percentage of its audience that falls into this group. That is according to an analysis of Nielsen Media Research data released this week by Magna Global.
NBC had been the dominant network in reaching affluent viewers for decades, which was a key reason it was the most lucrative network for most of the past 20 years.
“Everything else being equal, a network is generally able to charge more if a show has an upscale audience,” notes Steve Sternberg, executive vice president and director of audience analysis at Magna.
“A show like NBC’s ‘The Office’ was likely renewed despite low ratings because it is one of the most upscale shows on television, and last season it was the most upscale.”
Sternberg focused on affluent adults aged 25-54 in his analysis even though the major networks primarily concentrate on reaching adults 18-49. The reason, he explains, is that the younger part of the 18-49 demographic consists largely of people living with parents, meaning their income doesn’t accurately reflect their value to advertisers.
NBC’s slip in affluent viewers will only worsen its revenue picture. The network was down $900 million in advertising revenue on a year-to-year basis in this past summer’s upfront ad selling season, slipping behind CBS and ABC for the first time in two decades.
NBC, obviously anxious to preserve its affluence quotient, has kept not just "The Office" on its schedule. It has continued to stand behind and promote “The Apprentice,” which remains on Thursdays despite severe ratings erosion.
Credit the show's well-to-do audience. While it ranks No. 12 with a 7.4 rating in the affluent demographic, one out of five people watching the reality show is an adult 25-54 with a household income of $100,000 or more. Affluent viewers are twice as likely to watch “The Apprentice” as other programs.
“E.R.” and “Will & Grace,” two other NBC Thursday series with sinking ratings, also rank among the 10 shows with the highest concentration of affluent viewers, as does the new hit sitcom “My Name is Earl.”
What changed this year is that ABC shows that didn’t exist two years ago now also pop up among the top 10, and above NBC's.
ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” is the highest-rated show in the upscale demographic, and it ranks No. 2 in the percentage of affluent viewers watching the program. “Lost” is No. 2 and No. 7, respectively, on the two measures, while “Grey’s Anatomy” ranks No. 3 in affluence ratings and No. 4 in the concentration of upscale viewers.
“[This is] significant because NBC was always far and away the most upscale network,” says Sternberg.
A few programs on other networks also score well with affluent viewers. Based on the percentage of viewers in this demographic, the WB’s “Gilmore Girls” ranks No. 10, CBS reality show “Amazing Race” is No. 17 and Fox’s “House” is No. 21.
NBC’s slippage in the upscale audience comes on top of other troubles.
The network, which last season ranked No. 4 in the 18-49 demographic for the first time ever, is tied with Fox for third place so far this season. Its 3.3 rating is down 13 percent from the same time last year. ABC ranks No. 1 with a 4.1 and CBS is No. 2 with a 4 rating.
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/article_1065.asp
Wednesday’s network prime-time ratings are now (finally) at the top of RATINGS NEWS the second post in this thread.
CBS Budgets More Time to Practice
By Ben Grossman Broadcasting & Cable
CBS has given a full-season order to Monday night freshman comedy Out of Practice.
The sitcom, which features an ensemble cast including Stockard Channing and Henry Winkler, has averaged nearly 12 million viewers overall and is trending up in the adult 18-49 demo Mondays at 9:30 p.m. out of Two and a Half Men.
The show has helped CBS hold down the fort on Monday nights post-Raymond, as fellow freshman Monday comedy How I Met Your Mother was previously given a full-season commitment. Four of the six new CBS shows have now been picked up for the season, including dramas Ghost Whisperer and Criminal Minds.
You read it here first
As reported here a couple of days ago, CBS announced today it is acquiring the CSTV network for $325 million.
CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK
“Category 7”: A perfect storm of cheesiness
* (out of four)
By Robert Bianco USA TODAY
It's a really ill wind that blows no good twice.
Succumbing once again to its new-blown addiction to sci-fi schlock, CBS is remarketing last season's Category 6: Day of Destruction through a virtually indistinguishable category upgrade: Category 7: The End of the World. Watch, and Category 8: The Universe Implodes will be here by May.
Granted, the days of Roots, Holocaust and Lonesome Dove are far behind us. Still, even with network movie expectations at an all-time low, you might expect more from November's only broadcast miniseries than an overblown repeat. We've seen enough bad weather and bad movies to last a lifetime; why anyone would want to see the two combine again is beyond me.
The Category 7 tape provided for preview did not include all the finished effects, so it's possible the destruction of the Arc de Triomphe and Mount Rushmore will look more realistic on air. (Perhaps they'll even explain what it is about a marble arch that would cause it to explode.) But no amount of computer generation can help a hodgepodge script or a cast evenly apportionable between embarrassed and embarrassing.
7 picks up right where 6 left off, with the raging weather systems that destroyed Las Vegas and Chicago heading east. "If those two storms hit over D.C., and D.C'.s thermal column intersects with the mesosphere, we're not talking Category 6. This is going to be" — wait for it — "a Category 7!"
Lest you think storms are all that's brewing, 7 makes way for any number of time-filling crises. These include murder, kidnapping, adultery, poisonous frogs, government skullduggery, and two misguided evangelists played by James Brolin and Swoosie Kurtz, the only cast members to keep their heads above 7's fetid waters.
Standing in harm's way is the new director of FEMA, played by Gina Gershon — an odd casting choice, but then FEMA seems to attract odd casting choices. She keeps demanding "ironclad proof" that the super-storm is approaching and not just "mumbo-jumbo data charts," which makes you wonder just what kind of proof she thinks she'll get about a weather front that doesn't involve data or charts. It's a storm, honey, not a crime scene.
There are treats for fans of disaster camp, provided by the on-the-run romance between Randy Quaid's tornado chaser and Shannen Doherty's scientist/bartender. But mostly 7 is just another movie in which nature stands in moral judgment, killing the evil and sparing the innocent — or at least the innocent who have names.
Unlike 6, however, 7 does make one thing clear in the end. The cause of all this bad weather is you, you energy hog, driving your car, heating your house, running your TV to watch movies like Category 7.
At least one of those problems is pretty easily fixed.
http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/reviews/2005-11-03-category-7_x.htm
Programming notes: Catch “Threshold” online
(medialifemagazine.com---)CBS is trying to recruit “Threshold” viewers online.
Yesterday CBS.com made the Sept. 23 episode of its new Friday night drama available for free download, and it will do the same for the next two episodes. “Threshold” airs Fridays at 9 p.m. and has averaged a 2.2 rating among viewers 18-49 so far this season.
Meanwhile, Fox has ordered three more episodes of “Killer Instinct,” “Threshold’s” timeslot competition, which has averaged a 1.6 among 18-49s this season. It’s doing better among men 18-34, winning its timeslot last week.
In cable programming, Comedy Central has ordered an entire season of “The Colbert Report,” extending its run from eight to 42 weeks. Launched on Oct. 17, the show has averaged 1.2 million viewers, keeping 86 percent of its “Daily Show” lead-in audience.
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/cat_index_31.asp
By John Consoli and Anthony Crupi MediaWeek.com November 03, 2005
CBS has signed an agreement to acquire CSTV: College Sports Television Networks for $325 million, with the transaction likely to close in early January 2006, following the split of Viacom into two entities. At that time, the transaction will be in CBS Corporation Class B non-voting common stock.
CSTV will continue to be operated by its founder and CEO Brian Bedol, who will report to Leslie Moonves, chairman of CBS and co-president and co-COO of Viacom.
Included in the acquisition is the digital cable network which features 30 men's and women's college sports events, with 15 million subscribers; online properties consisting of a network of more than 250 official college athletic Web sites, each maintained and managed for its institution by CSTV; a CSTV.com Web site; and Regional College Sports Networks which will be launched in 2006, featuring sporting events from the Mountain West Conference and Conference USA.
Bedol has been down this road before, developing Classic Sports Network in 1995, then selling it to ESPN two years later for $200 million. Classic Sports was then rebranded into ESPN Classic.
CSTV and CBS already have a business relationship, as CSTV has secured streaming media deals with CBS Sportsline.com and has negotiated the rights to produce an NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament highights package that was carried by Viacom's Spike TV.
"As the founder of the Classic Sports Network and other ventures, Brian has proven himself to be a truly creative business manager with a track record of getting things done," Moonves said. "I am particularly pleased that he and his partner, Chris Bevilaqua come along with this deal. They will be a valuable addition to the CBS team."
Bedol said CSTV was built to offer college sports enthusiasts access to content beyond that airing on the major networks.
"Through this transaction, we will now have the ability to help those consumers transition from the mass media of CBS Sports to the personalized media of the Web, and many points in between."
Moonves said with this acquisition, CBS will have a larger sports Web audience than any other online medium--with 19 million unique users.
"In bringing our operations under one roof, our presence in the college sports community grows even stronger, and the programming possibilities on national cable, regional sports networks, and the Internet are very exciting indeed," Moonves added.
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001433557
CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK
“Category 7”: A perfect storm of cheesiness
* (out of four)
I've never really paid attention to the ratings for these Sunday movies. Do they actually even come close to paying for themselves?
CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK
On a 'Break' and feeling all alone
By Ellen Gray Philadelphia Daily News
THAT SCREAMING you may have heard earlier this week was me reacting to a USA Today report that Fox was putting "Prison Break" on hiatus until May after Nov. 28 because with "24" and "American Idol" coming back in January, there just wasn't enough room on Fox's schedule and, besides, the network would rather have it around next summer.
I don't know if I can wait that long.
Especially when Fox next week is bringing back Pamela Anderson's "Stacked," which, you know, I haven't been missing even a little bit.
They tell me "That '70s Show" is back, too, but without Ashton or Topher. I'm not sure, but I think it may now be set in a Wisconsin retirement community and involve actual 70-year-olds.
Yes, I'm cranky. I like my "Prison Break," and I've already lived through a baseball-induced drought, mildly worried that the execution date for Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) might arrive before the World Series ended, or worse, that his brother Michael (Wentworth Miller) might escape to another network altogether.
I've been crankier than usual about Fox, anyway, since I started watching "Pasadena" on SoapNet (7 and 10 p.m. Saturdays). The stylish, 13-episode soap starring Dana Delany, which Fox pulled from the air after four airings, and, despite many promises, never brought back, is a weekly reminder of how impatience with a serialized show can leave hooked viewers hanging.
But unlike "Pasadena," which averaged a disappointing 4 million viewers in the fall of 2001, "Prison Break's" more than 9.3 million viewers, many of them advertiser-targeted 18- to 49-year-olds, make it a success story.
Which is why no one at Fox is talking about sending it away forever.
The extended hiatus "is just one of the scenarios that is being thrown about," a Fox spokeswoman said yesterday, noting that 13 episodes will have aired by Nov. 28 and that production continues on the next nine.
Here's hoping this time we won't have to wait four years to see them.
'Chris' in black and white
It's obvious by now that not "Everybody Hates Chris" (8 tonight, Channel 57), but given that we're talking about one of the season's best new shows, it's also puzzling that more people aren't showing up to love it.
Yes, it's on UPN - a network many viewers still can't find with their remotes - and it's on 8 p.m. Thursdays, a tough time period.
But while 7.8 million viewers managed to find "Chris" for its Sept. 22 debut, by last week, only 5.38 million were watching.
More than half of those viewers - 2.9 million - were African-American, according to Nielsen Media Research, whose weekly ratings reports on viewing in black households shows the Chris Rock-narrated comedy attracting more of those viewers than any other show on television last week.
What's up with everyone else?
Chris Rock's as big a crossover star as we have these days, and "Everybody Hates Chris," which plays in many ways like "The Wonder Years" - if, OK, "The Wonder Years" had been set in Bedford-Stuyvesant - is exactly the kind of family comedy that a lot of people, black and white, tell me they miss.
So why are so many of them still watching NBC's "Joey"?
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entertainment/television/13067833.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp
RussTC3
11-03-05, 11:23 PM
I'll definitely be missing Prison Break, but sometimes things like this happen. Maybe I should pick up the 24 DVD's (I've only seen about 3/4th of the 1st season, love it) so I can watch that show during Prison Break's hiatus.
As far as Stacked goes, I'm not sure what the reaction to the show is in these parts, but I was actually pleasantly surprised by it. It's pretty funny.
I've also been enjoying Everybody Hates Chris (It's better than Joey, which has gotten weaker in it's second season). It's ratings don't surprise me cause the show is on UPN. Very simple reasoning. :) Besides, UPN has thrown a lot of money at it and everyone seems pretty commited to it. I'm sure we'll at least get another season.
Thanks for the extra syndication ratings, fredfa.
NFL HD November 13th
The CBS and Fox HD NFL schedules for Sunday, November 13th have been added at the top of the first post in this thread.
PJO1966
11-03-05, 11:27 PM
It seems that people just aren't interested in watching quality comedy. Both Arrested Development & Everybody Hates Chris should both be doing better in the ratings.
Personally I agree on one of those two. :)
But obviously what is quality to some of us isn't to others.
RussTC3
11-03-05, 11:32 PM
It seems that people just aren't interested in watching quality comedy. Both Arrested Development & Everybody Hates Chris should both be doing better in the ratings.
It's REALLY a shame, IMO, that Arrested Development isn't doing better. EHC has the UPN excuse to fall back on, so it's future seems to be in good enough shape. FOX, surprisingly, has really done all it can to help out AD's ratings.
I'll never understand why so few people watch it. Quite simply, it's brilliant.
I wonder if the advertising they do: "If you don't watch this show, the best show EVER, you're an idiot". It's obviously not that dramatic, but maybe it turns people off?
From The Philadelphia Inquirer (www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/magazine/daily/13066089.htm)
TV sweeps may be swept by technology
Posted on Thu, Nov. 03, 2005
By Beth Gillin
Inquirer Staff Writer
It's November, and we're all doomed. In other words, it's time for the fall sweeps, when TV networks, and local stations, try to fatten their ratings by luring viewers with a buffet of stunts, such as Category 7: The End of the World, a special-effects-loaded tale of planetary havoc in two parts starting Sunday on CBS.
The networks call this "event programming," and there will be plenty of it between today and Nov. 30, when Nielsen Media Research, the ratings company, "sweeps" most of the country. As it does four times a year, the company helps local stations set ad rates by collecting viewers' paper diaries that yield detailed information about who's watching what.
Technology is expected to eventually kill off sweeps - including those "special investigations" viewers have come to expect quarterly on the late local news - thanks to the introduction of electronic Local People Meters in various markets. But even though Philadelphia got the meters in June, don't expect to be free of those newscast exposes.
While network sweeps stunts continue, their influence will continue to spill over into local news shows, where grainy video of sexual activity in public restrooms and investigations of exploding cell phones have become standards, along with reporters in hospital gowns getting medical tests. However, few journalists are likely to go as far as Cleveland anchor Sharon Reed, who once worked for WCAU (Channel 10). She got naked for a first-person report last November on a nude group-photo installation.
Here, there's still an "all-hands-on-deck" policy during sweeps, said Jennifer E. Best, public-affairs director at WTXF (Channel 29), echoing representatives of other local stations. In other words, the talent isn't allowed to take vacations.
In the long run, the meters will do away with quarterly gimmickry. Because they measure viewing habits continuously and transmit voluminous data electronically every night, the meters will make sweeps obsolete.
In the short run, local stations in cities with meters are grappling with how to do news now.
"The networks will still program their heavy-hitter shows in the traditional sweeps periods, since the [meters] are only in a few markets," Best said.
To capture the eyeballs of audiences who tune in to "event programming," she said, The 10 O'Clock News will focus on consumer and investigative stories during sweeps - and will promote those stories during commercial breaks.
That said, the introduction of the meters here has brought some changes at WTXF, Best acknowledged. There is now a budget to finance and promote "special stories" throughout the year, and the Fox Undercover investigative unit has beefed up its personnel.
The meters "are so new to local markets that a lot of people are still trying to figure them out," said Kerry Kielar, director of communications for Nielsen.
The devices themselves aren't new; Nielsen has used them for years to measure national viewing trends. What's new is their local application.
Until recently, Nielsen relied on the 100,000 paper diaries distributed nationally during sweeps periods to find out what audiences in individual markets preferred.
The company started rolling out the meters in 2002 in Boston. They are now in seven locations, including Philadelphia, which got the first of its 850 meters this summer. The other markets are Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington. Next year, Detroit and Dallas-Fort Worth are scheduled to get meters, followed in 2007 by Atlanta.
That will take care of the top-10 TV markets. But out in the vast heartland, Nielsen still measures audiences the old-fashioned way, passing out paper diaries in November, February, May and July to selected viewers and asking them to faithfully record what they watch.
So long as a large swath of the TV audience is measured that way, networks will likely remain wedded to the idea of scheduling their showiest stuff during sweeps.
The rollout of the meters has not been glitch-free. Critics have questioned the accuracy of the devices, saying they undercount minority viewers.
In February 2004, Nielsen had a dress rehearsal in New York, distributing meters to some participants, diaries to others. In side-by-side comparisons, metered viewership declined 27 percent to 62 percent for UPN shows with black casts, including Girlfriends, Eve, Half & Half, and The Parkers. Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., which owns the Fox TV network and numerous local stations, including the UPN affiliate in New York, protested that the meter results were flawed.
Nielsen countered that audiences for Alias and The Practice, popular with white viewers, also fell during the test run, and said its experience in Boston showed that those discrepancies even out over time. But the company agreed to further refine its measuring techniques - Nielsen already oversamples certain groups and pays them more to participate to compensate for what it says is minority resistance to surveys.
Nielsen postponed the full New York launch until June 2004, while a coalition called Don't Count Us Out, supported by minority members of Congress and partly financed by News Corp., called for hearings.
That fight lost a lot of steam when cable's Black Entertainment Network and the Rev. Jesse Jackson endorsed the meters, after a side-by-side comparison of New York viewers in March 2004 showed BET's over-18 daytime viewership was up 180 percent.
