Syndication Ratings: Judge Judy Strong in Courtroom, Resilient in Ratings
Numbers Down Across-the-Board vs. Sweeps in February 2007, 2006
By Paige Albiniak -- Broadcasting & Cable, 3/11/2008 11:40:00 AM
CBS’ Judge Judy isn’t just the queen of court, she’s also the queen of February sweeps. The good judge was the only first-run strip to show year-to-year improvement in the February sweeps, which ran from Jan. 31-Feb. 27.
Judy averaged a 5.3 national live-plus-same-day household rating, according to Nielsen Media Research, a 4% increase over last February and an 8% increase over February 2006. That translates into growth of 132,000 average viewers per show and an increase of 645,000 viewers per show over February 2006.
By comparison, almost every other first-run strip was down by double-digits year-to-year.
CBS’ Judge Joe Brown, which has been the No. 2 court show for 37 consecutive sweeps, averaged a 2.8, down 18% from last February. Warner Bros.’ People’s Court dropped 13% to a 2.6 average. Warner Bros.’ Judge Mathis fell 21% to a 2.2. Twentieth Television’s Divorce Court and Judge Alex tied at a 2.0 each, dropping 9% and 5%, respectively. Sony’s Judge Hatchett, which is going out of original production after this year, and Twentieth’s Cristina’s Court tied at a 1.4, down 18% and 7%, respectively, while Sony’s Judge Maria Lopez dropped 17% to a 1.0.
Elsewhere in daytime, CBS’ The Oprah Winfrey Show won its 86th consecutive sweeps as the No. 1 talk show, averaging a 6.1, down 15% from last year. A show featuring former teen queen Valerie Bertinelli was the sweep’s highest rated, averaging a 7.3 Feb. 25.
CBS’ Dr. Phil averaged a 5.0, off only 7% and marking the one of the smallest declines in talk. Disney-ABC’s Live with Regis and Kelly fell 16% to a 3.1. Warner Bros.’ Ellen DeGeneres and CBS’ Rachael Ray each only slipped by single-digits, declining only 8% to a 2.4 and 2.2, respectively. NBC Universal’s Maury lost 15% to a 2.2. CBS’ Montel Williams -- which, like Judge Hatchett, is going out of original production after this year -- dipped just 6% to a 1.6. NBCU’s Jerry Springer plunged 22% to a 1.4. Warner Bros.’ Tyra Banks toppled 13% to a 1.3. NBCU’s Martha Stewart plummeted 27% to a 1.1.
The magazines’ toughest competition was with themselves, having come off a huge story in last year’s February sweeps with coverage of the death of model and actress Anna Nicole Smith. Without a big breaking story like that to cover and the lowest-rated Academy Awards in years, all of the magazines were down this February.
CBS’ Entertainment Tonight won its 70th consecutive sweeps period but fell 22% from last February to a 4.9. CBS’ Inside Edition held up better, losing just 8% to a 3.7. NBCU’s Access Hollywood fell 16% to a 2.6. CBS’ The Insider and Warner Bros.’ Extra each dropped 20% to a 2.4 and 2.0, respectively.
Among the games, CBS stalwarts Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! remained relatively strong, with Wheel falling just 7% to a 8.4 and Jeopardy! dipping 8% to a 6.7. Disney-ABC’s Who Wants to Be a Millionaire sank 16% to a 3.1. Debmar-Mercury’s Family Feud was one of the sweeps’ success stories: The show was unchanged from last February, hanging in at a 2.1.
Unlike the veteran shows, most of syndication’s first-run rookies could boast double-digit growth since their September premieres and most have been renewed for their sophomore season.
Warner Bros.’ TMZ, the group’s only access show, was the top-rated newcomer with a 2.3 average, up 15% since September. Twentieth’s The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet was the highest-rated of the seven daytime rookies, coming in at a 1.1 average, up 38% from its national premiere last fall. NBCU’s Steve Wilkos and Sony’s Judge David Young each averaged a 1.0, improving 11% and 25% respectively.
Program Partners’ Merv Griffin's Crosswords averaged a 0.9, up 13%. Twentieth’s Temptation was even with its premiere at a 0.5. Radar Entertainment’s Jury Duty was up 50%, although the gain was from a 0.2 to a 0.3. Acme’s The Daily Buzz was unchanged from its national debut last July at a 0.2.
In off-network syndication, the top newcomers were all up sharply from their fall premieres but the top-tier veterans all saw significant declines.
Warner Bros.’ rookie, Two and a Half Men, was the top off-net sitcom at a 5.5 average, up 83% from its September debut. Twentieth’s Family Guy was next at a 4.6, up 31% from September. And Warner Bros.’ George Lopez at a 3.1 improved 41%.
The story was not as positive for the vets, which have been on the decline for years. Sony’s Seinfeld averaged a 4.2, down 16% from last February. CBS’ Everybody Loves Raymond saw the biggest decline, dropping 29% to a 4.0. Sony’s King of Queens at a 3.2 was down just 11% year-to-year, the group’s smallest dip. Warner Bros.’ Friends fell 19% to a 3.0, while Twentieth’s King of the Hill tumbled 18% to a 2.3.
