Syndication Ratings: Ellen's ‘Idol' Boon

After first week as judge, talker hits all-time series high

By David Tanklefsky -- Broadcasting & Cable, 2/24/2010 3:50:00 PM

Most of syndication got a Valentine from Nielsen in the week ending Feb. 14 and most shows met or exceeded their best rating levels of the season.  While winter storms in much of the country kept many viewers indoors, ten of the top eleven veteran talk shows were up from the week before, with Oprah as the only talker to decline.

Warne Bros.' Ellen Degeneres was an especially bright spot, hitting a new all-time series high 2.9 in what was the first full week of the February sweep.  Of course, Ellen's big number coincided with her first week of appearances as the fourth judge on American Idol.  Week-to-week Degeneres gained 12% to 2.9 and grew 26% from last year at this time. 

Elsewhere in talk, CBS Television Distribution's (CTD) Dr. Phil improved 3% to 3.2.  Disney/ABC's Live With Regis and Kelly added 7% to 3.0.  NBCU's Maury climbed 10% to 2.2.  CTD's The Doctors advanced 5% in households to 2.0 and 17% among W18-34.  CTD's Rachael Ray jumped 11% to 2.0, with a show featuring Susan Lucci offering romantic advice for Valentine's Day blooming 22% to 2.2 on Feb. 11.  NBCU's Jerry Springer spiked 8% to 1.4.  Steve Wilkos (NBCU) was up 8% to 1.3.  Warner Bros.' Bonnie Hunt picked up 11% to 1.0.  NBCU's Martha Stewart surged 17% to 0.7, while leader CTD's Oprah fell 4% to 5.4.

Court shows also got very favorable Nielsen verdicts.  CTD's Judge Judy was up 4% from the week before to 5.0.  It ranked first among all syndicated shows with a 7.9 GAA rating.  CTD's Judge Joe Brown also racked up a 4% increase, hitting a 2.4.  Warner Bros.' People's Court was buoyed by 5% to a new season high 2.3.  Warner Bros.' Judge Mathis was up 6% to 1.8.  Twentieth's Judge Alex and Twentieth's Divorce Court were flat at 1.6 and 1.5, respectively.  Warner Bros.' Judge Jeannine Pirro scored a new season-high 1.2, up 9%. 

Among rookies, Sony's Dr. Oz advanced 7% to a new season-high 3.2 in first-run.  The highest-rated new off-net, NBCU's The Office, was also up 7% to 3.2, matching its best number yet.  Other new sitcoms included CTD's Everybody Hates Chris, which was flat at 2.0, and Twentieth's My Name Is Earl, which added 6% to 1.8.

In first-run, Twentieth's Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader and Debmar-Mercury's Wendy Williams were unchanged at 1.7 and 1.2, respectively.  Litton's Street Court hopped 17% to 0.7.

Among magazines, CTD's The Insider scored a new season-high 2.0 with a 5% hike from the week before.  Leader CTD's Entertainment Tonight was up 2% to 5.0.  The show's ET Weekend saw its rating balloon 8% week-to-week and 40% year-to-year to 2.8.  CTD's Inside Edition raced ahead 9% to 3.6.  Warner Bros.' TMZ was up 5% to 2.3.  NBCU's Access Hollywood lost 5% to 2.1.  Warner Bros.' Extra, which did not air in some big markets due to storm coverage, was up 5% to 2.0.

Game shows were mixed.  CTD's Wheel of Fortune slid 1% to 7.4.  Jeopardy (CTD) inched up 2% to a new season-high 6.4.  Disney/ABC's Who Wants To Be a Millionaire got a 4% dividend and earned a 2.7.  Debmar-Mercury's Family Feud was up 7% to 1.5.  NBCU's Deal Or No Deal dropped 8% to 1.1.

Off-net sitcoms were mostly higher.  Warner Bros.' Two and a Half Men was up 4% to a new season-high 5.7.  Twentieth's Family Guy upticked 3% to 3.6.  Sony's Seinfeld was up 4% to 2.9, tying Warner Bros.' George Lopez, which leaped 7%.  CTD's Everybody Loves Raymond and Twentieth's King of the Hill were flat at 2.8 and 2.4, respectively.  Friends (Warner Bros.') fell 4% to 2.2.  Sony's King of Queens was unchanged at 1.7.  House of Payne was up 7% to 1.6.  Frasier was flat at 1.5.