In July, Sen. Conrad Burns (R., Mont.) introduced the FAIR Ratings Act (standing for Fairness, Accuracy, Inclusivity and Responsiveness). It got a Senate Commerce Committee hearing that month.
Burns' bill would require Nielsen to have all new measuring devices certified by the Media Ratings Council Inc., a consortium of broadcasters, cable operators, advertisers and others. The bill's opponents, including Nielsen, say that would stifle the development of new technologies.
The bill has not gone anywhere. Burns "would prefer to see the matter taken care of within the industry," his aide Jennifer O'Shea said last week, "and if he doesn't see results in the near future, he will continue working on legislation."
While acknowledging that the meters aren't perfect, Nielsen says they are more accurate than a coffee-stained paper diary in which a viewer has recorded what he remembers watching, or even what he thinks he should have watched instead of what he actually saw.
The meters have their drawbacks - a viewer must push a button on a remote at regular intervals. But that's easier than remembering to write everything down in the diary.
Viewer data in a click
Here's how Nielsen's Local People Meters work:
A group of families of diverse configurations and racial and ethnic makeups is chosen in each market. Extensive demographic information is obtained from each family member in the sample. Meters are installed on top of every TV set in the household, and each member is assigned a number.
Say viewer number 3, a male of 15, watches Monday Night Football on ABC. He switches on the living-room TV and clicks the number 3 on his remote, turning a light from red to green. His father, viewer 1, age 50, joins his son and repeats the process, while his mother, viewer 2, opts for NBC's Medium in the kitchen, and his sister, viewer 4, is glued to a Discovery special in her room.
At the end of the night, all the data are sent electronically to Nielsen, where they are analyzed and distributed quickly to clients, including networks, local stations and advertisers.
- Beth Gillin
From The Mercury News (www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/entertainment/television/13062043.htm)
Several new shows are good, but there's no breakout hit
Posted on Thu, Nov. 03, 2005
By Charlie McCollum
Mercury News
Two months into the television networks' new seasons, there's one obvious point to be made: This autumn isn't fall 2004.
By this time last year, it was clear that ABC's ``Desperate Housewives'' and ``Lost'' were true pop-culture phenomena. Not only were a lot of people watching the two new series, but they were also talking about them over coffee, at the office and online. Can you believe what Bree said about Rex last night? What was the deal with the polar bear on a tropical island?
This season, there's not a single new show that has achieved that kind of traction. (NBC's ``My Name Is Earl'' probably comes the closest.)
That's led to the impression that this fall has been something of a bust for broadcast TV. The reality check is that series such as ``Housewives'' and ``Lost'' don't come along that often and rarely in a pair on the same network. Before the ABC shows, the last to grab that kind of attention -- and hold onto it -- was ``American Idol,'' which debuted four seasons ago.
If you judge the first two months of this season by more normal seasons and not by last fall, things actually look pretty good -- particularly when you factor in the impact of some sophomore shows that are just getting better.
Let's start with the fact that the carnage among newcomers hasn't been that bad. Four shows have been axed: NBC's ``Inconceivable,'' Fox's ``Head Cases,'' UPN's ``Sex, Love & Secrets'' and the WB's ``Just Legal.'' Only the latter was a series that deserved a little more time, although it's doubtful the legal comedy-drama ever would have clicked on the WB.
There is a batch of high-profile freshman shows that have been disappointments: artistically, in the ratings or both. NBC has been hit particularly hard by the relative failures of the Martha Stewart version of ``The Apprentice,'' ``E-Ring'' and ``Three Wishes,'' although Amy Grant's addictive reality weeper might still prosper. Also on the list: ABC's ``Night Stalker,'' CBS's ``Close to Home'' (another unexpected loser), Fox's ``Kitchen Confidential'' and the WB's ``Related.''
On the flip side, though, there are a number of new series that fall into the B- to B+ range for quality and have either already grabbed a decent audience or still have that potential if given some more time.
That list starts with ``Earl'' and Fox's ``Prison Break,'' the season's best new shows. But it also includes ABC's ``Commander in Chief'' (although the writing needs work) and ``Invasion,'' CBS's ``Criminal Minds,'' ``How I Met Your Mother'' and ``Threshold,'' ``Bones'' on Fox, ``Everybody Hates Chris'' on UPN and the WB's ``Supernatural.''
Of course, there are also a few new shows whose ratings success ranges from unexpected to inexplicable. The OK-but-not-great ``Ghost Whisperer'' has caught on for CBS on Fridays. Fox's dreadful ``War at Home'' is pulling an audience on Sundays. And how do you explain the full-season pickup for NBC's ``Surface,'' except that the baby creature Nimrod is cute and star Lake Bell, playing a scientist, looks good in a wet T-shirt and a bikini?
The other driving force this television season? An unexpected surge in viewer interest and creativity from three sophomore dramas.
The group is topped by ``Lost,'' which is now a top five hit and has become even more compelling in its storytelling. Rarely has a show come back in its second season and trumped what was an Emmy-winning first year, but the complex series about a group of plane wreck survivors on a mysterious island has pulled off the feat.
While they're not on a level with ``Lost,'' both Fox's ``House'' and ABC's ``Grey's Anatomy'' have also hit big this fall. Separated from ``American Idol,'' the former has proven it can generate an audience on its own and has established an engaging rhythm to its drama. And ``Anatomy,'' the sexy hospital show that aired just a handful of episodes last spring, has evolved into one of TV's most entertaining hours and a top 10 hit.
Now if the TV audience could just discover the fourth sophomore show having a great year -- UPN's sadly neglected ``Veronica Mars'' -- we'd really have something going this season.
BEST NEW SHOWS
``My Name Is Earl'' (NBC)
``Prison Break'' (Fox)
``Everybody Hates Chris'' (UPN)
``Invasion'' (ABC)
``Threshold'' (CBS)
MOST WATCHED NEW SHOWS
``Commander in Chief'' (ABC): 16.4 million.
``My Name Is Earl'' (NBC): 12.9 million
``Invasion'' (ABC): 12.5 million
``Criminal Minds'' (CBS): 12.2 million
``Out of Practice'' (CBS): 12.1 million
Nielsen Media Research, average audience through Oct. 21
RATING THE MAJOR NETWORKS
ABC
The good On a roll with last year's hits staying strong or even improving in the ratings. New shows such as ``Commander In Chief'' and ``Invasion'' are doing well. ``Boston Legal'' is giving the network a presence at 10 p.m. Tuesday. And it has the Super Bowl this season, which will boost ratings.
The bad Comedies are still hit-and-miss, ``According to Jim'' is floundering and the ``Alias''-``Night Stalker'' combo on Thursdays hasn't worked.
Rating B+
CBS
The good Getting good viewership for ``Ghost Whisperer,'' has a surprise hit in ``Criminal Minds'' even though it's up against ``Lost,'' and ``How I Met Your Mother'' is showing strength. ``Threshold'' hasn't found a big audience but it still has potential. And it already has a big lead in total viewers.
The bad ``Close to Home'' is dying and the awful ``Out of Practice'' hasn't clicked behind ``Two And A Half Men.'' Has to be a little concerned about overall drop in viewership, particularly for ``CSI: N.Y.'' and ``CSI: Miami.''
Rating B
Fox
The good ``Prison Break'' and ``Bones'' got off to decent starts before being preempted by baseball. ``House'' is now a certified hit. Sunday night comedy lineup is drawing droves of young male viewers. And it's got a couple of series called ``American Idol'' and ``24'' coming out of the bullpen.
The bad Weak World Series ratings, weak Friday lineup and a real turkey in ``Head Cases.''
Rating C+
NBC
The good ``My Name Is Earl'' and . . . did I mention ``My Name Is Earl''?
The bad Just about everything else. The network's schedule is a train wreck going into mid-season.
Rating D-
Ratings Gratification Is Delayed
By Jacques Steinberg The New York Times (Bill Carter contributed reporting for this article.) November 4, 2005
Television executives never like to wait to find out how a program performed in the Nielsen ratings.
Part of it is ego, but there are also business reasons for the urgency: the networks like to tell advertisers that their money was well spent, and those same results can be critical for the shows themselves.
So when the overnight ratings for Tuesday's prime-time network shows did not arrive from Nielsen Media Research as scheduled on Wednesday, network executives wanted to know why. With the networks especially competitive on Tuesdays - and even more so with the return of the drama "House" on Fox - some reacted as the Yankees would if they had to sit tight to find out the results of a long-since-concluded game against the Red Sox.
"In an industry that is accustomed to a daily diet of ratings, it becomes a little traumatic for everyone when you don't get them on time," said David Poltrack, executive vice president of research for CBS.
The problem, said Matt Tatham, a Nielsen spokesman, was a software glitch that interrupted the gathering of audience data in more than a dozen markets, mostly in the East.
