Cable Ratings: MTV’s 'The City' Shines, 'The Hills' Slow

'The City' second season premiere was up 43% from its series premiere

By Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 9/30/2009 6:14:20 PM

MTV premiered new seasons of meta-scripted staple The Hills and its spinoff The City Tuesday, Sept. 29, pairing the two shows together for the first time
 
The Hills continues to slow down as it ages, with the premiere drawing 2.1 million viewers at 10 p.m. That is down from 3 million viewers for the last season premiere in April, and 3.5 million from the season premiere in August 2008.
 
Still, MTV noted that the show was still the top program on television in its time period in the 12-34 demo the network targets.
 
While The Hills declines, its New York City-based sibling The City is starting to shine.
 
The second season premiere of the The City drew just over 2 million viewers at 10:30 p.m., that is up 43% from its series premiere, which drew 1.6 million viewers.