powered by FreeFind

Apple iTunes

Archives

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., May 27-30) -- Yu's return, Spieth's win, Thunder's comeback all part of Memorial Day weekend sports palooza

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The Golden State Warriors’ Monday night Game 7 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder topped all sports attractions on a holiday weekend that also included the return of Yu Darvish and Jordan Spieth’s first Texas PGA win at The Colonial. Oh yeah, the Indy 500 also happened.

Golden State’s 96-88 closeout of the Thunder, capping the defending champ’s comeback from a 3-1 Western Conference Finals deficit, averaged 424,944 D-FW viewers on TNT, with 244,529 in the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

Saturday night’s Game 6, also on TNT, had 311,626 total viewers and 165,136 in the 18-to-49 age range.

Saturday night also marked Darvish’s successful start for the Texas Rangers after a long rehab and Tommy John surgery. Telecast by Fox, the game started roughly one hour, 45 minutes earlier than Warriors-Thunder. And Yu’s 5-inning stint ended just before tipoff. Rangers-Pirates, which ended at 9:24 p.m., outdrew the first half of Warriors-Thunder but had a lower overall average of 290,378 total viewers. Hoops outdrew baseball throughout the night among 18-to-49-year-olds, with the Yu-powered Rangers ending up with an average of 104,798.

Sunday’s final round of the Colonial, which ended with three successive long birdies by Spieth, drew a surprisingly skimpy crowd on CBS11. The overall average was just 106,236 total viewers, with a peak audience of 184,142 for the closing 15-minute segment (4:45 to 5 p.m.). The Colonial also bogeyed with 18-to-49-year-olds, averaging just 15,879 of ‘em for the entire fourth round.

Over on Fox Sports Southwest, the competing afternoon Rangers-Pirates game fared much better with an average of 177,060 total viewers and 57,163 in the 18-to-49 motherlode.

ABC’s Sunday morning/afternoon Indy 500, which ended precisely at 2:30 p.m., pulled in an average of 99,154 total viewers and 31,757 in the 18-to-49 demographic.

Two more things on the sports front. The Rangers’ Monday Memorial night rout of the Cleveland Indians on FSS couldn’t match the big ratings for Game 7 of Warriors-Thunder. But it still ranked No. 2 in the prime-time total viewers competition with a nice-sized 177,060. That haul included 69,865 viewers in the 18-to-49 realm, which also ran second for the night. On NBC Monday night, Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Pittsburgh Penguins and San Jose Sharks had a tough go with just 49,577 total viewers and 28,581 in the 18-to-49 age range.

In the local news derby arena, the four major combatants -- Fox4, NBC5, TEGNA8, CBS11 -- all took holiday exemptions throughout Memorial Day. So none of those ratings officially count.

Here’s how it went on Friday, when all four stations played for keeps.

NBC5 rolled at 10 p.m., drawing both the most total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

The Peacock also swept the 6 a.m. competitions while adding a 5 p.m. win among 25-to-54-year-olds and a 6 p.m. first in total viewers.

Fox4 took Friday’s other two golds with the most total viewers at 5 p.m. and the most 25-to-54-year-olds at 6 p.m.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., May 25-26) -- Warriors-Thunder are dynamite for TNT

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Game 5 of the jet-fueled Golden State Warriors-Oklahoma City Thunder Western Conference finals reigned as D-FW’s most-watched TV attraction Thursday.

The Warriors’ 120-111 win, which kept them from being eliminated, drew 283,296 viewers on TNT, with more than half of them -- 165,136 -- in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old age range.

At the other end of the ratings teeter totter, NBC’s two-hour Red Nose Day charity special had just 63,742 total viewers and 22,230 in the 18-to-49 demographic.

On Wednesday night, Fox’s Season 2 premiere of Wayward Pines was a ratings twig with 70,824 total viewers in the 8 p.m. hour before Fox4’s local 9 p.m. newscast more than doubled that crowd (169,978 viewers). Pines likewise went timbe-r-r-r-r among 18-to-49-year-olds, drawing just 25,406 of ‘em before Fox4’s news upped that number to 60,338.

Here are the local news derby results for the last weekday of the May ratings “sweeps” and the first post-sweeps day.

Wednesday -- NBC5 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers while Fox4 drew the most 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 swept the 6 a.m. competitions and the Peacock did likewise at 5 p.m. The 6 p.m. golds went to TEGNA8 in total viewers and NBC5 with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Thursday -- NBC5 and Fox4 again split the 10 p.m. spoils, with the Peacock drawing the most total viewers and Fox4 winning among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Fox4 again ran the table at 6 a.m. while NBC5 rolled at 5 and 6 p.m. with a quartet of wins.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Fox4/NBC5 continue to win most of the battles in May newscast "sweeps" wars

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Fox4 remained in charge of the early morning newscast ratings while NBC5 swept the early evening races during a four-week May ratings “sweeps” period in which TEGNA8 barely hung on to its 10 p.m. total viewers crown while CBS11 never came close in any of the four major battlegrounds.

But the bigger prize at 10 p.m., a win among 25-to-54-year-olds, again went to Fox4. The station first rose to the top spot last May, drawing the most 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming) for the first time since the station switched from CBS to Fox affiliation in July 1995. Fox4 now has won four in a row after also topping the 10 p.m. field in the November and February sweeps.

CBS11 evaded finishing last across the board by taking third place in total viewers at 10 p.m., with Fox4 falling from the penthouse to the outhouse. But the local news bosses remain transfixed by the 25-to-54-year-old demographic, which can bring more revenue bang. And in that realm, Nielsen Media Research says that Fox4 and NBC are the reigning lords and masters.

Here are the complete May 2016 results in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, with year-to-year audience losses or gains in parentheses. Note: ratings are calculated in three decimals (0.000) to break ties in extremely close races. Each ratings point in the D-FW market is worth 70,824 total viewers and 29,763 viewers in the 25-to-54 age range.

10 P.M.

Total Viewers
TEGNA8 -- 166,507 (minus 43,131)
NBC5 -- 163,533 (minus 4,610)
CBS11 -- 143,773 ( minus 37,202)
Fox4 -- 131,237 (minus 13,822)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
Fox4 -- 60,657 (minus 20,511)
NBC5 -- 56,490 (minus 13,446)
TEGNA8 -- 54,407 (minus 26,672)
CBS11 -- 35,150 (minus 5,004)

Comments: As noted in last year’s sweeps ratings report, May 2015 was a worse weather month than usual. And when that happens, audiences still flock to their home screens for live updates from meteorologists and on-the-scene reporters in various states of composure. So it’s no coincidence that all four stations enjoyed year-to-year ratings increases in the May 2015 sweeps. This time they’re all losers, with TEGNA8 suffering the biggest shortfalls in both ratings measurements. The ABC network’s meager audience lead-ins on most nights -- particularly in the total viewers measurement -- aren’t of any help to TEGNA8. But the station continues to wear cement shoes in the ongoing battle to stop the bleeding. In that respect, NBC5 “won” by losing the fewest total viewers at 10 p.m. while CBS11 had the smallest year-to-year drop among 25-to-54-year-olds. But in CBS11’s case, it’s tough to go much lower when you already have so few 25-to-54-year-olds to lose.

