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Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Sun., Nov. 25-29) -- in death throes, Cowboys still set season high

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The Dallas Cowboys served up Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings to the unbeaten Carolina Panthers.

The one-sided 33-14 home loss set a season record in total D-FW viewers anyway, drawing 1,664,364 for a game that mercifully ended at 6:44 p.m. on CBS. That beat the previous high of 1,593,540 for the Oct. 4th overtime loss at New Orleans on NBC’s Sunday Night Football.

Cowboys-Saints keeps the record for advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds with 746,290. Cowboys-Panthers averaged 698,654.

Later Sunday, the Chicago Bears’ upset of the suddenly sinking Green Bay Packers had 509,933 total viewers on NBC. Fox’s Thanksgiving Day appetizer, the Detroit Lions’ thrashing of the Philadelphia Eagles on Fox, drew 771,982 viewers.

Texas Tech’s prime-time Thanksgiving win over Texas on Fox Sports 1 averaged 254,966 total viewers opposite Bears-Packers.

The NFL returned on Sunday, with its biggest haul for CBS’ late afternoon/early evening Seahawks-Steelers game. It pulled in 623,251 viewers. The Denver Broncos’ snowy, overtime upset of the previously unbeaten New England Patriots ran second with an average of 517,015 viewers on NBC.

AMC’s 8 p.m. season finale of The Walking Dead had 283,296 total viewers. But as always, the lion’s share -- 209,596 -- were within the 18-to-49 motherlode. Broncos-Patriots edged The Walking Dead during that hour with 219,123 viewers in the 18-to-49 age range.

Saturday’s prime-time Oklahoma-Oklahoma State game on ABC averaged 311,626 total viewers. But that easily was topped by the rain-soaked TCU-Baylor matchup Friday night on ESPN. The OT win for TCU, which stretched to 11:12 p.m., drew 361,202 viewers.

TCU-Baylor thumped all competing Friday night programming, with TEGNA8’s 10 p.m. local newscast placing second (148,730 viewers).

And now for the local news derby results . . . well, there aren’t any. Fox4, NBC5, TEGNA8 and CBS11 all took holiday exemptions on Thursday and Friday. And only CBS11 played for keeps on Wednesday, which also was the last day of the November “sweeps” ratings period.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Unbeaten Good Day paces Fox4's prosperous November "sweeps"

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Fox4 Good Day anchors Tim Ryan, Lauren Przybyl. Photo: Ed Bark

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Fox4’s Good Day entered the D-FW ratings history book while the station also won all four major newscast races among 25-to-54-year--olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

The November “sweeps” ratings, which ended on Thanksgiving eve, show Good Day running first on all 20 weekdays at 6 a.m. in total viewers and the key 25-to-54-year-old demographic. Good Day anchors Tim Ryan and Lauren Przybyl, along with meteorologist Even Andrews and traffic anchor Chip Waggoner, literally were an unbeatable team opposite distant also-rans NBC5, TEGNA8 and CBS11. Topping the field on each and every weekday in both ratings measurements is a considerable achievement in times when brand loyalty is blowing in the wind.

Fox4 also won the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. Nielsen ratings races among 25-to-54-year-olds and ran second by a sliver to NBC5 in total viewers at 5 p.m.

The three rival stations each claimed one win apiece. In the November 2014 sweeps, TEGNA8 logged four wins while Fox4 had just two.

TEGNA8 repeated from a year ago as the 10 p.m. champ in total viewers while NBC5 and CBS11 respectively did likewise at 5 and 6 p.m. But CBS11 again ran last across the board among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Here are the complete November “sweeps” results for the four-way competitions at 6 a.m. and 5, 6 and 10 p.m. Year-to-year audience gains or losses are in parentheses.

10 P.M.

Total Viewers
TEGNA8 -- 196,607 (minus 5,639)
NBC5 -- 157,654 (plus 11,549)
CBS11 -- 156,592 (minus 4,647)
Fox4 -- 136,903 (plus 8,512)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
Fox4 -- 74,110 (minus 1,190)
TEGNA8 -- 68,901 (minus 15,408)
NBC5 -- 61,907 (plus 2,846)
CBS11 -- 41,638 (minus 1,183)

Comments: TEGNA8 overcame some generally skimpy lead-ins from ABC’s 9 p.m. entertainment programming to win relatively comfortably in total viewers. But the big one got away, with Fox4 topping the 25-to-54 ratings for the second consecutive sweeps period after winning for the first time in this measurement last May. NBC5 was the only station to show year-to-year increases in both competitions while TEGNA8 showed the biggest declines.