But Mr. Poltrack said the problem - which apparently occurred when new software was installed - should have been anticipated by Nielsen, which effectively has a monopoly on the measurement of television audiences. "The long-term question for Nielsen to answer is: Where is the redundancy?" Mr. Poltrack said. "To operate on a real-time basis, doesn't a system have to have a backup redundancy built in?"
Jack Loftus, senior vice president of communications for Nielsen, said the system had indeed had a backup: although Nielsen had difficulty collecting the data initially, the information remained stored on the so-called people meters that register viewer habits on a national basis.
By yesterday afternoon, Mr. Tatham said, the problem had been mostly corrected, and national results from Tuesday had been released. (The national results, at least for Tuesday night: "My Name Is Earl" on NBC and "House" did well.)
The timing of the computer problem was especially inopportune because tonight marks the beginning of the so-called November sweeps, one of several periods when the networks' performance will be measured for the purpose of setting advertising rates.
Mr. Tatham said, "We don't expect the situation to duplicate itself."
DirecTV, Comcast Disappoint Investors
By Sallie Hofmeister Los Angeles Times Staff Writer November 4, 2005
The slugfest over customers taking place between the nation's cable and satellite TV providers was clear Thursday when each industry leader disappointed Wall Street.
El Segundo-based DirecTV Group Inc. swung to a third-quarter profit of $95 million, adding 1 million subscribers. But the satellite company's stock declined because of a record customer turnover rate and the high cost of keeping subscribers from switching to competitors.
At the same time, Philadelphia-based Comcast Corp. lost 46,000 basic cable customers, its third straight quarter of losses. Analysts attributed these defections to Comcast's delay in entering the digital phone business, which other cable providers consider a magic bullet to keep customers from jumping to satellite.
"Comcast was late to the party, and it's costing them," said Craig Moffett, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein.
Comcast's performance was particularly distressing to Wall Street after two big rivals of the nation's largest cable operator posted better results.
Time Warner Inc. and Cablevision Systems Corp. both added subscribers in the third quarter by bundling their cable television service with an inexpensive digital phone offering. The phone sales helped lift the two companies' revenues at a faster pace than Comcast grew.
At Comcast, revenue increased 9.4% in the third quarter to $5.6 billion, while net income was nearly flat at $222 million, or 10 cents a share, up from $220 million, or 10 cents, a year earlier. That failed to meet the consensus profit estimate of 14 cents a share among analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial.
Comcast shares fell $1.44, or 5%, to $27.36. Some investors also were frustrated that Comcast was investing heavily instead of showing bigger profit. Comcast said it would increase capital spending to $3.5 billion this year, up from a previous forecast of $3.2 billion to $3.3 billion, to meet demand for services such as digital recorders.
"The market obviously sees forms of competition in the future," Brian L. Roberts, Comcast's chairman and chief executive, said in a conference call with analysts Thursday when asked about his stock's lackluster performance this year.
Many analysts favor Comcast over DirecTV because of its long-term prospects. The satellite company, which is owned by News Corp., has provided customers with a premium television-viewing experience.
But satellite technology is unable to deliver two-way services such as Internet broadband and telephone, putting it at a disadvantage to cable providers as well as to telephone carriers that are entering the TV business.
To fill its broadband void, DirecTV probably will have to pay handsomely because the needed spectrum for such services is scarce, analysts said.
DirecTV's third-quarter net income was 7 cents a share, contrasted with a loss of 73 cents a share a year earlier, when the company recorded a $900-million charge for a shuttered broadband project. The results were above analyst profit expectations of 5 cents a share, according to Thomson.
Quarterly results included a $14-million charge from Hurricane Katrina losses. Revenue grew 13%, to $3.23 billion.
DirecTV's average monthly churn — the rate of customer turnover — jumped to a record 1.89%, up from 1.82% a year earlier, as the company cut off nonpaying customers who signed up when it loosened credit standards last year to drive subscriber growth. The company said it had tightened its credit policy.
As a result, DirecTV added 263,000 net new subscribers, compared with 456,000 in the year-earlier quarter.
The TV Column
ABC Catches Up With NBC Among Watchers With Wallets
By Lisa de Moraes The Washington Post Friday, November 4, 2005; C07
If you are between the ages of 25 and 54 and recently dropped $1,400 for an Hermes crocodile-and-calfskin leash-and-collar set for little Fluffy, you need to read the following important information carefully:
NBC is no longer the broadcast network for affluent viewers. It is now safe to acknowledge publicly that you watch ABC.
Through the first six weeks of the new television season, ABC has caught up to NBC in terms of audience skewed toward 25-to-54-year-olds in homes with incomes of $100,000 or more, according to Nielsen stats as crunched by media buyer Magna Global, an agency that makes ad-buying decisions for sponsor clients.
Having a lock on the upscale audience has been important to NBC. When NBC could no longer boast that it was the country's most watched network, when it could no longer even brag that it was the country's most watched network among young viewers, it could still crow when it pitched to advertisers and the press that it was the network of choice among wealthier viewers.
And all things being equal, advertisers will pay more to reach people who have a lot of money than they will to reach the same number of people who do not.
Which helps explain why, for instance, NBC renewed the barely watched "The Office" for a second season in May, and why the network put two simultaneous editions of "The Apprentice" on its fall schedule.
"The Apprentice" has the highest proportion so far this season of 25-to-54-year-olds in households with an annual income of $100,000, according to Magna Global's stats. Yes, it's clocking about 6 million fewer viewers than the first round of "The Apprentice" last season, but the crowd that's left is well off financially.
"The Office," meanwhile, averaged a measly 5.4 million viewers last season, which put it toward the bottom of the heap when it came to overall audience size. (This season it's doing slightly better, with an average haul of 8 million.) But it's a Top 5 show this season among those 25-to-54-year-olds with $100K on them.
CBS's "CSI," which is the most watched show in the country, averaging nearly 28 million viewers, has more rich 25-to-54-year-olds watching, but they're less concentrated. Think of "The Office" audience as the membership of your country club -- not many of them, but what there is is rich.
"Desperate Housewives," on the other hand, has the overall tonnage of "CSI" -- it's the second most watched show this season, with an average of about 24 million viewers -- and also skews high among affluent 25-to-54-year-olds. It's okay to tell members of that country club you love "Desperate Housewives." Ditto "Grey's Anatomy" and "Lost" -- those three sophomore shows have catapulted ABC into the Firmament of Rich People Viewing.
According to the Magna Global stats, "The Apprentice" indexes at 205 among 25-to-54-year-olds with household income of $100,000. A show that skews at 100 has an audience concentration of such people that reflects their numbers in the general population. "The Apprentice's" 205 means that its audience is about twice as thick with rich 25-to-54-year-olds. Sweet.
(Oh, and the guy who did this report for Magna Global said in an interview recently that he used 25-to-54-year-olds for this study, instead of the Holy Grail -- 18-to-49-year-olds -- in order to weed out all those 18-to-24s whose household income is $100,000 only because they're living at home off of Mummy and Dad.)
NBC notes that its prime-time programming skews more upscale this season than last. Which is to say that while NBC has fumbled about 5 percent of the audience it had at the same time last year, it is losing audience quickest among people with less money; richer folk continue to hang around.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/03/AR2005110302398_pf.html
HDTVChallenged
11-04-05, 11:16 AM
It seems that people just aren't interested in watching quality comedy. Both Arrested Development & Everybody Hates Chris should both be doing better in the ratings.
I've tried .... really, really tried watching AD, several times .... but for some reason it just doesn't "grab" me. I don't know why. Everyone keeps telling me that I should fall in love with it, but it just doesn't fit. Sorry ...
Then again ... maybe I'm still too upset over the "Wonderfalls" debacle ;)
Marcus Carr
11-04-05, 12:10 PM
I've tried .... really, really tried watching AD, several times .... but for some reason it just doesn't "grab" me. I don't know why. Everyone keeps telling me that I should fall in love with it, but it just doesn't fit. Sorry ...
Then again ... maybe I'm still too upset over the "Wonderfalls" debacle ;)
I respect the show, but it just doesn't make me laugh much. I think it will always have a loyal, but small audience. If the DVDs continue to sell so well it will probably stay on for a while.
scantor
11-04-05, 12:27 PM
I've tried .... really, really tried watching AD, several times .... but for some reason it just doesn't "grab" me. I don't know why. Everyone keeps telling me that I should fall in love with it, but it just doesn't fit. Sorry
By this point, the show is virtually impossible to appreciate unless you've watched it for a while. So far this year, some of the episodes have been very good, but full of a lot of long running jokes and character humor that wouldn't be at all funny if you just dropped in and tried the show.
This isn't *bad* per se, but it's a problem if the show still wants to find an audience.
So don't feel bad, but if you haven't ever seen the early shows, I suggest renting or borrowing the DVD and trying to watch it from the beginning, and then see if you like it any better. I only say that because if you did find that you liked it, you'd have a great couple seasons of very funny writing to watch.
Thursdays prime-time ratings – and Media Week Analyst Marc Berman’s opinions of what they mean -- have been posted at the top of Ratings News the second post in this thread.