6 A.M.

Total Viewers
Fox4 -- 122,384 (plus 19,308)
NBC5 -- 81,093 (minus 7,756)
TEGNA8 -- 59,775 (minus 7,086)
CBS11 -- 46,815 (minus 8,559)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
Fox4 -- 59,258 (plus 2,776)
NBC5 -- 46,043 (plus 9,326)
TEGNA8 -- 21,042 (minus 2,517)
CBS11 -- 13,959 (minus 9,600)

Comments: The rich just got richer, with dominant Fox4 the only station to show year-to-year increases in both ratings measurements. Permanency and a solid format remain the keys, with the veteran Good Day team of Tim Ryan, Lauren Przybyl, Evan Andrews and Chip Waggoner continuing to wear very well. NBC5 made some strides, though, in the 25-to-54 demographic, showing the biggest year-to-year increase. TEGNA8 and CBS11 fell farther behind, with both stations drawing less than half the number of 25-to-54-year-olds pulled in by Fox4 and runner-up NBC5. It’s been written here before, but CBS11’s decision to scramble its early morning team came at a time when the station had genuine momentum and finished third for the first time ever last May in the key 25-to-54 demographic. TEGNA8 news director Carolyn Mungo, whose station continues to struggle, figuratively lights a candle in thanks to CBS11 news director Mike Garber, who orchestrated the puzzling early morning moves that helped to drive his station back into a distant last place. In May 2015, CBS11 was the only station to show a year-to-year increase with 25-to-54-year-olds. A year later, it’s showing the biggest losses.

6 P.M.

Total Viewers
NBC5 -- 148,022 (plus 4,637)
TEGNA8 -- 136,053 (minus 5,728)
Fox4 -- 116,151 (minus 9,102)
CBS11 -- 102,553 (minus 58,965)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
NBC5 -- 61,609 (plus 12,150)
Fox4 -- 42,978 (minus 10,867)
TEGNA8 -- 40,180 (minus 63)
CBS11 -- 20,894 (minus 10,044)

Comments: NBC5, the runner-up in both contests last May, rose to a pair of first-place finishes this time out. It also is the only station to show year-to-year increases in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds. CBS11, which won in total viewers a year ago by a fairly comfortable margin, plunged to last place and lost an eye-popping 58,965 viewers in the process. Fox4, last May’s 25-to-54 champ in a close fight with NBC5, ceded major ground to the Peacock while barely holding off TEGNA8 for second place.

5 P.M.

Total Viewers
NBC5 -- 136,619 (minus 4,535)
Fox4 -- 134,141 (plus 17,326)
TEGNA8 -- 95,471 (minus 15,625)
CBS11 -- 84,635 (minus 18,232)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
NBC5 -- 48,395 (minus 1,064)
Fox4 -- 42,918 (minus 585)
TEGNA8 -- 27,680 (minus 1,987)
CBS11 -- 17,828 (minus 5,524)

Comments: NBC5 defended its May 2015 crowns while losing only a marginal number of viewers in the year-to-year Nielsens. But Fox4 knocked on the door in total viewers with a significant increase from last May. TEGNA8 and CBS11 were non-factors and the biggest year-to-year bleeders in both measurements.

In other May sweeps ratings of note:

***Fox4’s 9 p.m. local newscasts decisively beat competing programming on ABC, CBS and NBC in total viewers, 25-to-54-year-olds and 18-to-49-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for entertainment programming). Its 181,309 total viewers and 76,283 in the 25-to-54 demographic were more than any other local newscast drew in the May sweeps. That’s an unparallelled success story in this market.

***NBC5 cemented its late afternoon/early evening newscast dominance by easily winning the three-way competition at 4 p.m. in both total viewers and among 25-to-54-year-olds. CBS11 was the runner-up in both measurements and TEGNA8 lagged.

***Did CBS11 have any bright spots at all? Yes. Its half-hour 11 a.m. newscast won in total viewers against competing entertainment programming and tied the first half of NBC5’s one-hour local newscast in the 25-to-54 age range.

***The NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt trounced the ABC and CBS network newscasts in both ratings measurements while Fox4’s 5:30 p.m. local news ran third in total viewers and second with 25-to-54-year-olds.

***TEGNA8’s homegrown Good Morning Texas ran fourth at 9 a.m. in total viewers against competing network and syndicated entertainment programming on Fox4, NBC5 and CBS11. GMT moved up a spot to third place with 18-to-49-year-olds, beating CBS’ double dose of Let’s Make A Deal. But GMT more than pays for itself by charging various entities to pitch their products in five-minute segments.

***CBS11’s sister station, TXA21, is doing some solid late night business with its 10:30 p.m. to midnight block of Mike and Molly and King of Queens repeats. They ran first throughout those 90 minutes among 25-to-54-year-olds, beating the NBC, CBS and ABC late night talk shows and Fox4’s mix of Modern Family, TMZ and Dish Nation. TXA21 also ranked No. 1 among 18-to-49-year-olds during those 90 minutes. What the what?

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., May 23) -- finally some brights spots for ABC

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
ABC’s ratings have been sickly for much of this season. But the network got a boost in D-FW Monday night from a one-hour performance edition of Dancing with the Stars and the two-hour season premiere of The Bachelorette, starring Dallasite JoJo Fletcher.

In competition among the Big Four broadcast networks, DTWS won from 7 to 8 p.m. in both total viewers and advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds.

Bachelorette tied the second hour of NBC’s The Voice among 18-to-49-year-olds and then easily won the 9 p.m. hour. In the total viewers measurement, Bachelorette ran second to The Voice from 8 to 9 p.m. and then tied Fox4’s local newscast for the top spot in the 9 to 10 p.m. slot.

The cable universe narrowly had the biggest overall audience of 18-to-49-year-olds, though, with ESPN’s Game 4 of the Toronto Raptors-Cleveland Cavaliers Eastern Conference Finals. It averaged 85,740 viewers in this key demographic compared to The Bachelorette’s 76,217.

Here are the local news derby results for the 18th weekday of the 20-day May ratings “sweeps.”

TEGNA8 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 had twin wins at 6 a.m. while NBC5 swept both the 5 and 6 p.m. competitions.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Ratings sag for Episode 7 of Real Housewives of Dallas

IMG_1261

Host of Horrors: Charity grande dame Heidi “Effin” Dillon at her “Gothic State Fair” party (with a side dish of Tiffany Hendra) on Monday night’s Real Housewives of Dallas. Photo: Ed Bark

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Monday night’s Episode 7 of Bravo’s Real Housewives of Dallas lost a little ratings ground from the previous week during crunch time for the show’s very iffy renewal hopes.

RHOD pulled in a skimpy 856,000 viewers nationally, down from 883,000 from the previous week. Episode 5 still holds the low mark of 789,000 viewers.