6 A.M.

Total Viewers
Fox4 -- 125,925 (minus 793)
NBC5 -- 75,569 (minus 20,602)
TEGNA8 -- 71,886 (minus 12,778)
CBS11 -- 47,735 (minus 5,337)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
Fox4 -- 61,818 (minus 8,474)
NBC5 -- 33,692 (minus 2,165)
TEGNA8 -- 26,697 (minus 9,723)
CBS11 -- 15,268 (minus 3,994)

Comments: Remember when early mornings were seen as a big growth arena for local newscasts? Not this time. Not this time at all. The four stations each lost viewers in both ratings measurements from a year ago, even runaway winner Fox4. CBS11 also forfeited any momentum it had from last May, when the station placed better than fourth for the first time ever among 25-to-54-year-olds by nipping TEGNA8. News director Mike Garber then broke the morning team in half by sending co-anchor Jason Allen back to the reporting pool while dumping traffic anchor Tammy Dombeck. Their replacements, Russ McCaskey and Chelsey Davis, haven’t caught on so far despite a heavy “Morning All Star” promotional campaign in which the new team gave away free coffee.

CBS11’s personnel moves helped TEGNA8 to recover in part from its May sweeps embarrassment, even through the station had significant year-to-year declines in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds. All told, the four stations lost 24,356 viewers in the 25-to-54 age range.

6 P.M.

Total Viewers
CBS11 -- 146,818 (minus 16,164)
NBC5 -- 143,844 (plus 319)
Fox4 -- 140,161 (plus 28,995)
TEGNA8 -- 137,469 (minus 4,731)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
Fox4 -- 60,121 (plus 10,958)
NBC5 -- 55,002 (plus 20,923)
TEGNA8 -- 44,228 (minus 7,898)
CBS11 -- 26,816 (minus 4,626)

Comments: The margin between first and fourth place in total viewers was just 9,349. So all four stations were in the hunt, although CBS11 hemorrhaged viewers from a year ago while still eking out a first place finish. Fox4 trampolined upward in both ratings measurements while TEGNA8 fell from first to third place with 25-to-54-year-olds from a year ago. CBS11’s 25-to-54 demographics remain dismal, with its viewership less than half of frontrunner Fox4’s. Second place NBC5 enjoyed the biggest gains among 25-to-54-year-olds.

5 P.M.

Total Viewers
NBC5 -- 137,611 (minus 12,330)
Fox4 -- 135,486 (plus 9,536)
TEGNA8 -- 113,106 (plus 4,381)
CBS11 -- 95,896 (minus 17,710)

25-to-54-Year-Olds
Fox4 -- 48,305 (plus 13,515)
NBC5 -- 38,216 (plus 4,759)
TEGNA8 -- 33,632 (minus 6,581)
CBS11 -- 22,233 (minus 1,830)

Comments: TEGNA8 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds in November 2014, but fell to a rather distant third this time around. Fox4 lost by a hair to NBC5 in total viewers and was the only station to increase its audience in both measurements from a year ago. CBS11 has miles to go and compounded its woes by being the only station to lose viewers on both scorecards.

All in all, CBS11 fared the worst in November by also being the only station to lose viewers across the board in all four newscast competitions. TEGNA8 didn’t fare much better. It was on the year-to-year plus side only at 5 p.m. in total viewers.

In contrast, Fox4 and NBC5 showed year-to-year increases on five of the eight scorecards. But the biggest celebration is at Fox4, which collected the lion’s share of gold medals and ran the table in the most valued 25-to-54-year-old measurement. The frosting on its cake came at 9 p.m., where Fox4 drew more viewers than for any of its other newscasts despite being in direct competition with network entertainment programming on ABC, CBS and NBC.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon.-Tues., Nov. 23-24) -- Dancing with the Stars waltzes to win

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
ABC’s 21st edition of Dancing with the Stars (but who’s counting?) went out a ratings winner Tuesday night, with the late Steve Irwin’s daughter, Bindi, copping the Mirror Ball with pro partner Derek Hough.

D-FW viewers TV watchers still cared enough to make DWTS prime-time’s top draw from 8 to 10 p.m. with 304,543 viewers. DWTS also won among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds with 104,798.

CBS’ NCIS topped the 7 p.m. hour with 339,955 total viewers and 69,865 in the 18-to-49 demographic.

In Monday’s prime-time ratings wars, NBC’s The Voice had the most total viewers from 7 to 9 p.m. (347,038), beating a competitive DWTS (290,378). CBS’ NCIS: Los Angeles then won at 9 p.m. with 219,554 viewers, nipping NBC’s Blindspot in competition among the Big Four broadcast networks. ESPN’s Monday Night Football matchup of the New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills averaged the most 18-to-49-year-olds with 139,731.

Here are the local news derby results for the 18th and 19th weekdays of the November “sweeps” ratings period, which ends on the day before Thanksgiving.

