| Scoreboard |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Viewers (million) | 5.09 | 5.06 | 3.98 | 3.75 | 2.57 |
| Rating/Share: Adults 18-49 | 1.2/5 | 1.2/5 | 1.2/5 | 1.1/4 | 0.9/3 |
The first day of August brought another night of anemic numbers for the broadcast networks. You know when the CW comes in third overall, and tied for first in the 18-49 demo with an under-average performance from Friday Night Smackdown! that things aren't looking good. CBS had the most viewers overall, and tied with NBC and the CW for the 18-49 demo lead.
Swingtown continues its descent towards certain cancellation. It lost about 200,000 viewers from last Friday and its 18-49 demo performance fell again from last Friday's 1.5/6 to a 1.3/4. In Swingtown's defense, there were fewer people watching the broadcast networks across the board last night than a week ago, but that's not going to be enough to salvage it. Sorry Swingtown fans 
A repeat of Numb3rs was the night's most watched program with 5.97 million, and a two hour installment of Dateline was the second most watched show averaging 5.54 million between 9p-11pm.
Full details:
| Time | Network | Show | Viewers (Millons) | 18-49 Rating/Share |
| 8:00 | CBS | Ghost Whisperer (R ) | 4.97 | 1.2/5 |
| NBC | Most Outrageous Moments (R ) | 4.09 | 0.9/4 | |
| ABC | Lemony Snicket's (R) 8p-10p | 3.46 | 1.1/4 | |
| FOX | Movie: Fog (R ) 8p-10p | 2.57 | 0.9/3 | |
| CW | Friday Night Smackdown! 8p-10p | 3.98 | 1.2/5 | |
| 9:00 | CBS | Numb3rs (R) | 5.97 | 1.3/5 |
| NBC | Dateline (9p-11p) | 5.54 | 1.4/5 | |
| 10:00 | ABC | 20/20 | 4.34 | 1.1/4 |
| CBS | Swingtown | 4.33 | 1.3/4 |
Definitions:
Overnights: Local metered-market ratings service of Nielsen Station Index (NSI) in which household ratings and shares are provided to clients the morning following the day or evening of telecast.
Rating: Estimated percentage of the universe of TV households (or other specified group) tuned to a program in the average minute. Ratings are expressed as a percent.
Share (of Audience): The percent of households (or persons) using television who are tuned to a specific program, station or network in a specific area at a specific time. (See also, Rating, which represents tuning or viewing as a percent of the entire population being measured.)
LIVE+SD: The number that watched a program either while it was broadcast OR watched via DVR on the same day [through 3AM the next day] the program was broadcast.
For more information see Numbers 101.
There’s only 3 eps left of Swingtown anyway. I expect it to finish its run of 12 eps and be gone for good. I can’t believe anyone thought there’d be some rare chance of this being a smash hit CBS would want to bring back next year. All the losers writing to the FCC about this show were wasting their time.
There’s only 3 eps left of Swingtown anyway. I expect it to finish its run of 12 eps and be gone for good. I can’t believe anyone thought there’d be some rare chance of this being a smash hit CBS would want to bring back next year. All the losers writing to the FCC about this show were wasting their time.
So how do “Monk” and “Psych” compare since they are new programming and already have a following.
Last Friday (week before yesterday) Monk had 5.06 million and Psych had 4.48 million. On a guess the 18-49 demo ratings for both were pretty good, but it’s just a guess since I didn’t see those numbers. For the week ending 7/27, Monk was the fourth most viewed program on cable. Those numbers would have made it the 42nd most-watched program on broadcast network television for the week.
It saddens me that Swingtown may be off the air. It is such a great show and I can only hope one of the other cable outlets will pick it up. I look forward to the show every week and to hear it may be off the air, well, it annoys me. These producers don’t give shows enough time to get viewers and interest in them. We need to keep swinging alive!!!
It saddens me that Swingtown may be off the air. It is such a great show and I can only hope one of the other cable outlets will pick it up. I look forward to the show every week and to hear it may be off the air, well, it annoys me. These producers don’t give shows enough time to get viewers and interest in them. We need to keep swinging alive!!!
As I understand it, the cable nets turned down Swingtown before CBS got it. Now it’s a proven ratings disaster. There is no way anyone is picking it up.
As for giving it time to find viewers: if it were maintaining even a low level of viewers, you might have a point. Swingtown’s problem isn’t that it hasn’t had time to find viewers, it’s problem is that the majority of the viewers that did find it rejected it. Unfortunately for those involved, the show is hemorrhaging viewers. It has lost half of its viewers (both overall and in the demo). The move isn’t entirely to blame for that either, it was loosing viewers every week even before it was moved.
As I understand it, the cable nets turned down Swingtown before CBS got it. Now it’s a proven ratings disaster. There is no way anyone is picking it up.
As for giving it time to find viewers: if it were maintaining even a low level of viewers, you might have a point. Swingtown’s problem isn’t that it hasn’t had time to find viewers, it’s problem is that the majority of the viewers that did find it rejected it. Unfortunately for those involved, the show is hemorrhaging viewers. It has lost half of its viewers (both overall and in the demo). The move isn’t entirely to blame for that either, it was loosing viewers every week even before it was moved.
Interesting people are slamming my entertainment, Swingtown, without indicating what they watch. Probably Barney the Purple Dinosaur, because that is how far the dumbing down of television has gone when a quality show like Swingtown can’t attract viewers. It was too good. People actually had to watch, rather than have the option of watching and texting at the same time like everything else they are watching because it is so predictable and ridiculous in both the acting and content that it only requires that they stay marginally attentive. But put on a show like Swingtown, where they actually have to pay attention, boo hoo — my brain hurts. Give me back a cop show or some fantasy baloney that is just pure escapism and will never challenge me. It was a fluke I found Swingtown. I had already given up on 95 percent of television out there and was finding much better entertainment using other media. I’m glad I found it because regardless of its future, I’ll always have this great memory of the summer of ’08. To the rest of you Swingtown haters and fence sitters, you got nothing.
