Peacock rings up Dec. win
ABC moves to 2nd thanks to 'Primetime' with Houston
Peacock, coming off a dominant November sweeps in all key sales demos, cruised past its rivals in the first full frame of December, according to Nielsen Media Research.
With "Friends" (12.1/30) and "ER" (11.6/29) again standing as the top-rated programs of the week in adults 18-49, NBC defeated second-place ABC by 27% in the demo (4.7 to 3.7) -- its largest advantage since the National Basketball Assn. playoffs in June. Net has won 10 of 11 weeks this season.
NBC also prevailed in adults 25-54 and 18-34, and total viewers, topping season leader CBS in the latter by 8%.
The Peacock was bolstered by Wednesday's "Christmas in Rockefeller Center," which led its hour in total viewers (12.16 million), and Saturday's telecast of "It's a Wonderful Life," which drew its largest overall audience in three years (7.75 million).
Also, freshman skeins "Good Morning, Miami" (8.1/18 in adults 18-49) and "Boomtown" (3.8/9) collected their best scores since mid-October.
The Peacock is off to a good start on the current week, too: "Fear Factor," "Third Watch" and "Crossing Jordan" set or matched season highs in adults 18-49 on Monday as the net posted its best average on the night since May (5.3/14).
ABC moved up to second in 18-49 last week thanks largely to a special Wednesday "Primetime" featuring Diane Sawyer's chat with Whitney Houston -- the highest-rated edition of any newsmag in 3½ years (9.0/22). Net also continues to do well with its Tuesday and Wednesday laffers.
These perfs are helping ABC hang close with CBS for the season in 18-49 even though it clearly has some under-performing spots on its sked, including new dramas "MDs" and "Dinotopia," and the Friday combo of "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" and "Drew Carey."
CBS was third in adults 18-49 and second in adults 25-54, led again by the week's most-watched program -- "CSI" (29.74 million viewers). It was a rather sluggish week overall for the Eye, though, as several of its top programs were in repeat and Sunday movie "The Locket" struggled.
Fox saw some of its programs ("Boston Public," "24") perk up opposite mostly repeat competish, while laffers "That '70s Show" and "The Simpsons" continue to shine. Net is really hurting on Mondays at 9 (where "Girls Club" had aired) and Thursdays, when it barely shows up.
It was a mostly uneventful week at the WB and UPN, with most of their hit shows in repeats.
Thanks to the mini "Taken," the Sci Fi Channel was the week's No. 1 basic cable net in primetime among adults 18-49 (1.6 rating) and total viewers (3.34m). ESPN was second.
Elsewhere during the week:
Forensics faceoff: The first battle between a repeat of CBS rookie hit "CSI: Miami" and NBC's second-year "Crossing Jordan" was a virtual draw in most key categories, with "Jordan" eking out a victory in total viewers (11.78 million to 11.65 million). Perf capped a strong night for NBC, which placed second -- behind ABC but ahead of the Eye's all-repeat lineup.
Tuesday repeats: A good indicator of a lineup's strength is how well it fares in repeats, and CBS' legal-eagle trio is not holding up well, falling to fifth in adults 18-49 and a shocking fourth in total viewers.
On the other hand, ABC's repeats looked solid, with "8 Simple Rules" the night's most-watched laffer, "According to Jim" posting best-ever encore results (4.3/11 in adults 18-49) and "NYPD Blue" arresting its best rerun numbers in 3½ years (3.7/9 in 18-49).
Repeat risers: UPN's strong comedy quartet is delivering nicely in repeats, too, as Monday's block scored the best ratings ever for a night of encores on the net in all key female demos, including women 18-34 (3.1/8). UPN easily bested the WB's drama repeats in adults 18-34 (2.1/6 vs. 1.4/4).
Not enough room for both: Sunday Christmas specs on ABC ("Christmas in Aspen") and NBC ("Hollywood Christmas Spectacular") hurt each other, as they combined for a mere 9 share in adults 18-49 from 7 to 8. ABC did much better at 8 with "A Charlie Brown Christmas" (4.3/10).
The great Thursday divide: While NBC and CBS were putting up huge numbers (combining for a 44 share in adults 18-49), ABC (1.6/4 in adults 18-49) and Fox (1.3/3 for movie "Dead Man on Campus") fell to season lows, teaming for a whopping 7 share.
Pigskin deflates: A couple of blowout college football games produced tame Saturday primetime ratings on ABC and CBS, helping Fox's regular lineup lead in adults 18-49 (3.0/10) and total viewers. NBC was a strong second with "It's a Wonderful Life" (2.8/9).
No whacking here: Despite facing the season wrap of "The Sopranos" on Sunday, NBC's "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" delivered a potent 4.4/10 in adults 18-49 to lead the broadcast nets -- a 26% jump over a firstrun seg of the series on the same night last season (3.5/8).
Self-starter: Fox's "John Doe" is performing quietly well Fridays, topping its drama rival (CBS' "Hack") in under-55 demos, and leading all of television from 9 to 10 in men 18-34, 18-49 and 25-54. The who-am-I drama, which built on its "Firefly" lead-in by 53% in adults 18-49 (2.9/9 vs. 1.9/6), gets action drama "Fastlane" as a lead-in beginning next month.
Nearing the finish line: Two weeks from its finale, "The Amazing Race 3" delivered a solid 3.9/10 in adults 18-49 with a two-hour episode, the Eye net's second-best showing in the Wednesday 9-11 p.m. time period this season (behind "The CMAs").