Monday -- TEGNA8 and CBS11 tied for the most total viewers at 10 p.m., but Fox4 was comfortably on top with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 added another pair of 6 a.m. wins and also swept the 5 p.m. competitions. CBS11 ran first in total viewers at 6 p.m., with Fox4 taking the 25-to-54 gold.

Tuesday -- TEGNA8 capitalized on the strong lead-in from DWTS to win at 10 p.m. in both ratings races.

Fox4 stayed unbeaten at 6 a.m. throughout the sweeps with another sweep. The station also drew the most 25-to-54-year-olds at 5 and 6 p.m.

CBS11 again had the most total viewers at 6 p.m. while NBC5 broke through with a 5 p.m. win in that measurement.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 20-22) -- Cowboys' numbers move back upward with Romo back in charge

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Quarterback Tony Romo’s triumphant return lifted the Dallas Cowboys’ D-FW ratings from last Sunday’s season low point, although a noon start still almost always deflates things.

Dallas’ 24-14 win at Miami, after seven straight Romo-less losses, ran until 3:07 p.m. on Fox and averaged 1,196,926 viewers. That’s up from the Nov. 15th season-low at Tampa Bay, which also was a nooner on Fox. It drew 1,090,690 viewers.

Among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, Cowboys-Dolphins averaged 485,882 viewers, up from the previous Sunday’s 460,477. The season highs in both audience measurements came during the Oct. 4th overtime loss at New Orleans on NBC’s Sunday Night Football. It drew 1,593,540 total viewers and 746,290 in the 18-to-49-year-old sweet spot. The Cowboys’ home Thanksgiving Day matchup against the unbeaten Carolina Panthers has a fighting chance to beat those marks if the game is close. CBS will serve it up.

In prime-time Sunday, NBC’s down-to-the-wire Arizona Cardinals-Cincinnati Bengals game went head-to-head against ABC’s three-hour American Music Awards. Football again prevailed, averaging 382,450 total viewers to the AMA’s 297,461. In the 18-to-49 demographic, Cardinals-Bengals also won by a score of 171,488 to 130,204.

On Saturday night, Fox’s Baylor-Oklahoma State game mostly aired opposite ABC’s TCU-Oklahoma matchup. Baylor’s big win also won the ratings war with 262,049 total viewers to TCU-Oklahoma’s 226,637. But the ABC game easily had the highest peak audience, with 403,697 watching TCU attempt a two-point conversion in the late night closing minutes rather than go for overtime with a standard extra point. It didn’t work.

Over on NBC, Saturday Night Live, with Matthew McConaughey hosting, got off to a sluggish start opposite the closing half-hour of TCU-Oklahoma. It then picked up steam, averaging 219,554 viewers overall and spring-boarding to 290,378 in the 11 to 11:15 p.m. segment after football had ended.

Friday night’s biggest overall prime-time draw, CBS’ 9 p.m. episode of Blue Bloods, had 226,637 total viewers in beating Barbara Walters’ chummy interview with the Trump family on ABC’s 20/20 (141,648). The most-watched attraction among 18-to-49-year-olds, ABC’s 8 p.m. edition of Shark Tank, had 76,217 viewers.

Here are Friday’s local news derby results, with just three weekdays now remaining in the November ratings “sweeps.”

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

Fox4 remained unbeaten throughout the sweeps at 6 a.m. and also had the most 25-to-54-year-olds at 5 p.m. Fox4 and NBC5 tied for first in total viewers.

The 6 p.m. golds went to CBS11 in total viewers and TEGNA8 in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Nov. 19) -- CBS comedies, ABC dramas share the power

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
CBS’ The Big Bang Theory again ranked as Thursday’s dominant top draw before ABC got some traction later in the night with two of its three Shonda Rhimes-produced dramas.

Big Bang led off with 460,356 D-FW viewers before CBS’ following Life In Pieces held on to win from 7:30 to 8 p.m. with 233,719.

CBS’ Mom then knocked off the first half of ABC’s Scandal with 219,554 viewers. Scandal’s second half-hour drew 191,225 viewers to beat CBS’ 2 Broke Girls (155,813) before ABC’s How to Get Away with Murder won the 9 p.m. hour with 184,142 viewers.

Big Bang and Life In Pieces also ran first in their time slots among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. Scandal and HTGAWM then controlled the 8 to 10 p.m. hours in this key demographic.

Over on the NFL Network, the Thursday Night Football matchup between the victorious Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans averaged just 141,648 total viewers. That’s a season low.

Here are the local news derby results for the 16th weekday of the November ratings “sweeps” period, which ends on the day before Thanksgiving.

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

Fox4 remained unbeaten in the sweeps at 6 a.m. with another sweep.

CBS11 had the most total viewers at 6 p.m. while NBC5 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds.