In contrast, Bravo’s RHOD lead-in, Southern Charm, had 1,180,000 viewers, up a bit from 1,160,000 for the Monday, May 16th episode. So in the latest Nielsen ratings, that’s a drop of 324,000 viewers from Southern Charm’s’s turnout this week. RHOD also drooped to a .3 in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic, down a peg from .4 for the May 16th episode.

Hour 7 of RHOD brought the city’s dowager countess of charity, Heidi Dillon, into full focus. RHOD regular Tiffany Hendra added a middle name of “Effin’,” but with all due respect. Because it’s suddenly an article of faith with this show that you can’t do a bonafide benefit it in this city unless Heidi is in the house figuratively sprinkling her holy water.

When caught in closeup, her face at times seemed like a cross between Cruella de Vil and a Picasso painting gone awry. Oh but we kid the self-important thrower of a “Gothic State Fair” party at which she made Frito chili pie and corny dogs while all five RHOD cast regulars (plus supplemental “friend” Marie Reyes) gathered uncomfortably once again.

This time it was Cary Deuber who crossed LeeAnne Locken’s decorum line by declining to “go down” on a corny dog at the host’s command. After all, she was an invited guest. How dare she refuse. What an ingrate. Deuber otherwise let loose with a volley of snide comments to the camera, some of them nicely played. Particularly the one on how she’d at least been to the altar (or the JP) three times while Locken is still looking to make her maiden voyage.

In other developments, Brandi Redmond’s husband, Bryan, apologized to her, as did Locken to Stephanie Hollman (who still can’t stand her). And Hendra’s husband, Aaron, got to play a few songs at a House of Blues charity function that seemed to be more about getting exposure for him and his still nascent singing career.

It all ended with Locken sniping “Skank” as Deuber abruptly left the Gothic State Fair party. Her salivating “wife” of a husband, cosmetic surgeon Mark, no doubt was lying in wait with another of his personally picked dresses for her to try on and then quickly take off.

Three episodes remain -- and that very well could be it for RHOD. It remains the only show in the Housewives franchise to average under one million viewers per episode. Where in the hell are all the hate-watchers when you eftin’ need ‘em?

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

NBC5 tabs Tulsa's Kristin Dickerson as weekend co-anchor

43ecccd7-e111-493a-a01b-5639ce8a9304-KristinDickerson

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Fort Worth-based NBC5 has hired Amanda Guerra’s replacement as weekend evening co-anchor. But her arrival will take a while.

Kristin Dickerson, who’s spent the last 12 years at Tulsa’s KTUL-TV after joining the ABC affiliate as an intern, is set to start at NBC5 on July 5th, vice president of programming Brian Hocker said Tuesday morning. Her last day with KTUL is June 10, the station said in an announcement on its website. “That’s a 55-market jump! It’s a big deal in the TV biz!” KTUL enthused. Dallas-Fort Worth is the country’s No. 5 TV market.

In her station bio, Dickerson says she’s “an Emmy-nominated anchor and solo journalist for (KTUL’s) 4, 5, 6 and 10 p.m. newscasts . . . When breaking news happens, I take the newscasts to the field.”

Dickerson, an Oklahoma State University graduate, says she learned how to “shoot and edit my own projects” in 2011. She also notes that “celebrity reporting has allowed me to travel to the sets of Dancing with the Stars, Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune.”

Guerra left NBC5 in late March, telling viewers that “I’m going to go spend some time with my family.” Co-anchor Cory Smith added that Guerra is “taking a time out from TV.”

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs.-Sun., May 19-22) -- The Word: Preacher bombs in AMC opener

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
AMC’s latest blood ’n’ guts comic book adaptation played deader than most of its corpses Sunday night.

The 9 p.m. premiere of Preacher, which will be repeated next Sunday, opened with a scant 56,659 D-FW viewers and just 22,230 in the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

Preacher no doubt will pick up more viewers via various other “platforms.” Still, that’s a terrible showing in the standard “live same night” TV measurement, particularly in the key 18-to-49 measurement. AMC’s The Walking Dead routinely picks up 8-to-10 times as many viewers in the 18-to-49 realm.

Early Sunday, CBS’ final round of the Byron Nelson golf championship peaked at 226,637 total viewers during the 5 to 5:15 portion of the playoff between winner Sergio Garcia and Brooks Koepka. A smallish percentage -- 79,392 -- were in the 18-to-49 realm. The ratings assuredly would have been considerably higher had Dallasite Jordan Spieth not fallen out of contention on the back nine. Sunday’s entire final round averaged 141,648 total viewers and 44,460 in the 18-to-49 age range.

The Sunday afternoon Texas Rangers game, a win at Houston, kept pace with the Nelson on CBS. It averaged 141,648 total viewers, with 57,163 in the 18-to-49 demographic.

TNT’s Sunday night demolition of the Golden State Warriors by the Oklahoma City Thunder led all sports programming with an average of 233,719 total viewers and 130,204 within the 18-to-49 motherlode.

Early Saturday evening, the Preakness on NBC ran from 5:52 to 5:54 p.m. after the usual lengthy buildup. From 5:45 to 6 p.m. -- Nielsen Media Research measures in 15-minute increments -- NBC had 226,637 total viewers. Exaggerator won after coming from behind to blow away Kentucky Derby champ Nyquist down the stretch.

On Friday in prime-time, CBS’ Blue Bloods had the most total viewers among the Big Four broadcast networks while NBC’s 7 to 9 p.m. episode of Grimm led among 18-to-49-year-olds. The Rangers’ series opener at Houston averaged 148,730 total viewers on FSS (just behind Blue Bloods) and 60,338 in the 18-to-49 measurement to lead all prime-time programming.

Thursday’s top prime-time draws were CBS’ rerun of The Big Bang Theory in total viewers and ESPN’s 8 to 10 p.m. portion of the Cleveland Cavaliers-Toronto Raptors playoff series among 18-to-49-year-olds.

Here are the Thursday and Friday local news derby results, with just three weekdays now remaining in the May “sweeps” ratings period.

Thursday -- NBC5 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 had twin wins at 6 a.m. and also swept the 5 p.m. competitions. Fox4 and TEGNA8 tied for the most total viewers at 6 p.m. while NBC5 led in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Friday -- CBS11 recorded its first sweep of the sweeps with a pair of comfy wins at 10 p.m.

Fox4 had the most total viewers at 6 a.m., but NBC5 won among 25-to-54-year-olds.

The Peacock also ran the table at 5 p.m. and drew the most 25-to-54-year-olds at 6 p.m. TEGNA8 was tops in total viewers at 6 p.m.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Reporter Jenny Doren's done with TEGNA8 after just two years on early morning shift

635485583720549896-Jenny-Doren-3pp

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Reporter Jenny Doren, who joined TEGNA8’s early morning Daybreak program in May 2014, has left the station to take a new and as yet undisclosed position in the D-FW area.

Doren’s last day on the air was Wednesday, May 18th, when she was serenaded with “Let It Go” from the movie Frozen. She is regularly kidded by Daybreak staffers for her resemblance to the animated blockbuster’s Queen Elsa.

Doren is still keeping her new D-FW job a secret, even to Daybreak staffers. On Twitter, she told Followers, ”I’ll let ya’ll know as soon as I can!”

