Syndie Insider

Rookie strips performed like pros in the week ended Oct. 3, with three out of four chalking up improvements.

This season's top newcomer, Paramount's The Insider, gained 4% to a 2.4, out-rating Warner Bros.' veteran newsmagazine Extra! at a 2.2 for the second time in the new show's three weeks on the air. Insider also increased its key demos, rising 14% and 18%, respectively, in men and women 18-49. In the metered markets, the show averaged its highest numbers yet, a 3.0 rating/6 share on Columbus Day.

Buena Vista's The Tony Danza Show was up 9% to a 1.2, winning its time periods in three of the top four markets: New York, Chicago and Philadelphia.

NBC Universal's Home Delivery was up 22% to a 1.1, a personal best. NBC Universal's The Jane Pauley Show, meanwhile, fell 7% to a 1.4 after being downgraded in Dallas and Nashville. Twentieth's Ambush Makeover was down 9% to a 1.0.

Top talker The Oprah Winfrey Show has been renewed on stations representing 60% of the country through 2011, says distributor King World. In addition to its anchor clearances on ABC O&Os, stations re-upping come from the NBC, co-owned Viacom, Hearst-Argyle, Belo, Cox, LIN and Post-Newsweek groups, among others.

Buena Vista's The Tony Danza Show has received upgrades in two markets: Kansas City, Mo., and Charlotte, N.C. In Kansas City, the show is moving from 1 p.m. on locally owned KCWE, a UPN affiliate and Hearst-Argyle LMA, over to KMBC, Hearst-Argyle's ABC affiliate in the market, at 9 a.m. Sony's Life & Style will swap places with Danza, going over to KCWE at 1 p.m., starting Oct. 18. In Charlotte, Belo's WCNC, an NBC affiliate, on Oct. 11 replaced NBC Universal's The Jane Pauley Show at 4 p.m., pushing Pauley to 10 a.m. NBC Universal's Starting Over had been at 10 a.m. but is taking Danza's place at 3.