More Original Episodes For ‘Wendy Williams’

Producer-distributor Debmar-Mercury today announced it will add two months of original episodes to the fourth season of The Wendy Williams Show, extending production through June and July, after it posted the biggest Nielsen sweeps gains of any talk show competitor and surged to new ratings’ heights in the February sweeps.

Debmar-Mercury Co-Presidents Ira Bernstein and Mort Marcus commented in a statement: “Wendy is absolutely thriving … with its record-breaking sweeps finish, continuing spectacular ratings growth and ability to build on its lead-in…. Expanding the number of original episodes will allow us to continue the program’s incredible momentum well into the summer, when our core audience grows with younger viewers drawn to Wendy and her unique take on hot topics of the day.”

The ratings surge started with the most recent expansion in mid-December of the Wendy fan-favorite “Hot Topics” segment, leading to ratings growth through January and into the recently concluded February sweeps. Wendy finished as the fourth highest-rated metered market talk show among women 25-54—the key daytime demo—averaging a 1.1 rating and 7 share during the month. That represented a 47% share increase in the demo from the most recent sweeps period in November 2012.

Sweep to sweep, Wendy leaped 35% to a 1.1 rating in women 25-54 and 29% to a 1.3 in households. Consequently, during February, the show saw year-over-year gains of 11% in households and 9% in the demo.