TV Ratings
Party crasher:”Reunion” return tanks
Fox drama sinks to a season-low 1.7 in 18-49s
By Diego Vasquez MediaLifeMagazine.com staff writer Nov 4, 2005
It looked as though Fox had found the perfect Thursday night companion to “The O.C.” when “Reunion” premiered to good ratings in September. It turns out, maybe it hasn’t.
In its first episode since Sept. 29, “Reunion” earned just a 1.7 Nielsen overnight rating among viewers 18-49 last night, down 43 percent from the 3.0 it earned for its series premiere Sept. 8.
The show also lost 43 percent of the 18-49 lead-in audience provided by “The O.C.” last night. Among 18-34s, “Related” lost 37 percent of “The O.C.’s” 3.8 rating, averaging a 2.4.
Part of the problem was surely the long layoff. The show hadn’t aired in more than a month, giving way to Fox’s postseason baseball coverage, and the network seemingly pushed the returns of other shows like “Bones,” “House,” and “That ‘70s Show” more than “Reunion” during the playoffs.
Also, the show airs in one of the wickedest timeslots on broadcast, head-to-head with CBS’s “CSI” and NBC’s “The Apprentice,” on the first night of November sweeps, no less. It also was hurt last night by ABC’s airing of the movie “Pirates of the Caribbean,” which did much better in younger demos in the timeslot than usual occupant “Night Stalker” has this season.
“Reunion’s” 18-49 overnight rating has fallen each episode, from a 3.0, to a 2.5, down to a 2.3, then to last night’s 1.7.
http://medialifemagazine.com/artman/publish/article_1119.asp
PLEASE NOTE: There are some (what I consider to be) minor plot developments listed in the following article. If you don’t want to know about any potential cast or story notes for November, please skip the article!!!!
Be very afraid: Disaster rules November sweeps
By Amy Amatangelo Boston Herald Friday, November 4, 2005
This month, you’re not safe in front of your TV.
November sweeps, the all-important period for setting advertising rates for the commercial networks running through Nov. 30, brings death, destruction and shocking plot twists. (That’s right, consider yourself warned, there are spoilers ahead.)
NBC has the remake of “The Poseidon Adventure” starring Steve Guttenberg, Peter Weller and Alex Kingston on Nov. 20. This time, passengers on a cruise ship try to survive a terrorist attack. Not to be outdone, CBS’ two-part “Category 7: The End of the World,” about a deadly storm, begins Sunday at 9 PM ET/PT (CBS) and concludes Nov. 13 (see accompanying review).
That movie was completed before real-life deadly storms devastated the country. But “Law & Order: SVU” weaves the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina into its Nov. 29 episode. Detectives Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and Stabler (Chris Meloni) pursue a child molester who kidnapped three sisters orphaned by the destructive hurricane.
Many characters won’t survive the month as death comes to “Lost,” “Desperate Housewives” and “Las Vegas.” Odds makers expect Boone’s sister, Shannon (Maggie Grace), to meet her maker in Wednesday’s episode of the ABC hit. But not, of course, before she gets up close and personal with Sayid (Naveen Andrews). We’ll also find out who is the murder victim at the center of Fox’s “Reunion” (Thursday), and Hannah (Sarah Drew) will learn that her father passed away on WB’s “Everwood” (Thursday).
Before your favorite series settle in for the long winter’s nap of December reruns, expect some bombshells. The most boring season of “The Amazing Race” wraps up Nov. 29, and CBS promises a surprise ending. HBO’s “Rome” completes its first season Nov. 20.
The girls learn something unexpected about their father (guest star Barry Bostwick) in a very special episode of “What I Like About You” (tonight at 8 on The WB). Michael (Jason Bateman) learns a secret about his girlfriend, Rita (guest star Charlize Theron), on Fox’s “Arrested Development” (Nov. 14). The oh-so-creepy George (Roger Bart) stalks Bree (Marcia Cross) on “Desperate Housewives.” A new, important person will come into Luke’s life on WB’s “Gilmore Girls.” Some of the mysterious questions posed in the pilot (such as what’s up with Mariel?) will be answered on ABC’s “Invasion.” And the brothers will return to their childhood home where their mother died on WB’s “Supernatural” (Nov. 15).
“Prison Break” already has proven itself a show willing to kill anyone at any time, and now the gang will make a break for it in what Fox is calling the “fall season finale” on Nov. 28. And here’s the scariest part - it’s rumored the show won’t return until May.
They’re baaaack. Ex-boyfriends and ex-husbands return throughout the month. Jess (Milo Ventimiglia) and Christopher (David Sutcliffe) both show up unexpectedly in Stars Hollow on WB’s “Gilmore Girls” (Tuesday and Nov. 22). Grace (Debra Messing) is stuck on a plane with ex-husband Leo (Harry Connick Jr.) on “Will & Grace” (Thursday). And Dr. Gallant (Sharif Atkins) visits Neela (Parminder Nagra) on “ER” (Nov. 17), while Sam’s husband (Dean Cain) causes trouble on “Las Vegas” (Nov. 28).
But it’s not all doom and demolition this month. Nadia (Mia Maestro) wakes up from her coma on “Alias” (Nov. 17). Boone (Ian Somerhalder) and Walt (Malcolm David Kelley) pop up on “Lost” (Wednesday). Fans of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” will be thrilled when Alyson Hannigan reprises her role of Trina Echolls on “Veronica Mars” (Nov. 30) and faces off against Charisma Carpenter’s Kendall Casablancas. John Stamos is a paramedic who hits on Neela on “ER” (beginning Nov. 17). Camryn Manheim is a matchmaker on “How I Met Your Mother” (Monday), and Rick Fox romances Holly Robinson Peete for three episodes of UPN’s “Love, Inc.”
In Hollywood, it always pays to have connections, and many stars invited their real-life pals to stop by their series. Michael Vartan, the dear and maybe-not-actually-departed Vaughn on “Alias,” stops by buddy Bradley Cooper’s “Kitchen Confidential” on Nov. 14. Elizabeth Berkley is infected with the alien virus on her friend Carla Gugino’s “Threshold” (Nov. 11). And we don’t understand it either, but Bruce Willis guest stars with Ashton Kutcher on “That ’70s Show” on Nov. 16. (Seriously, who can explain La-La Land?)
The entertainment industry never met an awards show it didn’t like. “American Music Awards” are on WCVB (NBC) on Nov. 22. “The 39th Annual Country Music Association Awards” air on WBZ (CBS) on Nov. 15. Apparently no one is concerned about a country/hip-hop crossover since the “VIBE Awards” air on WSBK (UPN) on the same night.
http://theedge.bostonherald.com/tvNews/view.bg?articleid=110214&format=text
CPanther95
11-04-05, 01:01 PM
Reunion is one example. That is a slowly unfolding series that better not allow viewers to find another show to watch for a week or two - or they may find many who don't feel compelled to return.
It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Reunion was gonna be in trouble :rolleyes:
When is FOX gonna dump baseball (at least in primetime)?
Changes in Cable TV Rules?
Exclusive franchises may face FCC scrutiny, new competitor
Bloomberg News Published in the Chicago TribuneNovember 4, 2005
WASHINGTON -- Federal regulators took a step toward opening cable television markets to new competitors such as SBC Communications Inc. and other phone companies.
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission Thursday voted unanimously to invite comment from telephone and cable companies, consumers and others on whether it should try to pry open the markets controlled by local governments.
Congress in 1992 encouraged localities to permit more competition, with little effect. Cable operators including Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Inc. have exclusive franchises in 97 percent of markets overseen by 30,000 city, town and county governments, the FCC said in February.
"We seek to ensure that local authorities are not thwarting competition by unreasonably refusing to award additional competitive franchises," said FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, a Republican.
The FCC's so-called Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Thursday was the first step in a process that could lead to a new federal rule in a few years
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/chi-0511040229nov04,1,3878073.story?coll=chi-ent_tv-hed
dturturro
11-04-05, 02:21 PM
It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Reunion was gonna be in trouble :rolleyes:
When is FOX gonna dump baseball (at least in primetime)?
Hmm... a show going head to head with the number 1 show on TV is ratings challenged? Who'd a thunk it?!
Maybe they'll show some guts and give it the post AI spot.
CPanther95
11-04-05, 02:25 PM
It did just fine before the baseball break.
Yes, but you have to remember it was up against repeats for the most part. The other networks didn't start their new programming until late September.
The baseball playoffs give Fox a great chance to introduce young males to their shows, and with a somewhat more male-oriented lineup than other networks, if Fox can put together some watchable shows, it should help.
The “West Wing”: Vote Vinick? Or Santos?
By Scott D. Pierce Salt Lake City Deseret Morning News
The West Wing has always sort of been wish-fulfillment politics — America and its leaders as the best and the brightest.
And Sunday's "live" debate (8 PM ET/PT, NBC) between candidates Sen. Arnold Vinick (Alan Alda) and Congressman Matt Santos (Jimmy Smits) promises to be no exception.
