'Skins' Ratings Drop For Second Episode

MTV's controversial series Skins attracted only about half the viewers it did when it premiered a week ago.

Skins' second episode drew 1.581 million viewers on Monday, down from 3.255 million, one of MTV's biggest series debuts ever. Among viewers 12 to 34--MTV's target demographic, Skins drew a 1.35 rating, making it the 11th ranked show on cable in prime time. A week ago it was No. 2 with a 2.87 rating.

MTV boosted the viewership of the premiere by using a special episode of The Jersey Shore as a lead in and all of the salacious buzz surrounding the show couldn't bring in enough new viewers to match the previous week's levels.

Skins raised a ruckus amid accusations that a combination of storylines involving sex and drugs, plus a cast that includes actors under the age of 18 could be a formula for child pornography. The Parents Television Council also began contacting advertisers on what it called the "most dangerous" show for children ever on TV, and sponsors began to drop the show.

On Mondays' episodes, the only advertisers were movie studios, Red Bull and acne and stretch mark treatments.

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.