The Peacock had the most total viewers at 5 p.m. and tied Fox4 for first place among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Nov. 18) -- Empire still ruling

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Fox’s Empire continued to dominate the Wednesday prime-time terrain while its warmup act, Rosewood, showed more signs of audience rejection.

Empire’s 417,862 D-FW viewers easily controlled the 8 p.m. hour before Fox4’s local newscast coasted to a 9 p.m. win with 240,802. Both programs also won their time slots with advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds.

At 7 p.m., Fox’s Rosewood averaged 191,225 total viewers, a number that was inflated by the 240,802 who watched the closing 15-minute segment. That’s the TV set warmup effect for Empire at work.

CBS’ Survivor was the full 7 p.m. hour winner with 219,554 viewers. ABC’s The Middle also beat the first half of Rosewood with 184,142 viewers. It was the same story in the key 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

Wednesday’s oldest-skewing show among the Big Four broadcast networks again was NBC’s 7 p.m. episode of The Mysteries of Laura. It drew 31,757 viewers in the 18-to-49 age range. In contrast, Empire had 184,191.

Here are the local news derby results for the 15th weekday of the November “sweeps” ratings period, which ends on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

NBC5 nipped TEGNA8 for the most total viewers at 10 p.m., but both stations were outdrawn by Fox4 in the 25-to-54-year-old demographic (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 added another pair of wins at 6 a.m., likewise swept the 5 p.m. competitions and also ran first at 6 p.m. with 25-to-54-year-olds. CBS11 had the most total viewers at 6 p.m.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Nov. 17) -- CBS/NBC split spoils

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
CBS and NBC traded prime-time punches Tuesday while ABC and Fox were kayoed.

CBS’ NCIS edged NBC’s The Voice in the 7 p.m. hour, drawing 396,614 D-FW viewers to the Peacock sing-along’s 382,450.

NCIS: New Orleans likewise won from 8 to 9 p.m., besting NBC’s premiere of Chicago Med by a score of 325,790 viewers to 240,802.

NBC’s Chicago Fire (240,802 viewers) then knocked off CBS’ competing Limitless (219,554).

Among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, the time slot winners were The Voice, NCIS: New Orleans and Chicago Fire.

Fox again had prime-time’s runaway loss leader with Scream Queens, which had 49,577 total viewers and 19,054 in the 18-to-49 age range.

In the late night talk show wars, NBC’s Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon stayed comfortably on top in both ratings measurements while ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live again took away the runner-up spots from CBS’ Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The latter’s 18-to-49 numbers continue to sink, at least in D-FW. Tuesday night’s Late Show had 19,054 viewers in this key demographic compared to Kimmel’s 28,581 and Fallon’s 69,865. That’s a big-time blowout win for Fallon.

Here are the local news derby results for the 14th weekday of the November “sweeps” ratings period, which ends on the day before Thanksgiving.

NBC5 swept the 10 p.m. competitions for the second straight night, topping the field in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 remained unbeaten during the sweeps at 6 a.m., notching wins in both ratings measurements. The station also ran first at 5 and 6 p.m. with 25-to-54-year-olds.

TEGNA8 and CBS11 tied for the most total viewers at 5 p.m.; TEGNA8 finished in first place outright at 6 p.m. while its three rivals were all clustered close behind.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Nov. 16) -- the Peacock crows

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
NBC dined on the fruits of victory throughout prime-time Monday with its potent one-two punch of The Voice and Blindspot.

The Voice averaged 403,697 D-FW viewers from 7 to 9 p.m. before Blindspot emerged with 276,214 in the 9 p.m. hour. Both totals were more than good enough to win their time slots, with even ESPN’s Monday Night Football falling short despite the Houston Texans’ down-to-the-wire 10-6 upset of the previously unbeaten Cincinnati Bengals.

The Voice and Blindspot, already renewed for a second season, likewise beat all comers in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-old demographic. The Voice drew 127,028 viewers in that age range while Blindspot had 107,974.

Fox4’s local newscast also did well at 9 p.m. with respective totals of 219,554 and 95,271 viewers. And in the 7 p.m. hour, CBS’ new Supergirl rang up a nice-sized 240,802 total viewers but still fell short of the first hour of ABC’s competing Dancing with the Stars (283,296 viewers). Supie beat DWTS among 18-to-49-year-olds, though, as did CBS’ following episode of Scorpion.

Here are Monday’s local news derby results for the 13th weekday of the 20-day November “sweeps” ratings period.

NBC5 capitalized on its network’s strong prime-time ratings and swept the 10 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 remained unbeaten throughout the sweeps at 6 a.m. by scoring another pair of wins. The station also had the most 25-to-54-year-olds at both 5 and 6 p.m.

