Comments on: Sunday Ratings: ABC Wins, But Desperate Housewives Hits Series Low

By: sjp

sjp — Mon, 18 May 2009 20:59:01 +0000

CBS canceling The Unit. . . . It figures, as it’s one of the best shows out there. This is the main reason I watch non-network shows. If it challenges the viewers’ intellects, perceptions or mores, it’s a goner–unless it’s tearing them down, of course.

By: Sunday Preview: “Coming To Homerica” « Dead Homer Society

Sunday Preview: “Coming To Homerica” « Dead Homer Society — Sun, 17 May 2009 14:50:29 +0000

[...] ratings be even lower than last Sunday’s new all-time low? Will Homer be an unamusing jackass? We’ll find out soon [...]

By: Craig

Craig — Fri, 15 May 2009 01:34:35 +0000

I have to say that all the comments about DH been rubbish this season amaze me. The show has had a great season with some stunning episodes, the 5 year jump forward really refreshed this show.

And this is a long running show,of course ratings will dip, but its still pulling over 10 million and normally is around 14 million, i dont think ABC will be worried to much

By: R.G.

R.G. — Thu, 14 May 2009 20:53:33 +0000

DH — – — Prediction — – — 2 years left – then: good-ridens’

By: R.J.

R.J. — Wed, 13 May 2009 01:37:19 +0000

at the beginning of the season, The Simpson where getting about 7-8 million viewers a episode, KOTH where getting 7 million, Family guy was getting close to 10 million, American Dad got 6 million, what’s happening? And i don’t see Sit Down Shut Up living too much longer, despite how much i love it.

By: Mike G.

Mike G. — Tue, 12 May 2009 20:17:53 +0000

OK, SDSU is making TSCC and Dollhouse look like mega hits…lol. I can’t wait to see if its ratings fall any further next week. It would be hysterically funny if Jericho passes it next week.

Hey, did Hole in the Wall do any better in that time slot? I know its ratings were scary, but were they that scary?

By: Jay

Jay — Tue, 12 May 2009 19:27:36 +0000

Bill, didn’t mean to sound combative. Of course the data you provide can only lead me on that topic to sort of futile speculation. I just think – again as someone who is neutral I believe – that CA gaining viewers its second hour is a sign of health for a show whose popularity surprises me, at least ( It’s also true that as a reality show it is more likely to gain viewers for its second hour. ) And damn it, DH is losing 18-49 viewers incrementally each week.

By: Jess

Jess — Tue, 12 May 2009 16:21:36 +0000

DH is so bad these days. I consider myself a huge fan but i dont blame people turning off it. Its terrible now. and they get rid of the best charactor on the show this season. Shame on Marc Cherry. He should be fired.

By: Julia

Julia — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:46:44 +0000

I believe that sort of information exists though I don’t know who sees it, but I’ve seen examples of audience flow from Nielsen in a textbook.

By: Russ

Russ — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:44:19 +0000

With all the way’s to watch a program, how does anyone know what the ratings are. Even though number are down on viewing on TV some people may be watching on the internet and that doesn’t count.
You have to remember, most DVR’s can only records two shows at once, but people that own computers on pull them up any time and it doesn’t count as viewship.
In the old days if two popular shows were on at the same time both would take a hit (like Dallas and Miami Vice) which aired at the same time until Vice was cancelled.

By: Bill Gorman

Bill Gorman — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:23:01 +0000

jay, with the data we get it’s very hard to draw any kind of conclusions like “those viewers left show X and went to show Y”.

By: jay

jay — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:19:27 +0000

Since nobody else mentioned it I will: Celebrity App. escalated from 2.4 to 3.6 over its time period. King of the Hill to Family Guy: 1.8 to 3.2. Are you trying to tell me CA isn’t taking a significant # of viewers away from DH?

By: SteveS

SteveS — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:36:35 +0000

Amen to Jesse!