Interesting people are slamming my entertainment, Swingtown, without indicating what they watch. Probably Barney the Purple Dinosaur, because that is how far the dumbing down of television has gone when a quality show like Swingtown can’t attract viewers. It was too good. People actually had to watch, rather than have the option of watching and texting at the same time like everything else they are watching because it is so predictable and ridiculous in both the acting and content that it only requires that they stay marginally attentive. But put on a show like Swingtown, where they actually have to pay attention, boo hoo — my brain hurts. Give me back a cop show or some fantasy baloney that is just pure escapism and will never challenge me. It was a fluke I found Swingtown. I had already given up on 95 percent of television out there and was finding much better entertainment using other media. I’m glad I found it because regardless of its future, I’ll always have this great memory of the summer of ’08. To the rest of you Swingtown haters and fence sitters, you got nothing.
Hi Robert, excuse my ignorance, as a newbie here, but is it unusual for the cable nets to pass on a show and then have it picked up by one of the big 5?
xerxes,
It seems to me that the only one here “slamming” anyone’s entertainment is you.
Holly, do you actually READ what you write? What’s it like in Holly-world?
Holly, do you actually READ what you write? What’s it like in Holly-world?
Holly — the viewers “rejected the show”, “hemoraging viewers”, “proven ratings disaster” — and your not slamming my show? You are, and I don’t appreciate it. In case you haven’t noticed, it got moved to Friday and this is summer. People have a life. Especially people who watch Swingtown, because that typically is when they go out — the weekend. Watch TV, or go out — easy choice for me and for a lot of other people. Fortunately, these people know how to record and watch later, something the ratings don’t take into consideration because network TV is still living in the dark ages technologically speaking. Maybe a miracle will happen and CBS will get a clue – I don’t know. But I know that people like you don’t watch the show, so your opinions are less than worthy of my time, except when non-fans think I’m okay with them using my entertainment for a verbal punching bag. I think that’s called, being a fan.
Holly — the viewers “rejected the show”, “hemoraging viewers”, “proven ratings disaster” — and your not slamming my show? You are, and I don’t appreciate it. In case you haven’t noticed, it got moved to Friday and this is summer. People have a life. Especially people who watch Swingtown, because that typically is when they go out — the weekend. Watch TV, or go out — easy choice for me and for a lot of other people. Fortunately, these people know how to record and watch later, something the ratings don’t take into consideration because network TV is still living in the dark ages technologically speaking. Maybe a miracle will happen and CBS will get a clue – I don’t know. But I know that people like you don’t watch the show, so your opinions are less than worthy of my time, except when non-fans think I’m okay with them using my entertainment for a verbal punching bag. I think that’s called, being a fan.
I was commenting on the NUMBERS, not the quality (this is a site about ratings after all). I didn’t comment on the premise, writing, or acting of the show. I didn’t insult the people who watch it or question the intelligence of people who don’t like the shows I do.
The fact is, the numbers for Swingtown are horrible. The ratings a show gets often have little to do with how well written it may be or how much the fans like it, but they have a LOT to do with whether it will be renewed. Personally, I think American Idol is stupid and unwatchable, but it gets incredible numbers, so its going to get renewed and renewed until it stops getting those numbers. I think CBS was absolutely right to cancel Moonlight, but it had a much better chance of building an audience than Swingtown does. Swingtown’s numbers have been falling since the premiere, and there is absolutely no reason to think that will change.
I was commenting on the NUMBERS, not the quality (this is a site about ratings after all). I didn’t comment on the premise, writing, or acting of the show. I didn’t insult the people who watch it or question the intelligence of people who don’t like the shows I do.
The fact is, the numbers for Swingtown are horrible. The ratings a show gets often have little to do with how well written it may be or how much the fans like it, but they have a LOT to do with whether it will be renewed. Personally, I think American Idol is stupid and unwatchable, but it gets incredible numbers, so its going to get renewed and renewed until it stops getting those numbers. I think CBS was absolutely right to cancel Moonlight, but it had a much better chance of building an audience than Swingtown does. Swingtown’s numbers have been falling since the premiere, and there is absolutely no reason to think that will change.
If they moved a show to Friday night in the summer, CBS is trying to help it along to it’s grave. Its almost the equivalent of running something opposite American Idol. You just don’t do it if you want the show around.
And Nielsen ratings do take into account the people who record and watch shows within a certain number of days (I forget what it is…I’m pretty sure its either 3 or 7). I’m not sure if this site publishes that data, but it is collected and factored into viewership.
Shows die. It happens. Picking the shows that audiences will respond to is next to impossible. The best promoted shows can fail, and the ones that the execs grudgingly accept (ie Survivor) can be monster hits. Maybe cable picks it up, maybe not. It all comes down to whether or not it will be profitable
If they moved a show to Friday night in the summer, CBS is trying to help it along to it’s grave. Its almost the equivalent of running something opposite American Idol. You just don’t do it if you want the show around.
And Nielsen ratings do take into account the people who record and watch shows within a certain number of days (I forget what it is…I’m pretty sure its either 3 or 7). I’m not sure if this site publishes that data, but it is collected and factored into viewership.
Shows die. It happens. Picking the shows that audiences will respond to is next to impossible. The best promoted shows can fail, and the ones that the execs grudgingly accept (ie Survivor) can be monster hits. Maybe cable picks it up, maybe not. It all comes down to whether or not it will be profitable