NBC5 ran first in total viewers at 5 p.m. and TEGNA8 took the 6 p.m. gold in that measurement.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Spoofing the art of local news promos (starring D-FW anchors Doug Dunbar & Clarice Tinsley)

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The 13th annual Lone Star Emmy Awards, held Nov. 7th in Austin, bestowed hundreds of trophies on dozens of local TV news operations.

But an attendant highlight of the night came when attendees were treated to a very funny short film about the “premier academy for fake broadcasting,” namely Back to U.

Veteran D-FW anchors Doug Dunbar of CBS11 and Clarice Tinsley of Fox4 were the stars of this spoof, with Dunbar deftly executing the “Spin and Grin” move among others while Tinsley basked in the presence of her “multiple awards.” The three-and-a-half-minute video had a brief life on youtube before being pulled, reports the website FTVLive. But it’s still making the rounds and appears below in the interests of thwarting any humorless powers-that-be who may have deemed it an “inappropriate” reflection on the serious business of TV news. Which is amusing in itself.

So enjoy this while you can. And kudos to Dunbar and Tinsley for stepping out of the box and rolling with it.



Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri., Nov. 6 to Sun., Nov. 15 catchup round) -- season nadir for Cowboys also marks their smallest TV audience to date

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Your friendly content provider returned home just in time to see the Dallas Cowboys drop their seventh straight Tony Romo-less game with a dismal 10-6 loss at Tampa Bay.

Two inept offenses and a noon Sunday start on Fox didn’t help matters. End result: the punchless Cowboys drew their lowest D-FW crowd this season, averaging 1,090,690 viewers. That fell short of the 1,154,431 viewers who watched Dallas lose to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, Sept. 27th. It also was a noon start on Fox.

Among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, Cowboys-Bucs drew 460,477 viewers, dodging the season low mark of 371,557 for the loss to the Falcons.

The Cowboys also had a Nov. 8th national showcase game against the Philadelphia Eagles on NBC’s Sunday Night Football. The overtime loss to Philadelphia stretched until 10:56 p.m. and pulled in 1,458,974 total viewers, with 660,546 in the 18-to-49 motherlode. The season highs are still 1,593,540 total viewers and 746,290 in the 18-to-49 demographic for the Oct. 4th overtime loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday Night Football.

The New England Patriots’ last-second win over the New York Giants ran second in the Sunday, Nov. 15th NFL parade, averaging 594,922 total viewers on CBS. The earlier Miami Dolphins-Philadelphia Eagles matchup on CBS got crushed opposite the Cowboys, drawing just 84,989 total viewers.

On Saturday night, CBS’ Democratic presidential candidate debate drew a meager 120,401 total viewers and just 31,757 in the 18-to-49 age range. The night’s big winner, Oklahoma’s win over previously unbeaten Baylor on ABC, crushed the Dems with 375,367 total viewers and 133,379 within the 18-to-49 sweet spot.

D-FW ratings were not available for the Tuesday, Nov. 10th Republican presidential candidate debate on Fox Business Network. But nationally, 13.5 million viewers tuned into the Republican face-off while 8.6 million watched the Democratic contenders.

Here are the local news derby results for the six weekdays from Nov. 6-15. Eight days remain to be counted in the November “sweeps” ratings period, which ends on the day before Thanksgiving.

Friday, Nov. 6th -- CBS11 swept the 10 p.m. competitions with wins in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 again ran the table at 6 a.m. and likewise had twin wins at 5 p.m. The 6 p.m. golds went to CBS11 in total viewers and Fox4 in the 25-to-54 age range.

Monday, Nov. 9th -- CBS11 had the most total viewers at 10 p.m., while Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Fox4 remained rock solid at 6 a.m. with another sweep and also ran the table at 5 p.m. NBC5 enjoyed a doubleheader win at 6 p.m.

Tuesday, Nov. 10th -- CBS11 remained on the comeback trail with another total viewers win at 10 p.m., but Fox4 again reigned with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Score another pair of 6 a.m. wins for Fox4 while NBC5 had the most 25-to-54-year-olds at both 5 and 6 p.m. The Peacock and CBS11 shared the total viewers lead at 6 p.m. and Fox4 won outright in that measurement at 5 p.m.

Wednesday, Nov. 11th -- Fueled by the prime-time presence of Empire, Fox4 swept the 10 p.m. competitions after also dominating the 9 p.m. time slot with its local newscast. And how about this? Fox4 also ran the table at 6 a.m. and 5 and 6 p.m. The exceedingly rare local news double grand slam was the first since Aug. 26th, 2014, when Fox4 also accomplished this feat.

Thursday, Nov. 12th -- TEGNA8 finally popped into the winner’s circle by topping the 10 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds.

Fox4 as usual controlled the 6 a.m. Nielsens and also won in total viewers at 5 and 6 p.m. NBC5 countered by sweeping the 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts in the 25-to-54 age range.

