Big Ratings Bounce Back For Syndies

Talk shows rebounded sharply in the week ending April 20, with 10 of the top 11 improving significantly from the prior session.

Dr. Phil was in front as usual, climbing 11% from last year at this time. Close behind in second place was Live with Kelly and Michael, which surged 21% from last year.

Third-place Ellen was the only chat fest in the top 11 failing to advance, either week to week or year to year, remaining at its season low. Meanwhile, Maury gained 11% from last year and narrowed the gap on Ellen.

A tick behind Maury was Dr. Oz, which clocked a healthy 5% weekly advance. Steve Harvey was next in line, climbing 13% from the prior week and 29% from the same week last year, the largest year-to-year spike of any talker.

Following Harvey was Steve Wilkos, which strengthened 7% for the week and 25% from last year. And Katie, which recovered 15% from the previous frame but still dropped 17% from last year at this time.

Rounding out the 11 highest-rated talkers were Wendy Williams, which went up 40% for the week; Rachael Ray, which rallied 8%; followed by Jerry Springer, which shot up 18%. In latenight, Arsenio had a good week, rising 17%.

In access, the magazines were mixed. Dish Nation  was up 11% from last week; Extra grew 7%, TMZ climbed 6%, Right This Minute grew 10%, while leader Entertainment Tonight dipped slightly (-3%) but still topped the category for the 925^th consecutive week. Also down for the week were Inside Edition (-7%) and Access Hollywood (-6%), while The Insider was flat.

Judge Judy rose 13% from last year at this time and was once again the overall No. 1 show in syndication.

The week’s top-rated daytime talk shows in the women 25-54 demo were:

• Dr. Phil (1.6, unchanged from the week before), tied with Live with Kelly and Michael (1.6, +7%)
• Ellen (1.4, +8%)
• Maury (1.3, +8%)
• Dr. Oz (1.2, +9%)
• Steve Harvey (1.0, +11%), tied with Wendy Williams (1.0 +43%)

In the household rating rankings that follow, % change is from the previous week; * indicates a new season high rating; ** indicates a new season low; NC indicates no change from the previous week; NA mean not applicable.

TALK SHOWS

1. Dr. Phil (CTD) 3.1 +3%

2. Live with Kelly and Michael (Disney-ABC) 2.9 +4%

3. Ellen (WBDTD) 2.4 NC

4. Maury (NBCU) 2.1 +11%

5. Dr. Oz (Sony) 2.0 +5%

6. Steve Harvey (NBCU) 1.8 +13%

7. Steve Wilkos (NBCU) 1.5 +7%

7. Katie (Disney-ABC) 1.5 +15%

9. Rachael Ray (CTD) 1.4 +8%

9. Wendy Williams (Debmar-Mercury) 1.4 +40%

11. Jerry Springer (NBCU) 1.3 +18%

12. The Doctors (CTD) 1.1 NC

12. Queen Latifah (Sony) 1.1 NC

14. Arsenio (CTD) 0.7 +17%

14. Bethenny (WBDTD) 0.7 +17%

16. The Test (CTD) 0.6 NC

17. Trisha (NBCU) 0.5 NC

18. The Better Show (Meredith) 0.2 NC

FRESHMEN TALKERS

1. Queen Latifah (Sony) 1.1 NC

2. Arsenio (CTD) 0.7 +17%

2. Bethenny (WBDTD) 0.7 +17%

3 The Test (CTD) 0.6 NC

COURT SHOWS

1. Judge Judy (CTD) 7.0 +4%

2. People’s Court (WBDTD) 1.8 +13%

3. Divorce Court (Twentieth) 1.5 +7%

3. Judge Mathis (WBDTD) 1.5 +7%

3. Judge Alex (Twentieth) 1.5 +15%

6. Paternity Court (Orion Television) 1.1 +10%

MAGAZINE SHOWS

1. Entertainment Tonight (CTD) 3.3 -3%

2. Inside Edition (CTD) 2.7 -7%

3. TMZ (WBDTD) 1.8 +6%

4. Access Hollywood (NBCU) 1.5 -6%

4. Extra (WBDTD) 1.5 +7%

6. The Insider (CTD) 1.3 NC

7. Right This Minute (MGM) 1.1 +10%

8. Dish Nation (Twentieth) 1.0 +11%

9. America Now (Trifecta) 0.3 NC

9. OK! TV (Trifecta) 0.3 NC

GAME SHOWS

1. Wheel of Fortune (CTD) 6.6 +5%

2. Jeopardy (CTD) 6.4 +3%

3. Family Feud (Debmar-Mercury) 5.0 +4%

4. Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (Disney-ABC) 2.1 +5%

OFF-NET SITCOMS

1. Big Bang Theory (WBDTD) 5.8 NC

2. Modern Family (Twentieth) 4.2 +5%

3. Two and a Half Men (WBDTD) 3.4 -3%

4. Family Guy (Twentieth) 2.7 -13%

5. Seinfeld (Sony) 2.0 +11%

6. The Cleveland Show (Twentieth) 1.9 NC

7. How I Met Your Mother (Twentieth) 1.8 NC

7. Friends (WBDTD) 1.8 NC

9. King of the Hill (Twentieth) 1.6 NC

10. The Middle (WBDTD) 1.5 -6%

11. Rules of Engagement (Sony) 1.3 -7%

OFF-NET WEEKLY HOURS

1. Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBCU) 3.5 NC

2. Law & Order: SVU (NBCU) 3.1 -6%

3. House (NBCU) 2.8 -15%

4. Criminal Minds (CTD) 2.2 NC

5. Castle (Disney-ABC) 2.0 -17%

5. CSI: Miami (CTD) 2.0 -9%