In Focus

Access and early-fringe shows rebounded a bit in Nielsen’s national rankings the week ended April 17 but mostly stayed in the dark as the second week of daylight-saving time continued to hurt viewing levels.

In access, Everybody Loves Raymond (6.3), heading to its final episodes in prime time, jumped 7% for the week and 24% from the comparable year-ago week. Seinfeld (5.6), meanwhile, climbed 2% but dropped 7% from a year ago, while Friends(5.1) increased 4% but saw its year-to-year average drop 9%.

Magazines and games remained flat, with the exceptions of Extra, rebounding 10% from last week’s season low though off 15% from a year ago, and Family Feud, dropping 5% on both the week and the year.

In its fifth week, ended April 24, meanwhile, Twentieth TV’s A Current Affair revival hit its lowest score yet in overnight metered markets. It averaged a 2.6 rating/5 share for its primary runs in 30 markets—down 24% from its 3.4/7 lead-in and 16% from the year-ago time- period average of 3.1/6.

Its best performances came in No. 9 market Atlanta, up 51% from a year ago, and 10th-ranked Detroit, a 48% hike. In the largest markets, however, the show underperformed year-ago time periods: down 48% in New York, 37% in Los Angeles and 43% in Chicago.