Friday, Nov. 13th -- TEGNA8 again ran the table at 10 p.m. and Fox4 continued its total dominance of the 6 a.m. races with another pair of wins.

NBC5 and CBS11 shared the total viewers lead at 6 p.m. but the Peacock was alone on top with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Fox4 and NBC5 tied for the most total viewers at 5 p.m. and Fox4 won outright with 25-to-54-year-olds.

LOCAL NEWS NOTE: Former Fox4 early morning reporter and substitute anchor Krystle Gutierrez will be filling in as NBC5’s early morning traffic reporter while Samantha Davies is on maternity leave. Her husband, Kris Gutierrez, joined NBC5 in March and is co-anchoring the station’s weekday 5 p.m. newscasts.

NBC5 also has added consumer investigator Deanna Dewberry to its early morning team. She now has a regular segment. As previously posted, co-anchor Eric King has been reassigned to the reporter poll and can be seen on newscasts throughout the day.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Nov. 5) -- Big Bang paces prime-time while FSS gets no bang from Mavs

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The latest new episode of The Big Bang Theory reigned over all programming on the new season’s first Thursday without NFL football filling all of CBS’ prime-time real estate.

Big Bang led off the night with 474,521 D-FW viewers and likewise had a league-leading 184,191 in the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-old demographic.

CBS’ following Life In Pieces also had enough juice to win its time slot in both ratings measurements, as did the network’s season premiere of Mom.

ABC’s second half-hour of Scandal ran first on both counts at 8:30 p.m. opposite a close second place finish by a Big Bang repeat.

At 9 p.m., ABC’s How to Get Away with Murder nipped the return of CBS’ Elementary and Fox4’s local newscast in the total viewer Nielsens. But Fox4 in turn edged HTGAWM in the 18-to-49 age range while Elementary fell to a distant third place in competition among the Big Four broadcast networks.

In the cable universe, the Dallas Mavericks’ lopsided home loss to the Charlotte Hornets had puny returns on Fox Sports Southwest. The game drew just 35,422 total viewers, with 15,879 in the 18-to-49 realm.

The NFL Network’s solo presentation of Thursday Night Football, after seven weeks of sharing with CBS, was a ratings behemoth in comparison. Former Texas A&M wonder boy Johnny Manziel may have been a big reason. He got the start for the woeful Cleveland Browns and fared pretty well for a half against the unbeaten Cincinnati Bengals. The home team’s eventual 31-10 whipping of Cleveland averaged a nice-sized 247,884 total viewers and 133,379 in the 18-to-49 demographic.

Thursday also brought tornado-spiked severe weather and the preemptions of 5:30 p.m. network newscasts by NBC5, TEGNA8 and CBS11.

In the regular 5 to 5:30 p.m. news slot, NBC5 drew the most total viewers for its continuous weather coverage, followed in order by Fox4, TEGNA8 and CBS11. It was the same order of finish among 25-to-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

TEGNA8 took the total viewers lead from 5:30 to 6 p.m., followed by Fox4 and NBC5 (which tied for second) and fourth-place CBS11. In the 25-to-54 age range, Fox4 and NBC5 tied for the lead, with TEGNA8 third and CBS11 again on the bottom.

From 6 to 6:30 p.m., TEGNA8 topped the field in total viewers, trailed by NBC5, CBS11 and Fox4. Among 25-to-54-year-olds, NBC5 ran first, followed by TEGNA8, Fox4 and CBS11.

NBC5 stayed with commercial-free weather coverage from 6:30 to 7 p.m. while Fox4, TEGNA8 and CBS11 all yielded to syndicated entertainment programming. CBS11’s Wheel of Fortune won the half-hour in total viewers, with NBC5 in second and Fox4 (Access Hollywood) and TEGNA8 (Entertainment Tonight) tying for third. NBC5 comfortably won with 25-to-54-year-olds, though, followed by Wheel, ET and Access Hollywood.

Here are the other local news derby results on the 6th weekday of the November “sweeps” ratings period.

TEGNA8 had the most total viewers at 10 p.m. while Fox4 won among 25-to-54-year-olds. At 6 a.m., Fox rolled to another pair of twin wins.

Also of note in the early morning: In the May sweeps, CBS11 ran third at 6 a.m. for the first time ever among 25-to-54-year-olds, nipping TEGNA8. The station then jettisoned half of its early morning team, reassigning co-news anchor Jason Allen and dropping traffic anchor Tammy Dombeck in favor of newcomers Russ McCaskey and Chelsey Davis.

So far in November, CBS11 has virtually vanished in the 25-to-54 demographic, with TEGNA8 outdrawing the station on all six weekdays to date. Five of these days have been by lopsided margins, with third-place TEGNA8 thumping CBS11 by a 27,680 to 8,334 score in Thursday’s Nielsens.