"The show, as a whole, has always tried to say, "What do we wish our politics was?' " executive producer John Wells said during a conference call with TV critics, along with Alda and Smits. "And so the whole idea was to try to do a debate in which there's actually a debate. We will try and set up a world in which the candidates can have a real exchange, in the hopes that maybe a few people watch it and say, 'Gee, I wonder why we don't get that in our real presidential campaigns?' "
"What John really wants to do is try to give the audience what a real debate should be," Smits said.
In last week's episode, Vinick and Smits agreed to that genuine debate — just the two of them taking questions and exchanging ideas. The episode will actually air live twice — once for the Eastern and Central time zones and once for the Pacific. (Here in Mountain Time, we'll get a one-hour delay on the first of those.)
Other shows have done live episodes whose format didn't make much sense — why do a live episode of "ER" or "Will & Grace"? But, as Smits said, "It just seemed like such a natural fit to do this live."
"It may not be that there's as much an artistic advantage as there is a promotional advantage," Alda said. "I think for us — for Jimmy and I going head-to-head — there's something that can catch fire when two actors are connecting. And this, I hope, will give us a chance to connect so that that fire does happen. Then it won't just be fun for us, it'll be fun to watch."
Both greeted news of the live episode with excitement — although Alda perhaps with a bit more than Smits.
"I loved the idea," Alda said. "I started out as an improviser in the theater. . . . I always used to love it if I'd be out on stage in a Broadway play and somebody would forget to make an entrance and I'd have to make stuff up. I was always disappointed when they got back onstage."
"Of course, when you tell actors with theater backgrounds that we're doing a live show, it's, like, total elation. There's joy," Smits said. "The air started coming out of the bubble for me because of the improvisatory nature of what can happen."
The show will be, to some extent, improvised. "We'll definitely be rehearsing a script, but at the same time we're giving the actors substantial briefing materials so they can actually be familiar with the issues," Wells said.
"It sounds like you're saying it will be less scripted than an actual debate," Alda added.
Which is "the whole reason we decided we wanted to do this," Wells said. "I think even to call our current presidential debates 'debates' is stretching the term. They are so pre-negotiated. . . . It's an entertainment show, so I don't want to start to sound too pretentious about it, but it's a very conscious effort on our part to appeal to what should be the better nature of our political lives."
Which is something both Alda and Smits sound passionate about.
"I hope we arrive at something that's not a version of business as usual, in terms of debates, but something more stimulating," Alda said. "Something that says — 'It would be fun if a debate could be like this, where there's a real exchange of ideas.' "
"Hopefully, with this, maybe we'll give a little lesson or two to the way the next one should be — the next real one," Smits said.
"Yeah," Alda interjected. "With real actors."
http://www.desnews.com/dn/print/1,1442,635158412,00.html
As far as Stacked goes, I'm not sure what the reaction to the show is in these parts, but I was actually pleasantly surprised by it. It's pretty funny. fredfa.I am looking forward to Stacked because it IS funny. It seems it is very popular to fire salvos at this show, like the critic did above. If you haven't seen the guy who plays Pam Anderson's ex-boyfriend Eddie Banks you are missing out on enjoying one of the funniest characters on TV. It was a really bad idea naming the show Stacked and stigmatizing it out of the chute. I had to beg my wife to watch it because she thought it was exploitive (which it is) but dang funny. She loves it. I can't believe my wife looks as foward to watching a Pam Anderson show as much as me (for different reasons of course).
The “West Wing”: “Before the show, we’ll throw up!”
By Adam Buckman The New York Post
Forrest Sawyer has done plenty of live TV before, but nothing quite like this.
"We'll be rehearsing right up until Sunday. And before the show, we'll gather together and throw up!" Sawyer said yesterday on the phone from California, admitting to being nervous about playing the role of moderator in this Sunday's prime-time face-off between presidential candidates Arnold Vinick (Alan Alda) and Matthew Santos (Jimmy Smits) on "The West Wing" on NBC.
The scripted debate, written by executive producer Lawrence O'Donnell, will be performed twice - once for the East Coast at 8 p.m. and again three hours later for the West. It will contain only two commercial breaks for American Express, the show's sole sponsor.
"[The producers] really mean for it to be the kind of debate that I think we all wish we could get, which is one that is not focus-grouped to death," said Sawyer, who has worked in the news divisions of CBS, ABC and NBC. "[The candidates] are actually talking to people about the things that they believe about the issues that matter."
In the interest of secrecy, Sawyer would reveal just one of the issues to be debated by the two candidates.
"They get into energy a lot, which is a big deal," Sawyer disclosed.
http://www.nypost.com/php/pfriendly/pfriendly_new.php
CPanther95
11-04-05, 03:57 PM
Yes, but you have to remember it was up against repeats for the most part. The other networks didn't start their new programming until late September.
The baseball playoffs give Fox a great chance to introduce young males to their shows, and with a somewhat more male-oriented lineup than other networks, if Fox can put together some watchable shows, it should help.
Does baseball attract young male viewers?
8 TV shows to watch to fill out your weekend
Sid Smith and Maureen Ryan Chicago Tribune November 4, 2005
"Law & Order: Criminal Intent," 7 PM ET/PT Sunday, NBC: It's great to see Chris Noth back on TV, and back in the fold of "Law & Order"; after all, he and the old-school "Law & Order" crew helped spawn the TV-procedural crime wave we're still experiencing. This season, Noth is alternating with Vincent D'Onofrio as "Criminal Intent's" lead each week; on Sunday, Noth's and D'Onofrio's characters, detectives Mike Logan and Robert Goren, pair up for an engrossing two-hour outing, in which an Iowa teen on a school field trip to New York City goes missing. When a prominent judge's son is implicated in not just her disappearance but other crimes as well, the pressure on the detectives gets really intense. Colm Meaney does a terrific turn as the arrogant judge, and the case allows the "Law & Order" franchise to take a look at why and how missing white women seem to end up getting more attention from the media than missing women of other ethnicities. "Do not confuse my desperation with gratitude," the mother of a missing African-American girl fumes at a cable news personality (obviously modeled on CNN's Nancy Grace) who's finally decided to cover the case of the non-white girl -- once her death is linked to that of the white teen from Iowa.
Not only is the story meaty and provocative, it's a pleasure to see the easy chemistry of Noth and Annabella Sciorra, who plays Logan's partner, Detective Carolyn Barek. Noth's world-weary visage and Sciorra's urban edge give their pairing the upper hand in the "Criminal Intent" realm, though, truth be told, D'Onofrio's odd timing and hulking presence have their appeal, once you get used to them. "I'm an acquired taste," Goren admits to his partner (Kathryn Erbe). But it's one that goes down well in this company.
"Family Guy," 9 PM ET/PT Sunday, Fox: Gird yourself for "Family Guy's" most rebellious outing yet. Sick of the FCC interfering with his favorite TV shows, Peter Griffin starts his own television network, PTV, which does everything it can to flout government censors, who eventually show up at the Griffin home to restore order. Expect lots of envelope-pushing jokes about flatulence, the government, body parts, Osama Bin Laden and sex, and, not surprisingly, there's a musical number savaging "the fellows at the freakin' FCC."
"The West Wing," 8 PM ET/PT Sunday, NBC: Following on the heels of similar experiments on "ER" and "Will & Grace," this episode features a live telecast of a scripted debate between Democrat Matt Santos (Jimmy Smits) and Republican Arnold Vinick (Alan Alda). Both characters are running for president on the series this season. To bolster the verisimilitude, real-life MSNBC newsman Forrest Sawyer will moderate. High oratory is likely, but it remains to be seen if there will be any of those legendary debate gaffes, a la Al Gore's supercilious sighs.
"George Carlin: Life Is Worth Losing," 10 PM ET/PT Saturday, HBO: The venerable comic and iconoclast returns for his 13th special, an HBO record. This 75-minute session is a live one from New York's Beacon Theater, touching on such Carlinesque topics as weird American phrases and the possibilities for a cable channel devoted to suicide.
"Category 7: The End of the World," Part 1, 9 PM ET/PT Sunday, CBS: Fans of this telefilm's predecessor, wherein Chicago was assaulted by hurricane force winds, will probably enjoy this upped ante of a sequel, though it once again mixes spectacular effects with childish human melodrama. Everybody, from FEMA head Gina Gershon (slightly miscast) to demagogic televangelists James Brolin and Swoosie Kurtz, comes off as a caricature, and the disaster scenario suggests that, when the entire world is endangered, only a handful of fringe scientists are able to deal with the crisis. There's also something a bit tasteless about disaster fluff at a time of so many genuine weather tragedies. Still, for those who liked the original, this time the casualties include the Pyramids and the giant sculptural head of George Washington, which comes tumbling down from Mt. Rushmore. Randy Quaid, as a cowboy tornado chaser, is one of the few joys of this made-for-TV movie, which concludes a week later Nov. 13. Tom Skerritt, Shannen Doherty and Robert Wagner are also in the cast.