The Northwestern University Medill School of Journalism graduate came to TEGNA8 from Washington, D.C.’s ABC affiliate, WJLA-TV. She previously worked for NBC Washington Nonstop and CBS station WCIA-TV in Champaign, Illinois.

In October of last year, Doren made some national news by going into labor with her first child while on the job for TEGNA8. Her photographer hastily drove her to the hospital in time for Doren to deliver a healthy baby girl, Madison Hailey Doren.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarkly@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 18) -- Empire rules with Season 2 finale

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Fox cleaned up for one last time in the current TV season with an Empire Season 2 closer that easily dominated the two major ratings food groups for entertainment programming.

The 8 p.m. episode had 410,779 D-FW viewers, with almost half of them -- 203,245 -- in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

Fox4’s 9 p.m. local newscast took advantage of the Empire tailwind to run second Wednesday night in both measurements with 325,790 total viewers and 127,028 in the 18-to-49 age range.

TNT’s Golden State Warriors-Oklahoma City Thunder game, although it was a blowout, took the bronzes, drawing 205,390 total viewers (the same as NBC’s 8 p.m. hour of Law & Order: SVU) and 117,501 within the 18-to-49 motherlode.

Here are the local news derby results for the 15th weekday of the May ratings “sweeps,” with just five days remaining before next Wednesday’s finish line.

Fox4 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming). The station also again swept the 6 a.m. competitions.

TEGNA8 ran the table at 6 p.m. The 5 p.m. golds went to Fox4 in total viewers and TEGNA8 in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon.-Tues., May 16-17) -- Megyn has her moment

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The careful care and feeding of Megyn Kelly took center stage Tuesday night with her first prime-time interview special on a broadcast network.

Fox’s Megyn Kelly Presents, highlighted by her first face-to-face meeting with Donald Trump since their dustup at August’s inaugural GOP presidential candidate debate, aired in a tough 7 p.m. slot opposite CBS’ NCIS and NBC’s The Voice. She faired fairly well in D-FW, drawing the biggest TV crowd of the day on Fox/Fox4 while also running third in prime-time’s opening hour in both total viewers and advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds.

Kelly Presents had 198,307 total viewers and 44,460 in the 18-to-49 age range. NCIS had 417,862 total viewers, with 57,163 in the 18-to-49 demographic while The Voice pulled in respective totals of 226,637 and 63,514 viewers.

Thumbnail review: Kelly spent too much time posing and touting her emotional trauma at the hands of Trump before, during and after their mostly inconsequential interview. But she did get him to say that his presidential campaign will be “a total and complete waste of time, energy and money” if he doesn’t go all the way to the White House.

Kelly also talked to transgender actress Laverne Cox, former O. J. Simpson defense attorney Robert Shapiro (who remains extraordinarily full of himself) and actor Michael Douglas. All of the interviews were done in steely, colorless, no-frills settings. Barbara Walters used to visit her subjects’ homes and play around with them a little before they conversed in outwardly comfy surroundings. Kelly in contrast might as well have met her prey in an elevator. In fact, many an elevator has more ambience.

She closed the special by shamelessly promoting her new book and promising to further “tell all” about that nine-month ordeal after Trump insulted and shunned her. Self-aggrandizement knows no bounds when it comes to playing hard to get in the final year of Kelly’s contract with Fox News Channel. But judging from Tuesday’s intended big splash special, Walters can still rest easy in her retirement. The kid, although 45, still has a long way to go.

Elsewhere Tuesday, CBS’ NCIS: New Orleans took the 8 p.m. hour in total viewers while NBC’s Chicago Med had the most 18-to-49-year-olds. Fox4’s 9 p.m. local newscast won its slot in both ratings measurements.

The Fox network’s 8 p.m. premiere of the “reality” dating series Coupled looked DOA with a puny 49,577 total viewers and 22,230 in the 18-to-49 motherlode.

Monday’s prime-time parade was paced by NBC’s The Voice in total viewers (283,296) and TNT’s opening Oklahoma City Thunder-Golden State Warriors post-season clash among 18-to-49-year-olds (142,907).

Here are the local news derby numbers for Monday and Tuesday (the 13th and 14th weekdays of the May “sweeps” ratings period).

Monday -- TEGNA8 ran first in total viewers at 10 p.m., but Fox4 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming),

Fox4 again swept the 6 a.m. races and drew the most 25-to-54-year-olds at 5 p.m.

NBC5 won at 5 p.m. in total viewers and at 6 p.m. in the 25-to-54-year-old demographic. TEGNA8 had the most total viewers at 6 p.m.

Tuesday -- CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but Fox4 again had the most 25-to-54-year-olds.

Fox4 also scored twin wins at 6 a.m. and was No. 1 at both 5 and 6 p.m. with 25-to-54-year-olds.

TEGNA8 drew the most total viewers at 6 p.m. while Fox4 and NBC5 tied for the total viewers lead at 5 p.m.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Real Housewives of Dallas ticks upward (in ratings not content)

IMG_1253 IMG_1251

LeeAnne does another LeeAnne & Brandi mocks her husband picking his nose on Episode 6 of Real Housewives of Dallas. Photos: Ed Bark

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The national ratings returns remain pretty dismal for Bravo’s Real Housewives of Dallas. But at least the numbers for Monday night’s Episode 6 headed northward.

RHOD drew 883,00 viewers, a decent bump from the season-low of 789,000 for the previous week’s episode. But the show still fell substantially from its 8 p.m. (central) lead-in, Southern Charm, which had 1,161,000 viewers. Both shows had a .4 rating in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

RHOD still is averaging well below one million viewers per episode and remains the least-watched Housewives franchise of all time. Still, a week-to-week increase of 94,000 viewers beats a kick in the head, even if the show’s content most certainly doesn’t.

Monday’s hour included gal pals LeeAnne Locken and Tiffany Hendra praying to God for guidance before confronting mutual friend Marie Reyes at her lovely home about a series of unflattering text messages aimed at LeeAnne and sent by Marie to Tiffany.

LeeAnne also surmised that God probably wanted her to see those messages in order to make her see the light or something. I think God likely was watching the competing Oklahoma City Thunder-Golden State Warriors Western Conference Finals opener on TNT. But maybe not. Maybe He’s really a closet RHOD fan. Just don’t tell the Holy Ghost.

LeeAnne ended up throwing another banshee fit before the cameras found something else to do.

Meanwhile, Brandi Redmond and her husband, Bryan, continued to drift apart, but not until the every end of the episode, when he walked out on her at a restaurant after she got weepy again. Earlier, Brandi regaled best friend Stephanie Hollman by demonstrating how Bryan picks his nose. The guy does seem like kind of a slug.

The fifth wheel, Cary Deuber, got involved in some sort of weird photo shoot while her creepy husband, Mark, encouraged her after picking out some dresses. This ostensibly was for the benefit of their plastic surgery practice, whose website needs an overhaul. Cary went topless at hubby’s urging, but advertiser-supported Bravo and RHOD stayed in the side boob safe zone.