DH lost its magic by stretching out the crappy storylines this year. The 5-year jump proved to be yet another stunt with no long-term effect on the characters, just like last year’s tornado. Dave has been plotting to kill Mike/Susan for the entire season and any suspense this story had initially was lost the minute Ms. McClusky & her sister stopped investigating his past. There are no compelling stories currently that make me want to tune in. I’ll probably watch the last half hour of the finale to see if Dave carries out his plan but I’m not sure if I’ll watch at all next season based on how bad this year was.

By: Mumbo

Mumbo — Tue, 12 May 2009 06:31:22 +0000

John says:
May 11th, 2009 at 6:42 pm
“How the hell does a show go from a 2.1 to a 3.8 in ONE NIGHT?!
(i’m talking about Apprentice if you didn’t know)”

I’m willing to wager that a lot of the people who watched the Apprentice were watching the Amazing Race finale for the 8:00 hour, then switched over at 9:00.

That and I’m sure there were a number of people who weren’t aware the finale was three hours and started at 8:00.

By: craigward

craigward — Tue, 12 May 2009 02:29:39 +0000

For mother’s day I called my mom and we did a watch-and-chat for the American Dad repeat and The Simpsons.

She loved American Dad. For the Simpsons, “Craig, that wasn’t very funny.”

By: DenverDean

DenverDean — Tue, 12 May 2009 02:18:52 +0000

ITA about CC needing to focus on more timely or legendary artists. It’s a natural “product placement”. CC somehow has managed to land in the Top 20 in viewers even though nearly half the original airing were pushed back 30 – 45 min on ET/CT. DH drop is shocking. I’m not sure what they can do to reboot the show. The flashforward didn’t really work, which is too bad. I haven’t watched since first horrible episode of Season 2, but always held out hope that they would capture that magic from Season 1 again. It seemed possible if they did “mystery” as the theme for each new season. Oh, well.

By: John

John — Tue, 12 May 2009 01:42:50 +0000

How the hell does a show go from a 2.1 to a 3.8 in ONE NIGHT?!
(i’m talking about Apprentice if you didn’t know)

By: igotid88

igotid88 — Tue, 12 May 2009 00:37:14 +0000

Pearl Jam helped Cold Case.

By: Theoacme

Theoacme — Tue, 12 May 2009 00:36:18 +0000

Scott: It’s getting boring, predictable, and way too short – I would like to see two hours minimum, with some three hour episodes, and more “nuts and bolts” about the construction of the house.

Plus, it may have already jumped the shark, given they’re going to “heroes” this season – what next – homes for billionaire robber barons or homeless broadcast executives or “Lost” fans?

Wait a minute – add Steve Watson from “Monster House”, and Jesse James, do theme houses based on ABC shows, and they might have something

By: entertainmenttodayandbeyond

entertainmenttodayandbeyond — Tue, 12 May 2009 00:16:17 +0000

There not there yet but Network Televisions business model is in trouble. Ratings slowly continue to slide on the majority of programing. It will be interesting to see what the television landscape will look like in 5 years.

chuck

By: Christopher

Christopher — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:46:46 +0000

as you can see everything is down cause of the Holiday i bet next week with the 2 hour season Finale it will be back up

By: Christopher

Christopher — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:44:19 +0000

Despert Still good and even when its down it still wins the demo

By: Oebie

Oebie — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:39:22 +0000

@ Jesse: AMEN!!!

Everyone seems so normal these days (except Dave) on Wisteria Lane. Where are the scandals, where are the really DESPERATE people? The storyline of Dave is good but it’s taking forever. For season 6 I think there should be new neighbours, like a complete family, that will have a connection with someone of the housewives. Maybe someone of their children will start a relationship with one of the Scavo twins. I really want the Scavo’s be a part of a mysterie.

I think it’s a great idea to shorten the seasons of Desperate Housewives. The storylines will have a better pace and there won’t be any filler scenes that Gaby and Lynette (and their family) usually gets.

Oh yeah, get rid of Katherine, please? She’s so boring lately, it’s like i’m watching a soap! Just focus on the main housewives!

WOW, so much critisism to my favorite show on television…

By: shea

shea — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:26:43 +0000

what the hell happened to DH? These numbers CANNOT be right! It has not dropped in quality the ENTIRE season and all of a sudden its at a 4.1?!!!? Not possible. Everything seems to be dropping like rocks these past two weeks. What the hell?