Sometimes news directors can make one too many -- or in this case -- two too many moves. There are still 14 weekdays left in the November sweeps, but CBS11 already has dug itself a big hole at 6 a.m. after making station history last May.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues.-Wed., Nov. 3-4) -- It's Empire vs. CMA Awards in marquee Wednesday night matchup

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Facing the music: Fox’s Empire met its match Wednesday night opposite the second hour of ABC’s Country Music Association awards show.

The 8 p.m. second hour of the CMAs, which featured a show-stopping duet by Jason Timberlake and new country star Chris Stapleton, barely prevailed in total D-FW viewers with 439,109 to Empire’s 432,026.

But Empire won among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, drawing 206,421 to the CMA Awards’ 152,434.

The CMAs, again hosted by Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, averaged 417,862 total viewers for its full three hours, with 252,434 in the key 18-to-49 demographic. Rival networks CBS and NBC couldn’t keep pace while Fox and Fox4’s 9 p.m. local newscast took the silvers in both ratings measurements from 7 to 8 p.m. (with Rosewood) and 9 to 10 p.m.

In Tuesday’s prime-time Nielsens, CBS’ NCIS ranked as the top draw in total viewers with 389,532 while NBC’s The Voice lured the most 18-to-49-year-olds (92,095).

Here are the local news derby results for the 4th and 5th weekdays of the 20-day November “sweeps” ratings period.

Tuesday -- TEGNA8 edged NBC5 for the most total viewers at 10 p.m., but Fox4 won among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Fox4 remained in charge of the 6 a.m. competitions with twin wins while NBC5 prospered in the early evening by sweeping both the 5 and 6 p.m. races.

Wednesday -- TEGNA8 capitalized on a bounteous CMA lead-in audience to run the table at 10 p.m.

Fox4 notched two more 6 a.m. wins and also swept the 5 p.m. competitions. At 6 p.m., Fox4 and NBC5 shared the lead in total viewers, but Fox4 was alone on top with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Fox4 adds Alex Boyer to reporting staff

Alex Boyer

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Alex Boyer, from Austin’s KEYE-TV, is heading north to join Dallas-based Fox4 as a general assignment reporter.

News director Robin Whitmeyer expects him to initiate a lot of stories on his own.

“Alex enterprised his own beat in Austin, uncovering stories that no other journalist had,” she said in a statement Thursday. “I know he will be a strong enterpriser.”

Boyer, who’s scheduled to start at Fox4 on Jan. 4th, joined CBS affiliate KEYE on Christmas Eve, 2012 as a reporter and fill-in anchor. The University of Florida graduate also has a “certificate in media law” from Yale University. He earlier worked for TV stations in Miami, FL, Fort Meyers, FL, Hartford, CT and Springfield, MA.

“Dallas-Fort Worth is a destination news market and Fox4 is a force to be reckoned with,” Boyer says. “I’m humbled to be joining such a talented newsroom and eager to tackle the stories that matter to Texans.”

KEYE’s website also says that Boyer, who is bilingual, was “named one of Miami’s best-dressed reporters by the Miami Herald.” So there’s that, too.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Nov. 2) -- The Voice still hitting high notes

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
NBC continues to flex with the The Voice, which again controlled Monday’s 7 to 9 p.m. slot on the premier night for big-ticket TV fare.

The Voice averaged 417,862 D-FW viewers and 139,731 in the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-old demographic. That was more than good enough to beat even ESPN’s Monday Night Football game between the Carolina Panthers and Indianapolis Colts.

ABC’s two hours of Dancing with the Stars ran second in those two hours with 304,543 total viewers while CBS also had solid numbers with the second episode of Supergirl (219,554) and an 8 p.m. hour of Scorpion (233,719). But MNF took the No. 2 spot among 18-to-49-year-olds, with DWTS third and the CBS combo trailing.

MNF, which went into overtime and didn’t end until 11:20 p.m., was the top draw from 9 to 10 p.m. and beyond in both ratings measurements. Among the Big Four broadcast networks, NBC’s Blindspot and CBS’ NCIS: Los Angeles tied for second in total viewers while Blindspot had the silver medal to itself in the 18-to-49 realm.

Fox’s 8 p.m. episode of Minority Report again was the basement dweller with both total viewers and 18-to-49-year-olds.

Here are the local news derby results for the third weekday of the November “ratings” sweeps.

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

Fox4 notched another pair of wins at 6 a.m. and also swept the 5 p.m. competitions.

The 6 p.m. spoils were split between TEGNA8 in total viewers and Fox4 in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

CBS11 sports reporter/anchor Guy Rawlings heading for Birmingham after short stay in D-FW

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By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
Guy Rawlings, a reporter and weekend sports anchor at CBS11 for the past two years, is leaving the station to try news again.