There are four more episodes to go in RHOD’s first season before Bravo decides its fate. If the show can somehow inch back up to the 1 million viewers mark (a level it hasn’t hit since the premiere hour), then there might be at least a small chance of getting renewed. But the latest episode still ranked just 65th in total viewers among the top 100 Monday cable shows tabulated by tvbythenumbers.

So there’s much work to be done. And it might require head cheerleader and surrogate Housewife “Oh So Cynthia” Smoot to go door-to-door with leaflets -- starting right now.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Star-studded, Dallas-made pilot Broken not included in ABC's new season plans

100815-reese-witherspoon-at-hot-pursuit-mexico-city-premiere 2013_0408_Ironside_Bio_Blair-Underwood_900x900_AC Anna_Paquin_Comic-Con_2012

Reese Witherspoon, Blair Underwood and Anna Paquin were all involved in the making of ABC drama pilot Broken, which was recently filmed in Dallas and rejected by the network Tuesday.


By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Given the considerable star power both behind and in front of the camera, it’s outwardly a surprise that ABC is not going ahead with Broken after the pilot for the drama was filmed for the network earlier this year in Dallas.

Instead it’s dead -- on ABC at least -- after Broken failed to make the cut among the nine new 2016-17 season series announced Tuesday by ABC.

“As of a day or two ago, it was listed as passed on by ABC, being shopped (to other networks),” Dallas Film Commission director Janis Burklund said in an email to unclebarky.com.

Oscar-winning actress Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line) was co-executive producer of the pilot, whose stars included Anna Paquin, Blair Underwood, Penelope Ann Miller and T.R. Knight (from Grey’s Anatomy).

Paquin played a ruthless Dallas divorce attorney named Gemma, whose life begins unraveling when her emotional wreck of a sister re-emerges. Underwood co-starred as Gemma’s boss and occasional lover, Knight was cast as one of her law firm rivals and Miller portrayed the vengeful ex-wife of a Texas oil billionaire, according to a synopsis in Variety.

Broken could still wind up elsewhere, and there may be more than one network interested in doing business with Witherspoon’s Pacific Standard production company, which has birthed movies such as Gone and Wild. But ABC has opted to go easy on big names in the majority of the five drama series it’s ordered for next season. The exception is Designated Survivor, which returns Kiefer Sutherland to the role of an action hero challenged to save the world -- just as he did time and again in 24.

More typical of ABC’s new dramas is the fall entry Conviction, with a notably lower wattage ensemble cast of Hayley Atwell, Eddie Cahill, Shawn Ashmore, Merrin Dungey, Emily Kinney, Manny Montana and Daniel di Tomasso.

Interestingly, Merrin Dungey is the sister of Channing Dungey, the new ABC entertainment president who announced the network’s new season lineup Tuesday.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 13-15) -- Odor's right cross jacks Rangers late inning numbers

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Rougned Odor’s direct hit on Jose Bautista by now has been replayed into infinity. But the eighth inning punch, which triggered a bench-clearing push-and-shove, also bulked up the Texas Rangers’ live, late-inning Nielsen numbers.

The marathon game, airing Sunday afternoon and early evening on Fox Sports Southwest, hit its D-FW ratings peak between 5:15 and 5:30 p.m., when 290,378 watched. Many of those viewers were seeing Odor-Bautista on tape as word spread across the Twitter universe and other “social media” platforms. In contrast, Rangers-Blue Jays started with just 63,742 viewers and had built to 155,813 between 4 and 4:15 p.m.

The FSS nighttime repeat of the game hit its ratings high between 9:30 and 9:45 p.m. with 92,071 viewers. That beat competition from both ABC’s Quantico and NBC’s Dateline. The afternoon live Rangers telecast also outdrew ABC’s competing Game 7 of the Toronto Raptors-Miami Heat playoff series. It averaged 84,989 viewers overall.

Friday’s prime-time ratings among the Big Four broadcast networks were paced by CBS’ 8 p.m. episode of Hawaii Five-0 in total viewers (198,307). CBS’ 7 p.m. hour of The Amazing Race and NBC’s 9 p.m. edition of Dateline tied among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds with 34,933 apiece. But across the entire TV universe, that night’s Rangers-Blue Jays game on FSS easily averaged the most 18-to-49-year-olds with 57,163.

Here are the local news derby results for the 12th weekday of the May ratings “sweeps.”

CBS11 had the most total viewers at 10 p.m. while Fox4 won among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 also swept the 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. competitions. The 6 p.m. golds went to TEGNA8 in total viewers and NBC5 in the 25-to-54-year-old demographic.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., May 12) -- Big Bang's the top draw while Thunder-Spurs also roll

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
CBS’ The Big Bang Theory again had the most ratings pop Thursday night before “Pop’s” San Antonio Spurs drew increasingly bigger crowds while being bludgeoned out of the post-season by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Big Bang had 332,873 D-FW viewers at 7 p.m. while also leading the prime-time pack among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds (92,095).

Spurs-Thunder then began rolling on ESPN. The entire game averaged 184,142 total viewers and 85,744 in the 18-to-49 age range.

Other than Big Bang, only NBC’s 8 p.m. hour of Blacklist had more total viewers (212,472). But Spurs-Thunder ranked second for the night among 18-to-49-year-olds.

Here are the local news derby results for the 11th weekday of the May ratings “sweeps.”

TEGNA8 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 ran first at 6 a.m. in total viewers, but uncommonly lost the 25-to-54 race to NBC5.

The Peacock stayed solid at 5 and 6 p.m. with commanding wins across the board. It was NBC5’s third straight sweep of the early evening news ratings.

With the sweeps just over halfway finished, CBS11 has no reasonable chance to win anywhere and possibly could finish last across the board at 6 a.m. and 5, 6 and 10 p.m.

TEGNA8’s best chance for victory is at 10 p.m. in total viewers. But that’s still too close to call. Fox4 and NBC5 otherwise will split the spoils, unless viewing habits take some very sharp detours during the final nine weekdays of the sweeps.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 11) -- turnout/tuneout for Stars' last gasp

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The Dallas Stars’ Stanley Cup hopes came to a grinding halt Wednesday night, with the St. Louis Blues pummeling them 6-1 in the deciding Game 7 of their second round series.

The Blues were never threatened after taking a 3-0 first period lead in a matchup that ran from 7:10 to 9:39 p.m. on cable’s NBC Sports net. D-FW Nielsen ratings reflected the rout, with a peak crowd of 233,719 viewers from 7:45 to 8 p.m. dwindling to 99,154 for the game’s closing minutes. Overall, Stars-Blues averaged 162,895 viewers.

Among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, the highs and lows were 114,325 in the 7:45 to 8 p.m. segment and 68,278 for the finish. The overall average in this key demographic was 85,744 viewers. The Stars hit their post-season highs with averages of 169,978 total viewers and 111,150 in the 18-to-49 age range for Monday night’s Game 6 against the Blues.

Wednesday night’s top TV attraction as usual was Fox’s 8 p.m. episode of Empire with 354,120 total viewers and 190,542 in the 18-to-49 motherlode. CBS’ Survivor and Fox4’s local newscast respectively took the 7 and 9 p.m. hours in both ratings measurements.