I hope next week’s 2 hour season finale sparks interest with the murder of MJ being advertised.

Nielson needs to go away and we need a new system where EVERY television in America is accounted for. That’s so easy to keep track of too because Networks monitor what people are watching. Add em all together and you got not only ACCURATE ratings, but ACCURATE viewers too.

By: ragincajun

ragincajun — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:17:20 +0000

In regard to Cold Case and its poor demo, it’s never going to be a top performer in that category, but if CBS brings it back, there is one thing that can be done to help it maintain a demo average around 3.0. The main focus of the show is the cases and the time period in which they occur, and it’s always those cases pre-70′s that get the lowest numbers. If it returns, the producers need to keep the cases in the 1970′s to present time period. It would also help if they start working out deals like what they’ve done with Pearl Jam, Bob Dylan, and John Lennon and feature music from one artist. I’m sure having episodes featuring the music of Pink, Britney, and Timberlake would be well received.

By: jesse

jesse — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:58:21 +0000

Desperate Housewives went DOWNHILL after the writters strike….the story lines and plots were stupid and boring! it felt so rushed!… DH most definetely lost its magic…this season is nothing compared to seasons 1-3….can I get an amen?

By: Holly

Holly — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:12:34 +0000

grrr… CSI: Miami’s 8.)

By: Holly

Holly — Mon, 11 May 2009 22:11:17 +0000

Tom, Not counting the Friday shows (which have lower expectations), Cold Case is one of the lowest rated dramas in total viewers on CBS. The only show it always beat was The Unit. Some weeks it beat 11th Hour and WAT, some weeks it lost to them. The Unit is going to be canceled and the other two are also on the bubble with Cold Case. (Keep in mind that the season averages include in time-slot reruns, which makes CC look a bit better since it has only had two repeats compared to WAT’s 3 or CSI: Miami’s

By: DesperateLecter

DesperateLecter — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:54:00 +0000

hi tom…can u tell me the ranking of desperate housewives this season thanks

By: Bill Gorman

Bill Gorman — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:46:02 +0000

tom, I think the homework assignment should probably be yours. Many TV trade publications (like AdAge and MediaLife) ignore viewership and household ratings entirely, and present only 18-49 demo ratings. Because that's all that matters to the business.

By: tom

tom — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:35:52 +0000

here is another post from a kevin “total viewers mean nothing”. again a statement that is so wrong. you people are just sheep on this site

By: tom

tom — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:34:03 +0000

Holly again you are wrong about cold case not being a top performer in total viewers. when you look at the season to date rankings, cold case is #18 in total viewers and that is out of over 100 shows. I wish people would do their homework more on this site

By: tom

tom — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:32:01 +0000

Julia, I disagree with both you and this site. I am not saying that the 18-49 isnt important and isnt a factor in renewing a show but it isnt the sole factor. total viewers definatley plays a big factor and I am 100% certain that cold case is going to be renewed, the show ranks 18 in overall viewers and isnt going anywhere. Just because this site states that cold case is on the bubble doesnt make it so. I wish people on this site would have more of a discussion instead of just constantly agreeing to whatever the moderators of this site says., it makes for boring discussions. Anyway, when cold case gets renewed for its 7th season, I will be back here to brag about how right I was.

By: Robert Seidman

Robert Seidman — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:31:11 +0000

I cop to not reading through all the comments, so if this has been posted already, sorry. But it looks like FOX bumped Sit Down, Shut Up from the schedule for next Sunday in favor of a KOTH repeat. Whether that’s just for the final Sunday of May Sweeps or more permanent, I don’t know:

http://www.fox.com/schedule.htm?src=menu_item_schedule#time:1800~week:2009-05-17

Under the listing for KOTH it includes this note: [VIEWER'S NOTE: SIT DOWN SHUT UP is preempted tonight]

By: Terrence

Terrence — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:20:30 +0000

I must be the only one who gets the whacked out humor of “Sit Down, Shut Up”.