"The Crusades: Crescent & the Cross," Part 1, 9 PM ET/PT Sunday, The History Channel: A documentary on the series of wars that most of us have heard about but are vague on the details. This medieval clash between Christians and Muslims has contemporary echoes, of course, and this version, which concludes Monday, offers one of this cable channel's typically accessible, if sometimes rudimentary, narratives, replete with colorful, occasionally hokey dramatizations. Both viewpoints, Christian and Muslim, are represented in the quoted historical accounts (Archbishop William of Tyre and Arab chronicler Ibn Al-Athir, for instance) and in the interviews of modern scholars.
"South of Nowhere," 8:30 PM ET/PT Friday, The N: Stephen from "Laguna Beach" -- watch your back. There's a new dreamy hunk on TV, Aiden Dennison (Matthew Cohen), one of the high schoolers on The N's fine new dramatic series, which follows the fortunes of a family that moves from Ohio to Los Angeles. Dennison's the star player at the L.A. high school attended by the three Carlin siblings; 17-year-old Glen Carlin thinks he can outplay the star point guard, Dennison, and makes waves by trying to do so. Despite having a queen-bee, cheerleader girlfriend, Dennison soon has his eye on Spencer Carlin, who's confused but intrigued by her new surroundings and her dramatic new friend, rich girl Ashley. The lack of either cutesyness or condescension shown by this program is promising; the fact that it doesn't shy away from issues of religion, sexuality and race -- the third Carlin sibling is a studious, adopted 17-year-old African-American young man -- is also commendable. This is a teen show that bears watching -- and not just by teens.
"Wanted: Ted or Alive," 8 PM ET/PT Saturday, OLN: We knew it would come to this: Ted Nugent has a reality show. The Nuge, an avid hunter, outdoorsman and, intriguingly, environmental advocate, takes five city slickers into the Michigan woods to see if they can master various outdoor challenges and survive what the wild has to offer. Though the show is more or less a deep-woods variation on "Survivor" (with fewer contestants), its non-flashy, low-rent feel is actually kind of appealing, and it has some unexpected moments, including rocker Nugent rhapsodizing about the benefits of biodiversity and contestants wrestling with the idea of killing their own meals. This is most certainly not a show for vegetarians (or for kids -- the Nuge's language can be pretty salty).
http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/tv/chi-0511040006nov04,1,732338.story?coll=chi-ent_tv-hed
THE 2005-2006 TV SEASON
More TV dramas revolve around married female characters
By Rob Owen Pittsburgh Post-Gazette TV Editor
This season, women rule TV dramas.
Following last year's success of "Desperate Housewives," that development should come as no surprise; TV executives always are eager to emulate recent success.
Although women have had prominent roles in TV since at least the 1960s, this year there is a tangible difference: married women in the driver's seat.
Mary Tyler Moore, a successful single, headlined a self-titled sitcom in the 1970s. Dana Scully, another successful single, was Fox Mulder's equal in every sense on "The X-Files," a 1990s drama.
But the new trend elevates wives and relegates husbands to playing second fiddle, particularly in prime-time dramas:
* On NBC's "Medium," Patricia Arquette plays the title role and gets the majority of screen time.
* The disparity is more pronounced on CBS' imitator, "Ghost Whisperer," where Jennifer Love Hewitt's psychic is front and center while her paramedic husband (David Conrad) appears less frequently to offer comfort and support.
* On CBS' "Close to Home," Indianapolis prosecutor Annabeth Chase (Jennifer Finnigan) is the focus, while her husband is seen only in rare scenes.
* On ABC's "Commander in Chief," where first gentleman Rod (Kyle Secor) wins more screen time than most of these other "plus one" guys, he still plays a clear second to his wife, President Mackenzie Allen (Geena Davis).
The reasons for the shift are myriad: They're economic and demographic, they're out of narrative necessity, and they're a result of the maturing of a medium that mirrors changes in society.
Viewers have seen married women in leading roles in the past, especially on sitcoms ("Maude" in the 1970s), but there are fewer examples in prime-time dramas. It has happened from time to time (e.g. Mary Beth Lacey on "Cagney & Lacey" in the 1980s), but usually the female leads in TV dramas are single, as on "Ally McBeal," "Judging Amy" and "Gilmore Girls."
In her upcoming book "Redesigning Women: Television After the Network Era" (University of Illinois Press, April 2006), Amanda Lotz, a communication studies assistant professor at the University of Michigan, charts the rise of female-centered dramas from 1945 to the present in nine-year increments.
Seven series fitting that description were made between 1975 and 1984, and more than double that number from the mid-1980s to the mid-'90s.
The floodgates burst open from 1995 to 2004, when more than 35 female-centered dramas were produced. Even then, many of those series starred young single women ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Felicity," "Dark Angel" and more) and aired on smaller networks or niche cable outlets. In time, TV shows with female leads migrated to the larger networks, particularly after NBC's success with "Providence" in 1999.
"In the realm of television history, it is still pretty new," Lotz said. "We didn't really [regularly] have women as leads of successful dramas until the mid- to late '90s. ... The fact that they were single women is significant as part of the complicated history of feminism and how we understand it in popular culture.
"Wrongly, it was assumed that women had to be single to be progressive female characters. ... It took the success of a number of single female characters in these types of shows before taking the next step of female characters who are also in committed and equal relationships."
John Gray, executive producer of "Ghost Whisperer," acknowledged the roles of men and women in TV dramas are changing.
"We've reversed what we saw for so many years where women were just the grace notes," Gray said.
Garth Ancier, chairman of the WB, said television reflects American cultural shifts.
"You're in a workforce where almost half the workers are women," he said.
The WB's new drama "Related" focuses on four adult sisters; only one of them is married, and her husband is a supporting character. "The majority of women in this country are breadwinners for their families, so you're just reflecting society," Ancier said.
Just as society has evolved, so have television's depictions of it.
And so we get the supportive husband who understands his wife's busy work schedule ("Close to Home") or her supernatural abilities ("Medium," "Ghost Whisperer") as she balances family and career responsibilities.
Married women in leading roles also mirror the life changes for the targeted 18-to-49 female audience, said Sharon Ross, an assistant professor in the TV department at Columbia College in Chicago.
"What happens next for all the women who grew up with shows about single women? The logical trajectory is that those women get married and have kids, and you can't keep feeding them what you've been giving them," Ross said, pointing out that even at the end of its run, the women of "Sex and the City" (more of a drama than a comedy by its conclusion) had all paired off.
The role of women behind the scenes in Hollywood may also be a factor, acknowledged Laverne McKinnon, senior vice president of drama development at CBS.
"CBS is a great example of it with ['CSI: Crime Scene Investigation' executive producer] Carol Mendelsohn, ['CSI: Miami' executive producer] Ann Donahue and ['Cold Case' creator] Meredith Stiehm all being female show runners," McKinnon said. "It's reflective of people's experiences and speaks to us as studio and network executives, as more and more women have risen to positions of leadership in the entertainment industry and other industries."
Viewers should bear in mind that this women-in-the-spotlight, men-in-the-wings dynamic is happening on only a few programs. With all the different demographic niches targeted by assorted broadcast and cable networks, the trend will undoubtedly continue but is unlikely to overtake prime time.
"I don't think it's the end of feminism and the beginning of female domination, but it's sort of a natural diversification in these characters," Lotz said. "And I'd still point to the entire FX lineup and many other locations where we have male characters with equivalently dominant screen time."
http://www.bergen.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkxNjcmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cW VlRUV5eTY4MDY3NDYmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk3
Does baseball attract young male viewers?
Nowhere near as many as the NFL or the NBA, of course, but far more than any other programming readily available. And it does get many people (particularly upscale viewers) who rarely or never would watch a Fox program, to tune in -- and presumably see the constant promos.
'
It also attracts older viewers. And with the demo 24-54 increasingly being used by Madison Avenue, that can help too.
“Good Morning Amercia” anniversary review
In my mind, yesterday's GMA 30th anniversary may well have been a key moment for HD.
The explanation (almost gushing) about the wonders of HD -- "even to those of you who don't have it yet" -- were constant and right on target, especially for the vast majority of folks who really haven't been paying attention.
If you are interested in Phillip Swann’s thoughtful take on the “Good Morning America” transition to HD (and can stand his almost constant, banal (and obviously in my mind) offensive remarks about older TV personalities like David Hartman and Joan Lunden (though he does give Diane Sawyer a pass) -- it is here:
http://www.tvpredictions.com/gmahdtv110305.htm
I think some of his thoughts about the future of HD are right on and very forward-looking. I find his predictions generally are far more prescient than many (if not most) on these forums like to give him credit for.
His views about anyone old enough to have gray hair or a wrinkle are, by contrast, Neanderthal.
Not as Much to “Like”
Fox has cut its order for its veteran comedy “What I Like About You” from 22 to 18 episodes. If you haven’t kept count, that means there will be 86 shows by season’s end. That is marginally enough for syndication.
(Like network TV ratings, syndication requirements seem to have decreased recently. Back in the day, 100 episodes was considered a bare minimum for syndication ruches.)
dturturro
11-04-05, 04:33 PM
Nowhere near as many as the NFL or the NBA, of course, but far more than any other programming readily available. And it does get many people (particularly upscale viewers) who rarely or never would watch a Fox program, to tune in -- and presumably see the constant promos.