Here are the four-way local news derby results for the 10th weekday of the May ratings “sweeps,” which now are at the halfway point.

NBC5 drew the most total viewers at 10 p.m. while Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 again swept the 6 a.m. competitions and NBC5 ran the table at both 5 and 6 p.m.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 10) -- bombs away for ABC's Battlebots

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
ABC came close to achieving the near-impossible Wednesday -- “hashmarks” (no measurable audience) for a prime-time program among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds.

This happens frequently in the cable universe, but has been a nigh to impossible feat among the Big Four broadcast networks. But Battlebots: The Gears Awaken almost cut that cheese in the 9 p.m. hour, barely registering with 3,176 D-FW viewers within the 18-to-49 demographic in a market of 3,175,682.

In contrast, Fox4’s competing local newscast won at 9 p.m. with 69,865 viewers in the 18-to-49 realm although the overall winner was TNT’s closing portion plus post-game coverage of the Oklahoma City Thunder-San Antonio Spurs second round playoff matchup (130,204).

In total viewers, CBS’ 7 to 9 p.m. episodes of NCIS and NCIS: New Orleans won those hours with respective hauls of 339,955 and 311,626. NBC’s Chicago Fire was tops at 9 p.m. with 240,802 total viewers. The 7 to 9 p.m. golds among 18-to-49-year-olds went to NBC’s The Voice (98,447) and Chicago Med (73,041), although the 8 to 9 p.m. portion of Thunder-Spurs won overall with 107,974 viewers in this richer revenue demographic.

Here are the local news derby results for the ninth weekday of the May ratings “sweeps.”

CBS11 finally notched its first “sweeps” win in any of the four time periods by nipping NBC5 for the most total viewers at 10 p.m. Fox4 won among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 again ran the table at 6 a.m. and NBC5 came up big in the early evening with sweeps of the 5 and 6 p.m. competitions.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

New lows (ratings-wise) for Real Housewives of Dallas

NUP_173086_0092

The fussin’ & feudin’ stars of Real Housewives of Dallas. Bravo photo

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Monday’s Episode 5 of Bravo’s Real Housewives of Dallas hit new bottoms in both total viewers and its ranking among that night’s top 100 cable programs.

The 789,000 viewers nationally were a dip from the 828,000 who succumbed to Episode 3 before the fourth hour moved up slightly to 838,000 viewers. Monday night’s latest ratings shortfall dropped RHOD to 89th place in total viewers among the 100 programs charted by tvbythenumbers. The show retained a puny .3 rating in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

Bravo’s Monday night lead-in for RHOD, another 8 p.m. episode of Southern Charm, had 1,004,000 viewers and a .4 rating in the 18-to-49 age range. RHOD then lost 214,000 total viewers while also continuing to run well behind the latest episodes of Bravo’s two other currently airing Housewives franchises.

The Tuesday, May 3rd hour of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills drew 1,677,000 viewers and a .6 in the 18-to-49 demographic. A late night rerun of that episode had 787,000 viewers to almost equal Monday’s new hour of RHOD. Not a good sign.

Last Wednesday’s Real Housewives of New York City had 1,323,000 viewers and a .5 among 18-to-49-year-olds.

On the latest RHOD, high-strung LeeAnne Locken went super-ballistic on longtime friend Tiffany Hendra -- and vice-versa. They later made up while weepy, “Jesus Juice”-drinkin’ Brandi Redmond found herself increasingly distanced from travelin’ man husband, Bryan.

Brandi also got to meet her grandfather, supposedly for the first time, during a gathering at the posh Redmond house. The old galoot, a former NFL player, seemed nice enough. But he and his hobbled wife were left to fend for themselves, arriving at the doorstep on their own after a drive or flight from somewhere. Guess it made for better teevee -- but not from a believability standpoint.

This also was an hour of conspicuous consumption, with Stephanie Holman getting a gaudy $75,000 anniversary bracelet from her husband, who took her to snooty de Boulle. Hubby, for his part, has a new gold Rolls Royce. Meanwhile, piece-of-work poser Cary Deuber had to make do with what looked like a pricey dress from her rather kinky plastic surgeon husband, whom she still dubs “my wife.” It was a replacement for the cocktail dress that LeeAnne soiled with champagne during last week’s tantrum. More than likely, all of these gifts were rentals for the purposes of the “real-life” storylines in play. Oh yeah. Cary also gave “my wife” a Botox shot to his forehead so he wouldn’t appear to be angry.

Teases for next week’s episode promise a further falling out between Brandi and Bryan. Whether the ratings also continue to drop remains to be seen. But it’s tough to hit new weekly rock bottoms when your numbers already are getting lower than even LeeAnne’s tolerance for impropriety.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Belated news: Reporter Noelle Walker is NBC5 full-timer

Noelle-Walker

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
NBC5 never publicly announced her hiring. And no one has reported on it yet.

But better late than never for Noelle Walker and the vigilant readers of unclebarky.com. She joined the Fort Worth-based station in late February and is a full-time reporter for NBC5’s 10 p.m. newscasts, vice president of programming Brian Hocker confirms.

The Texas Christian University graduate arrived from KTVU-TV, San Francisco’s Fox-owned station. She also has freelanced for NBC News and MSNBC, and previously had an internship at NBC5.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., May 9) -- Stars vs. Rangers

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The Dallas Stars waged a fierce battle Monday night -- not only against the St. Louis Blues but opposite the Texas Rangers-Chicago White Sox game.

Running from 7:11 to 9:46 p.m. on cable’s still relatively obscure NBC Sports net, the Stars survived 3-2 to force a Game 7 in their 2nd round Stanley Cup playoff series.

The Rangers ran more than an hour deeper into the night, ending right around 11 p.m. with a 12-inning, 8-4 home loss on Fox Sports Southwest.

Stars-Blues averaged 169,978 D-FW viewers and 111,150 in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

The Rangers drew 198,307 total viewers, with the numbers not surprisingly surging after the Stars game ended. But among 18-to-49-year-olds, the Rangers fell well short of the Stars with an average of 82,568 viewers.

The Stars’ numbers were season highs in both ratings measurements. And the percentage of 18-to-49-year-old viewers for the Stars is off the charts. A 50 percent or better haul of these “desirable” viewers is a very strong showing. About 65 percent of the Stars’ audience came from this motherlode demographic while the Rangers were well below 50 percent.

Over on the Big Four broadcast networks, NBC’s 7 to 9 p.m. edition of The Voice led all prime-time programming with 269,131 total viewers. But Fox4’s 9 p.m. local newscast had the most 18-to-49-year-olds with 92,095. So in the entire TV universe, the Stars-Blues matchup ranked as the overall top scorer in this key demographic.

Here are the four-way local news derby results for the eighth weekday of the May “sweeps” ratings period.