By: Holly

Holly — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:20:17 +0000

Terrence, CBS has to cancel some shows with OK ratings (total viewers and demo) just because nothing is failing. It’s not like Cold Case is a top performer in total viewers for the network but has poor demos; it’s not doing great in either. CBS has to make some room on the schedule, so some shows that normally would be safe, aren’t.

By: Terrence

Terrence — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:12:48 +0000

I agree with Julia. It’s amazing how “Housewives” and “Cold Case” are neck and neck in the time period — but “Cold Case” is the show on the bubble.

CBS or any network for that matter would be stupid to cancel a show based on the antiquated A1849 demo when their viewership is still healthy.

By: ABCFanatic

ABCFanatic — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:09:19 +0000

Desperate Housewives is better this season than last year, actually all of the dramas of ABC (Lost, Desperate Housewives, Ugly Betty, Grey’s Anatomy, Boston Legal, Private Practice, Dirty Sexy Money, Brothers & Sisters) are better than last season (quality-wise). Thats why ABC rocks! but the viewers can’t stop watching procedural shows!!!! its so boring!

By: Kathy B.

Kathy B. — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:53:02 +0000

Boston had Red Sox, Bruins and Celtics all playing Sunday night.

By: Julia

Julia — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:50:29 +0000

Tom, too bad renewal is based on demos, not total viewers.

By: kevin

kevin — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:50:10 +0000

tom, total viewers mean nothing.

By: tom

tom — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:48:14 +0000

As I predicted last week, cold case for the first time ever topped desperate housewives in total viewers from 9:30-10pm . cold case will definatley be renewed!

By: Scott

Scott — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:42:56 +0000

Have always been a fan of the Amazing Race, but just wondering what happened to Extreme Makeover: Home Edition’s ratings? At one time it consistently beat The Amazing Race in it’s time slot. Do viewers not want to watch people get new houses in the current economic market?

By: kevin

kevin — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:41:32 +0000

Deasperate Housewives really hasn’t been that good this season, i can see why the ratings are down. There were times this season when i have been watching it and thinking to myself “why am i watching this crap”? I think they should shorten next season to focus more on the mystery plot and get rid of filler and pointless flashback episodes. I can’t believe they are going to drag it out for another 4 seasons.

By: Sam

Sam — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:33:39 +0000

ABC is completely to blame for the current slide in the ‘Desperate Housewives’ ratings. I don’t know what’s going on in the promo department but they need to start promoting it from a new angle. This Seasons promo has been complete whack, the spots always making the show look like it’s a light fluffy dumb brainless soap opera. That’s not how the show used to be promoted in it’s earlier years. They used to take themselves seriously and the promos made it seem like there were scandals, deaths, and plot twists. Now it’s just stupid promo on behalf of ABC. They couldn’t even get Edie’s death right!

By: djm

djm — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:25:34 +0000

ROFL @ ABC fan…

By: ABCFanatic

ABCFanatic — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:20:11 +0000

And oh isn’t sad for Brothers & Sisters

SEASON 3′S FINALE IS LEAST WATCH EPISODE OF THE ENTIRE SEASON 3 OF BROTHERS & SISTERS!DAMN

By: ABCFanatic

ABCFanatic — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:11:27 +0000

guhhhhhhhhhh!

I don’t get why Brothers & Sisters were lower this week! its the freakin season finale and Desperate Housewives too! Next week is the season finale and ratings are keep falling down! can people just stay at home before the season ends! It’s ok if just the middle of the season but its the penultimate episode.

And amazing race too! i was expecting 12 million! and it didnt hit 11 million viewers

11million and 12million for DH is just uhhh doesn’t look good Grey’s Anatomy didn’t cross that number yet and it has a stronger competish!

By: DesperateLecter

DesperateLecter — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:10:21 +0000

Thanks Julia and Holly.

By: Holly

Holly — Mon, 11 May 2009 20:07:42 +0000

@Desperate, HUT level refers to the amount of people watching TV overall (on any channel). Apparently there were fewer people watching TV this Sunday than any other Sunday since September.