TV Ratings: CBS Lead Grows

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The battle is on atop the ratings chart. Actually, CBS has already taken a commanding lead on the season’s main ratings races, but the war for second (or to avoid being third) between NBC and ABC is only beginning. Although CBS romped to a laugher of a ratings win for the week ending Sunday, Oct. 12, the next two networks were neck-and-neck both overall and in the key demographic.

Overall, CBS won the week with a 9.0 rating/15 share, pulling in 13.8 million viewers per night. NBC grabbed second with a 6.5/11 and 9.87 million viewers, but ABC’s 6.4/10 and 9.7 million were close behind. Boosted only slightly by the baseball playoffs, FOX was fourth with a 5.2/9 and 7.8 million viewers. FOX’s ratings will almost certainly improve as the Red Sox and Yankees stage their seemingly annual October grudge match. On the netlet side, The WB did a 2.7/4 and 4.02 million as UPN improved to a 2.5/4 and 3.71 million.

CBS also won among adults 18-49, doing a 4.2 rating in the demographic the advertisers crave most. ABC and NBC both had identical 3.8 ratings, but ABC had the smallest of advantages. FOX was next with a solid 3.0 rating. The WB had a 1.7 demographic rating for the week and UPN had a 1.5 rating.

The week’s most watched program was CBS’ “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” which attracted 28.4 million viewers and a 17.4/26. The Jerry Bruckheimer forensic drama factory was quite fertile for CBS as the week’s second and third most watched shows were “Without a Trace” (13.9/22) and “CSI: Miami.” Bruckheimer’s shop also yielded “CSI: NY” (11.0/18, 9th), “Cold Case” (10.0/16, 13th) and a special Wednesday “CSI: Miami” (9.0/14, 15th). Although it doesn’t come from Bruckheimer, “NCIS” (9.5/15, 14th) certainly comes from a similar investigative cloth.

CBS’ lighter offerings were led by “Everybody Loves Raymond” (11.4/17), which tied “Survivor: Vanuatu” (11.4/18) for fifth. “Two and a Half Men” (10.8/16, 10th) and “60 Minutes” (8.4/15, 20th) also made the Top 20 for CBS.

NBC’s Thursday line-up now regularly finishes behind CBS’, but Must-See TV still yielded most of the network’s most popular shows. “ER,” somewhat vanquished by “Without a Trace,” still placed a strong No. 5 with an 11.4/18. Although “The Apprentice 2” was soundly beaten by “CSI,” it still did a 10.6/16 for No. 11. Comedies “Joey” (8.7/14, 16th) and “Will & Grace” (8.5/13, 17th) remained respectable despite continued ratings declines.

Also sliding was “Law & Order.” The Wednesday mothership, long a Top 10 staple, was No. 17 with an 8.5/14.

ABC’s string of new hits stands in stark contrast to NBC’s aging lineups. The second week of “Desperate Housewives” held much of the boffo premiere audience, doing a 12.1/18 for No. 4 and the third episode of “Lost” remained strong with a 10.4/17 for No. 12. Also making the Top 20 for ABC were “Monday Night Football” at No. 8 with an 11.2/19 and “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” at No. 17 with an 8.5/13.

Things were a little bit less rosy for the premiere of ABC’s critically admired drama “life as we know it,” which put up WB-esque numbers at No. 74 with a 3.2/5. The David E. Kelley “Practice” spin-off “Boston Legal” took a drop in its second week, doing a 7.8/13 for No. 24.

FOX’s best was Sunday’s NFL overrun, which was No. 26 with a 7.4/13. The WB was led by “7th Heaven,” at No. 55 with a 4.7/7, while UPN had “America’s Next Top Model” at No. 68 with a 3.5/6.

Credit: Zap2It

Murtz Jaffer is the world's foremost reality television expert and was the host of Reality Obsessed which aired on the TVTropolis and Global Reality Channels in Canada. He has professional writing experience at the Toronto Sun, National Post, TV Guide Canada, TOROMagazine.com and was a former producer at Entertainment Tonight Canada. He was also the editor at Weekendtrips.com.