TEGNA8 ranked No. 1 in total viewers at 10 p.m. But in a tight four-way fight, Fox4 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 swept the 6 a.m. competitions and NBC5 did likewise at 6 p.m. The 5 p.m. golds went to Fox4 in total viewers and NBC5 among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 6-8) -- Stars no match for Derby

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The Dallas Stars’ lackluster 4-1 loss to St. Louis in Game 5 of their Round 2 Stanley Cup playoff series hit a post-season ratings high on Sunday afternoon. Still, the pucksters ran far out of the money compared to the peak audience for the actual running of the Kentucky Derby after a marathon buildup.

Both sports attractions aired on NBC, with Stars-Blues averaging 141,648 D-FW viewers and 76,217 in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic for a match that ran from noon to 2:27 p.m.

More than three hours later, the Peacock’s long slog to the Derby ended with “The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports” from 5:49 to 5:51 p.m. Nielsen Media Research measures in 15-minute increments. And from 5:45 to 6 p.m., a peak crowd of 389,532 viewers tuned in. But unlike the Stars game, well less than half of them -- 123,852 -- were in the 18-to-49 age range.

On Sunday night, CBS’ series finale of The Good Wife won its 8 p.m. slot with 191,225 total viewers. But in competition among the Big Four broadcast networks, Good Wife fell to a third place tie with 18-to-49-year-olds opposite Fox’s combo of Family Guy and Last Man Standing and NBC’s sitcom duo of The Carmichael Show and Crowded.

Friday night as usual was paced in total viewers by CBS’ 9 p.m. hour of Blue Bloods (226,637) while ABC’s Shark Tank was tops with 18-to-49-year-olds (41,284).

Here are the local news derby results for the seventh weekday of the May “sweeps” ratings period.

NBC5 ran first in total viewers at 10 p.m. while TEGNA8 had the edge with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 swept both the 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. competitions, and added a 6 p.m. win with 25-to-54-year-olds. TEGNA8 had the most total viewers at 6 p.m.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Television quintet included among this year's Press Club of Dallas "North Texas Legends" honorees

1408572743021-Jon-McCaa gJUTleU7_400x400

John McCaa, David Finfrock are among new D-FW “Legends.”

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
A quintet of longtime D-FW television mainstays are among the “North Texas Legends” being inducted by the Press Club of Dallas at next month’s Excellence in Journalism event.

Lead WFAA8 anchor John McCaa and NBC5 chief meteorologist David Finfrock got the call, as did Fox4 reporter Fil Alvarado, Texas Country Reporter founder and host Bob Phillips, and KERA13 reporter/producer Sylvia Komatsu, who now is the public television station’s executive vice president and chief content officer.

In the sixth year of the awards, they will be joined by columnists Steve Blow and Norma Adams-Wade of The Dallas Morning News; sports columnist and radio personality Randy Galloway; Mike Rhyner (co-creator of “The Ticket” sports radio station and also charter host of “The Hardline”); suspense/romance novelist Sandra Brown; public relations firm pioneer Jo Ann Holt; non-fiction author Jeff Guinn; and Dallas Voice staff writer/contributor David Webb.

All 13 inductees have confirmed their attendance at the Thursday, June 9th ceremony, which will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at the downtown Dallas Sixth Floor Museum. Tickets ($25 for Press Club members; $30 for non-members plus a small processing fee) can be purchased right here. Food and libations are included with each admission.

(Note to readers: your friendly content provider is a first-year member of the Press Club of Dallas board and was on the four-member committee that selected this year’s honorees.)

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., May 5) -- Stars hit season high with overtime win

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The Dallas Stars drew a line in the ice and skated to a scintillating 3-2 win against the St. Louis Blues Thursday night after being embarrassed in Game 3 of their second round Stanley Cup playoff series.

Viewers responded accordingly, even though Game 4 again was on cable’s relatively obscure NBC Sports Net. Running until 10:07 p.m., Stars-Blues averaged 127,483 D-FW viewers and 73,042 in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic. Both were season highs.

Airing mostly opposite the Stars on Fox Sports Southwest, the Texas Rangers’ lopsided 12-2 loss at Toronto managed just 77,906 total viewers and 22,230 in the 18-to-49 age range.

Among the Big Four broadcast networks, CBS’ 7 p.m. episode of The Big Bang Theory as usual led all prime-time programming with 262,049 total viewers and 98,447 in the 18-to-49 realm. Still, those are relatively skimpy numbers for television’s most popular sitcom.

At 9 p.m., Fox4’s local newscast outdrew three competing new midseason dramas in total viewers with 148,730. ABC’s the The Catch took the silver with 106,236 viewers. The Catch ran first at 9 p.m. with 18-to-49-year-olds among this broadcast network foursome. It edged Fox4’s news by a score of 38,108 viewers to 34,933.

Here are the four-way local news derby results for the sixth weekday of the May ratings “sweeps.”

TEGNA8 ran first in total viewers at 10 p.m. while Fox4 drew the most 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 notched twin wins at 6 a.m. and also ran the table at 5 p.m. TEGNA8 topped the 6 p.m. competitions in total viewers but Fox4 and NBC5 shared the top spot among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 4) -- Empire slipping but still keeps its grip

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Fox’s Empire is still prime-time’s king of the hill on Wednesdays, although its ratings have been steadily trending downward in D-FW.

The latest 8 p.m. episode drew 347,038 viewers and 177,839 in the advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-old demographic. The series’ March 30th return, after a long hiatus, had 545,345 viewers and 260,407 in the 18-to-49 age range before the April 6th episode had respective totals of 439,109 and 219,123 viewers. Last week’s Empire was down to 368,285 total viewers and 200,069 in the 18-to-49 realm.

Although its powers are diminishing, Empire still had enough juice to propel Fox4’s 9 p.m local newscast to comfy wins in both total viewers (247,884) and 18-to-49-year-olds (92,095). The 7 p.m. hour went to CBS’ Survivor in both ratings measurements, with 198,307 total viewers and 73,041 within the 18-to-49 motherlode.

Here are the local news derby results for the fifth weekday of the May “sweeps” ratings period.

TEGNA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers and Fox4 drew the most 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 ran the table at 6 a.m. and NBC5 did likewise at 6 p.m. The 5 p.m. golds were split between NBC5 in total viewers and Fox4 in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon.-Tues., May 2-3) -- Stars struggle on all counts

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The St. Louis Blues thrashed and bullied the Dallas Stars 6-1 Tuesday night while the Texas Rangers also lost on the road in Toronto.

Rangers-Blue Jays, which went to extra innings and aired partially opposite Stars-Blues, had the better of it in the D-FW Nielsen ratings.

Airing on Fox Sports Southwest, the Rangers drew 155,813 viewers and 66,690 in the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-old demographic. The Stars, exiled to cable’s NBC Sports net for Game 3 of their Stanley Cup playoff series, pulled in 99,154 total viewers and 63,514 in the 18-to-49 age range.

Tuesday night’s top overall draw, CBS’ 7 p.m. episode of NCIS, had 325,790 total viewers. NBC’s 8 p.m. hour of Chicago Med was tops among 18-to-49-year-olds with 82,568. NBC also won at 7 and 9 p.m. in the 18-to-49 demographic with The Voice and Chicago Fire.

