Entertainment Mags Rock
By Ben Grossman -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/23/2006
The first full week of 2006 was a good one for entertainment news magazines, according to the national household live-plus-same-day ratings for the week ended Jan. 8. While many syndicated shows were down week-to-week, every entertainment mag posted growth.
As usual, Entertainment Tonight led the way, its 5.4 rating up 8% for the week and ET's best in six weeks. Inside Edition was second with a 3.6, up 9%. ET spinoff The Insider was up 7% to a 2.9, Access Hollywood gained a genre-best 17% to a 2.8, and Extra advanced 4% to a 2.4.
The Oprah Winfrey Show and Dr. Phil were the only talk shows to trend up week-to-week. Oprah was up 9% to a 7.0, Phil 8% to a 5.2. Live With Regis and Kelly fell 11% to a 3.2, Maury dropped 9% to a 3.0, Ellen was flat at a 2.5 (but was the only talker up year-to-year), and Montel and Jerry Springer each lost 9% to a 2.1. Both the rookies averaged a 1.6: a 16% increase for The Tyra Banks Show and an 11% jump for Martha.
Only two court shows were up for the week: Judge Judy 8% to a season-high 5.2 and Judge Joe Brown 3% to a 3.3. The other five dropped: People’s Court 7% to a 2.8, Divorce Court 7% to a 2.6, Judge Mathis 7% to a 2.5, rookie Judge Alex 8% to a 2.2, and Judge Hatchett 14% to a 1.8.
Similarly, only the top two game shows saw weekly growth: Wheel of Fortune 10% to a season-high 8.9 and Jeopardy! 4% to a 7.0. Who Wants To Be a Millionaire was flat at 3.3, while Family Feud fell 9% to a 2.1.