'
It also attracts older viewers. And with the demo 24-54 increasingly being used by Madison Avenue, that can help too.
How about a real Thursday night 9PM showdown: AI vs. CSI?
Fox has done some weird scheduling moves over the years, and some version of that is being considered (perhaps a results show or some other spinoff).
Personally I think it would be crazy, but I've been wrong almost as many times as Fox (or even NBC) programmers in the past.
Fulfilling another reader request. Again I will post these ratings on an occasional basis:
The Top 25 Cable Networks
Total Day Ratings, Week Ending Oct. 30th
Rank Network Avg. Households (in thousands)
1 Nicklelodeon 1,583
2 Nick at Nite * 1,242
3 The Cartoon Network 941
4 TNT 926
5 Lifetime 925
6 USA 907
7 ADSM * 874
8 ESPN 816
9 Fox News Channel 804
10 WTBS 768
11 American Movie Classics 613
12 TV Land 537
13 Cable News Network 531
14 MTV 521
15 A & E 500
16 The Hallmark Channel 499
17 The History Channel 495
18 HGTV 489
19 ABC Family 485
20 Spike 483
21 Sci-Fi 471
22 FX 461
23The Food Channel 445
24 The Discovery Channel 419
25 Comedy Central 402
(* Network broadcasts less than 51% of minutes in a 24-hour day.)
Source: medialifemagazine.com/Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
More Cable Numbers. This time, prime-time only.
The Top 25 Cable Networks
Prime Time Ratings, Week Ending Oct. 30th
Rank Network Avg. Households (in thousands)
1 ESPN 2,176
2 USA 2,050
3 Lifetime 1,886
4 TNT 1,475
5 Nick at Nite 1,421
6 WTBS 1,377
7 Fox News Channel 1,344
8 The Cartoon Network 1,318
9 American Movie Classics 1,012
10 Spike TV 933
11 MTV 900
12 Sci-Fi 848
13 A & E 836
14 The History Channel 829
15 HGTV 829
16 TV Land 787
17 ABC Family 785
18 FX 757
19 Cable News Network 739
20 Comedy Cenbtral729
21 The Hallmark Channel 708
22 The Discovery Channel 681
23 ESPN2 657
24 Court TV 655
25 The Food Channel 625
Source: medialifemagazine.com/Turner Entertainment Research based on data from Nielsen Media Research.
“Geraldo” Strip Declines in First Week
By Christopher Lisotta TVWeek.com November 4, 2005
Twentieth Television's limited rollout of its debuting first-run syndicated news strip "Geraldo at Large" declined from its first day on the air to its fourth, but was even with the October average of Twentieth's canceled newsmagazine "A Current Affair."
"Geraldo" scored a 2.1 household rating and 4 share for its primary runs in 32 metered markets last Thursday, according to Nielsen Media Research. That was down 19 percent from last Monday's 2.6 rating and 5 share.
For last Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, "Geraldo" averaged a 2.3 rating and 5 share, which was down 30 percent from its average lead-in of 3.3/6, and down 8 percent from the November 2004 time period average of 2.5/5. Tuesday's metered market numbers were not available as of the end of last week due to a Nielsen technical glitch.
"Geraldo," which is airing mostly on Fox owned-and-operated stations in prime access, early fringe and late fringe time periods, was even with the October 2005 average of "Affair," which garnered a 2.3/5. Compared with "Affair's" debut week in March, however, "Geraldo" was down 30 percent (3.3/6 versus 2.3/5).
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=8862
TNT's NBA Opener Up 12%
By John Consoli MediaWeek.com
TNT's opening night 2005-06 NBA season doubleheader on Nov. 1 averaged a 1.2 U.S. household rating (1.6 cable rating), up 12 percent over last season's opening night rating.
The opening game, Denver Nuggets vs. San Antonio Spurs, averaged 1.55 million households vs. 1.22 million for last season's opening game. The second game featured the Dallas Mavericks vs. the Phoenix Suns.
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/cabletv/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001434025
Nowhere near as many as the NFL or the NBA, of course, but far more than any other programming readily available. And it does get many people (particularly upscale viewers) who rarely or never would watch a Fox program, to tune in -- and presumably see the constant promos.
'
It also attracts older viewers. And with the demo 24-54 increasingly being used by Madison Avenue, that can help too.
I'll bet the NBA attracts a fair amount of young females(teens to early 20's). I have 2 nieces(18-19) that watch all the time and although they are more interested in the players than the game itself, they are watching it.
The “West Wing”: “Before the show, we’ll throw up!”
By Adam Buckman The New York Post
The scripted debate, written by executive producer Lawrence O'Donnell, will be performed twice - once for the East Coast at 8 p.m. and again three hours later for the West. It will contain only two commercial breaks for American Express, the show's sole sponsor.
They're actually going to do 2 separate debates? Interesting, I would have thought they would just re-broadcast the east coast one later for the west coast. Is that a first for primetime TV? It would be interesting to see both of them.
I agree. It will be fun to compare the two -- to see which "candidate" learns from his first-debate mistakes!
It is rare (I can't think of it being done since the dawn of the videotape era) and I don't know why they are doing it that way (aside from the press relations angle).
The Mountain and Pacific time zone account for just about 23% of the nation's TV homes.
So why bother?
8 TV shows to watch to fill out your weekend
"Wanted: Ted or Alive," 8 PM ET/PT Saturday, OLN: We knew it would come to this: Ted Nugent has a reality show. The Nuge, an avid hunter, outdoorsman and, intriguingly, environmental advocate, takes five city slickers into the Michigan woods to see if they can master various outdoor challenges and survive what the wild has to offer. Though the show is more or less a deep-woods variation on "Survivor" (with fewer contestants), its non-flashy, low-rent feel is actually kind of appealing, and it has some unexpected moments, including rocker Nugent rhapsodizing about the benefits of biodiversity and contestants wrestling with the idea of killing their own meals. This is most certainly not a show for vegetarians (or for kids -- the Nuge's language can be pretty salty).
I saw this guy live at the Fillmore in SF a couple of months back(friend had free tix, personally, Nugent is not my cup of tea) and even at his age he is still as crazy as ever. And "salty" doesn't even begin to describe his language!! This might be worth a viewing, now all I need to do is find what channel OLN is on, never watched it before. :D
ESPN2 HD College Football
Reportedly ESPN2 is still deciding whether to broadcast the North Carolina State at Boston College or Maryland at North Carolina next Saturday, Nov. 12th, at 7 PM ET. In either event, obviously, it will be an ACC matchup.
CPanther95
11-04-05, 06:13 PM
They're actually going to do 2 separate debates? Interesting, I would have thought they would just re-broadcast the east coast one later for the west coast. Is that a first for primetime TV? It would be interesting to see both of them.
I think the Live episode of ER was also filmed twice for the two coasts.
I think the Live episode of ER was also filmed twice for the two coasts.
That would seem to be even more difficult than 2 guys standing at podiums. Wild..
I agree. It will be fun to compare the two -- to see which "candidate" learns from his first-debate mistakes!
It is rare (I can't think of it being done since the dawn of the videotape era) and I don't know why they are doing it that way (aside from the press relations angle).
The Mountain and Pacific time zone account for just about 23% of the nation's TV homes.
So why bother?
Yes, it seems as if the Mountain and Pacific zones will get the better end of the deal. Although, the second one may be even more hard-scripted-like after the first acting as a rehearsal.
I think the Live episode of ER was also filmed twice for the two coasts.
I keep promising myself that some day I will actually watch a complete episode of ER :)
Perhaps I'll just buy the complete XX-season DVD collection and sequester myself on a desert island for a month or so.
Or perhaps not!
Bogney Baux
11-04-05, 07:21 PM
Not as Much to “Like”
Fox has cut its order for its veteran comedy “What I Like About You” from 22 to 18 episodes. Isn't this show on the WB Network?
“Lost” vs. “Criminal Minds”
Did ABC executives overestimate the strength of “Lost”?
We should know more next week., As for last night however, Variety’s Rick Kissell writes that
“CBS may have another hot crime drama on its hands in rookie "Criminal Minds," which surged to its best Wednesday numbers of the season opposite a repeat "Lost."
It's hard to get a real read on the show's performance Wednesday as it was the timeslot's only firstrun scripted program on the six broadcast nets, but "Criminal Minds" dominated the 9 o'clock hour with a 4.9 rating/12 share in adults 18-49 and 16.3 million viewers overall, according to preliminary nationals from Nielsen.
The 18-49 number marks a 36% gain over the show's previous Wednesday average, delivering the best regular-slot score in the hour for CBS since an episode of "60 Minutes II" in February 2003…”
As many network executives (and even more former execs) have learned, you never want to allow the competition to gain a ratings toehold for any reason.
It is a little reminiscent of when CBS slotted “Without A Trace” against the then invincible “ER”. It took time, and it took perseverance b