Birmingham, Alabama’s WVTM-TV, the market’s NBC affiliate, announced Monday that Rawlings will be co-anchoring the station’s early evening and 11 p.m. weekday newscasts.

“Guy reflects a new energy at WVTM 13,” president/general manager Hank Price said in a statement. “As we continue to grow our news operation, Guy’s professional experience and fresh perspective will prove (to be) assets to our viewers.” He’ll start in December.

“The next time you see Guy Rawlings, you can say ‘Congratulations!’ “ CBS11 news director Mike Garber said in a newsroom memo. “For those who do not know, Guy has a background in news. In fact, before he joined us, he was a news anchor in Atlanta.”

That was at CBS affiliate WGCL-TV, where Rawlings spent less than a year before the station exercised an “early out” option on his contract. He joined CBS11 on November 25, 2013. The University of Florida graduate also has worked at TV stations in Orlando, FL, Baltimore, MD, Charleston, SC, Jacksonville, FL, Miramar, FL and Gainesville, FL, where he got his start.

“Perhaps the best part about this move for Guy is that he is moving much closer to his family,” Garber said.

His last day at CBS11 will be on Nov. 22nd, according to Garber’s memo.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Oct. 30-Nov. 1) -- Cowboys pony up another big number

By ED BARK
@unclebarkycom on Twitter
The results were the same again for the sinking Dallas Cowboys. They chalked up another loss that easily could have been a win and also another big day at the ratings box office.

Dallas’ fifth straight defeat, 13-12 to the visiting Seattle Seahawks, endured until 6:40 p.m. as Fox’s featured national telecast. In D-FW, the game averaged 1,501,469 viewers to become the third of seven games to exceed the one-and-a-half million mark. The crowd peaked at 1,706,858 for the final minutes.

Among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, Cowboys-Seahawks averaged 631,964 viewers.

Fox then turned to Game 5 of the World Series, which for much of the night went against NBC’s marquee Sunday Night Football matchup between the Denver Broncos and Green Bay Packers. Both were unbeaten until Denver thrashed the Pack 29-10 and made vaunted Aaron Rodgers look statistically worse than the Cowboys’ Matt Cassel.

The two premium sports attractions went head-to-head from 7:30 p.m. until the Broncos-Packers game ended at 10:22 p.m. During that period, SNF drew 460,356 total viewers while the Kansas City Royals-New York Mets face-off averaged 524,098. So yes, that’s a big and impressive baseball upset in football country.

Game 5 continued until 11:34 p.m., when the Royals closed out the Mets in extra innings to win their first championship since 1985. The late night portion of the game pulled in 517,015 viewers to dominate all TV attractions and send all those Cowboys post mortems on rival local stations into ratings death spirals.

In the key 18-to-49-year-old demographic, SNF had 215,948 viewers opposite the 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. portion of the World Series, which hung right in there but came up a bit short with 203,245 viewers.

Over on AMC, a 90-minute episode of The Walking Dead had 290,378 total viewers from 8 to 9:30 p.m. As usual, a lion’s share of them (196,893) were within the 18-to-49 motherlode.

Earlier Sunday, the crazy 52-49 win by New Orleans over the New York Giants averaged 524,098 total viewers on Fox as a lead-in to the Cowboys. Fox also won the morning hours with its 8:30 a.m. game in London between the Kansas City Chief and Detroit Lions. It averaged 184,142 total viewers.

OK, let’s move to Saturday, where Fox’s prime-time Game 4 of the World Series easily outdrew all competing programming. Running until 10:37 p.m., the Royals’ comeback win averaged 297,461 total viewers.

On NBC, Triple Crown winner American Pharoah made history by being the first horse to complete racing’s “Grand Slam” by also winning the climactic Breeders Cup Classic. The actual race was from 4:53 to 4:55 p.m. During the 15-minute increment measured by Nielsen Media Research (4:45 to 5 p.m.), only 99,154 total viewers tuned in.

On to Friday and Game 3 of the World Series on Fox. It also led the prime-time ratings from start to stop (at 10:30 p.m.), averaging 325,790 total viewers. ABC’s 9 p.m. edition of 20/20, in which actress Leah Remini talked about her breakaway from Scientology, was a strong runner-up with 262,049 total viewers.

Finally -- pant pant -- here are Friday’s local news derby results for Day 2 of the November “sweeps” ratings period.

TEGNA8 rolled to dominant wins at 10 p.m. in a down-sized three-way competition, topping the field in both total viewers and 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.

Fox4 had the most total viewers at 5 p.m. while NBC5 and TEGNA8 tied for first place with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Email comments or questions to: unclebarky@verizon.net