In Monday’s prime-time competition, NBC’s The Voice and ABC’s Dancing with the Stars tied for the most total viewers with 297,461 apiece from 7 to 9 p.m. Fox4’s local newscast led at 9 p.m. with 88,920 viewers.

Among 18-to-49-year-olds, The Voice won easily from 7 to 9 p.m. before Fox4’s news closed with a comfy first-place finish in the 9 p.m. hour.

Fox’s 8 p.m. premiere of Houdini & Doyle pulled a disappearing act with fourth place finishes in both key ratings measurements.

On FSS, the Rangers’ win at Toronto averaged 155,913 total viewers and 63,514 in the 18-to-49 realm.

Here are the four-way local news derby results for Monday and Tuesday -- the third and fourth weekdays of the ongoing May “sweeps” ratings period.

Monday -- TEGNA8 had the most total viewers at 10 p.m. while NBC5 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 swept the 6 a.m. competitions and NBC5 stayed strong at 5 and 6 p.m. with a quartet of wins.

Tuesday -- Fox4 and NBC5 shared all the spoils.

The Peacock won at 10 p.m. in both ratings measurements and tied Fox4 for the top spot in total viewers at 6 a.m. NBC5 had first place to itself at 6 a.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Fox4 ran the table at 5 p.m. and NBC5 did likewise at 6 p.m.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Real Housewives of Dallas slightly stops the ratings bleeding -- but not the stench (plus other stuff)

IMG_1241

LeeAnne Locken “showcasing the girls,” as she put it, during Monday’s post-RHOD edition of Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live. Photo: Ed Bark

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Monday night’s Episode 4 of Bravo’s Real Housewives of Dallas perked up a bit in the national ratings while still running well behind the latest weekly hours of the two other currently running Housewives shows.

RHOD drew 838,000 viewers, compared to 828,000 the previous week while remaining at a .3 rating among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. That stopped a three-week slide for a show that started out with a weak 1,076,00 total viewers before dropping to 920,000 in Week 2.

The Tuesday, April 26th episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills had 1,844,000 total viewers and a .7 in the 18-to-49-year-old demographic. Last Wednesday’s edition of Real Housewives of New York City weighed in with 1,322,000 viewers and a .5 in the 18-to-49 age range.

The New York City and Beverly Hills editions were the only Bravo shows to rank in the daily top 100 cable programs compiled by tvbythenumbers. In contrast, RHOD had some help from its lead-in program, Southern Charm, which drew 1,111,000 total viewers and placed 37th among cable’s overall top 100. RHOD then fell to 76th place, its lowest ranking to date, while losing 273,000 of the viewers it inherited from Southern Charm.

Episode 4 again wove excrement and passing gas into the “storyline.” Brandi Redmond said that her pal, the apparently frequently farting Stephanie Hollman, lets loose with emissions that smell like deviled eggs. Redmond, Hollman and the equally self-absorbed Cary Deuber later ganged up on LeeAnne “Ya Know What” Locken at a contrived girls’ night out cocktail party. Locken supposedly once crapped her pants, which sent the girls into giggle fits before the accused approached them and got in Redmond’s face again. She then smashed a champagne glass and stormed out.

Locken next appeared on Bravo’s following Watch What Happens Live, hosted by Real Housewives executive producer Andy Cohen. “I’m showcasing the girls,” she said when he asked about her “different” look. On next week’s RHOD, as a tease showed, Locken will accost one of the show’s cameramen in an effort to shut down her verbal/physical catfight with longtime -- and long-suffering -- pal Tiffany Hendra.

Cohen did not ask Locken directly about once pooping her pants, but she’s clearly become the show’s principal shit-stirrer with her blend of looks that could kill and open-mouthed horror at breaches of decorum during charity events. If RHOD somehow manages to stumble into a Season 2, Dallas mostly can “thank” Locken (with a major assist from the studiously infantile Redmond) for keeping the thing afloat like a turd in a balky toilet. Sorry. Just trying to meet RHOD on its own terms.

13166809_1732257166997936_712507488_n

Speaking of “showcasing the girls,” that’s CBS11 meteorologist Lisa Villegas (center) in Vegas via a new picture on her public Instagram account.

Villegas currently is doing the weather on the station’s weekday early morning and 11 a.m. newscasts as a sub for Scott Padgett, who’s moved to the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. editions in place of former chief meteorologist Larry Mowry, who left in March to join Chicago’s WLS-TV. For better or worse, this shot clearly out-does any of her male counterparts’ inclinations to strip down to their shirtsleeves whenever severe weather strikes. (Note: the picture since has been taken down.)

SubstandardFullSizeRender

Let’s close on a considerably higher plane with the above picture of the newly finished, custom-made Cowboy boots that will be presented to Bob Schieffer after the Press Club of Dallas recently celebrated his long and distinguished career at CBS News.

The boots are a gift from Mayor Mike Rawlings and the city of Dallas, and were made by Wild Bill’s Western Store. Schieffer also received a custom-made Stetson hat at the April 11th gathering from Fort Worth mayor Betsy Price. Its maker is Peters Brothers Hats.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 29-May 1) -- seeing Stars on NBC/NBC sports net

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The Dallas Stars split their first two Stanley Cup Round 2 games against the St. Louis Blues over the weekend, playing on the relatively obscure NBC Sports cable net Friday night before moving onto NBC’s broadcast network big stage on Sunday afternoon.

Friday’s win, incorrectly listed on most programming grids, built slowly on the NBC Sports net. It ended up averaging 106,236 D-FW viewers and 66,690 in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic. The competing Texas Rangers-Los Angeles Angels game on Fox Sports Southwest drew 169,978 total viewers and 57,163 in the 18-to-49 age range.

Sunday afternoon’s game, an overtime Stars loss that stretched to the early evening on NBC, averaged an identical 106,236 total viewers but dropped to 57,163 in the 18-to-49-year-old realm. The Rangers’ afternoon loss to the Angels on FSS had 177,060 total viewers and 50,811 in the 18-to-49 motherlode.

All of which means that Stanley Cup hockey fever isn’t exactly gripping D-FW yet, although the Stars continue to pull in more younger viewers than the Rangers.

NBC’s 7 p.m. new episode of Little Big Shots again ranked as Sunday night’s most-watched program with 276,214 total viewers. It was also tops with 18-to-49-year-olds (66,690).

On Friday night, CBS’ Blue Bloods as usual drew the most total viewers, this time with 198,307. ABC’s 8 p.m. episode of Shark Tank was No. 1 among the Big Four broadcast networks in the 18-to-49 demographic (53,987).

Here are Friday’s local news derby results for the second weekday of the month-long May “sweeps” ratings period.

NBC5 topped the 10 p.m. competition in total viewers and tied Fox4 for first place with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 edged NBC5 in total viewers at 6 a.m. while the two stations shared the gold among 25-to-54-year-olds.

The Peacock ran the table at 6 p.m. and also had the most 25-to-54-year-olds at 5 p.m. Fox4 and NBC5, in their third tie of the day, shared the 5 p.m. lead in total viewers.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net