Happy New Year For Syndie Numbers

Ratings jumped for most syndicated shows in the first week following the Christmas holiday. Talkers, news mags, court shows and games were all hot in the session ending Jan.2, despite some strips being preempted in some markets by college football games and winter storm coverage.

Talk Shows

Oprah (CTD) was one of the many that benefitted from a sharp rise in PUT levels. After sinking to new season low marks in the previous two sessions, Oprah excluded the low-rated New Year’s Eve from its weekly totals, aired mostly originals and recovered 26% to a 4.4 Monday-Thursday average. That brought ratings for the top talk show almost back to where they were three weeks ago.

However, in terms of total viewers, Oprah lost the daytime leadership crown to Judge Judy (CTD) for the fifth week in a row by more than 100,000 viewers with 6.269 million watching Judy and 6.166 million seeing Oprah.

Live with Regis and Kelly (Disney-ABC) gained 4% to a 2.9; Dr. Oz (Sony) leaped 18% to a new season high 2.6; Dr. Phil (CTD) improved 9% to a 2.5 with an all-rerun week; Maury (NBCU) climbed 10% to a new season high 2.3; and Ellen DeGeneres (WBDTD) was sixth with a 5% advance to a 2.1.

First-Run Freshmen

Swift Justice with Nancy Grace (CTD), this season’s rookie champion, scored its highest ratings since its premiere week, rallying 8% to a 1.4 in households and 29% in the women 25-54 demo even though it was in reruns all week. Nate Berkus (Sony) was flat at a 1.0; Don’t Forget the Lyrics (Twentieth) hit a sour note, declining 10% to a 0.9; the recently renewed Judge Karen’s Court (Litton) jumped 17% to a 0.7; while America’s Court with Judge Ross (Entertainment Studios) was unchanged at a 0.4.

Magazine Shows

Magazines were on fire. Top news mag Entertainment Tonight (CTD) had the biggest increase in the genre, ballooning 18% to a 4.0. Inside Edition (CTD) recovered 8% to a 2.8; The Insider (CTD) spiked 13% to a 1.8 and tied TMZ (WBDTD), which was up 6%, for third place; Access Hollywood (NBCU) dipped 6% to a 1.7; and Extra (WBDTD), despite not airing in top market New York on Dec. 27 due to storm coverage, grew 7% anyway to a 1.6. Year to year, The Insider was the only news magazine to outperform, moving up 6.

Court Shows

Court shows were also strong, with leader Judge Judy steaming ahead 5% to a 4.3 and leading all legal rivals by more than a 2-1 margin. Judge Joe Brown (CTD) was also up 5% to a second-place 2.1; People’s Court (WBDTD) perked up 11% to a 2.0; and Judge Mathis (WBDTD) surged 13% to a 1.7.

Game Shows

Among game shows, Wheel of Fortune (CTD) inched up 3% to a 6.9; Jeopardy (CTD) tacked on 4% to a 5.7; Who Wants to be a Millionaire (Disney-ABC) got a 5% ratings dividend to a 2.3; Family Feud (Debmar-Mercury) was up 6% to a 1.9, clocking a new season high; and Are You Smarter Than a 5^th Grader? (Twentieth) trailed with a 1.1, although it was up 10%.

Off-Net Sitcoms

Off-net sitcoms were mostly lower, although leader Two and a Half Men (WBDTD) was up 4% to 5.5. Family Guy (Twentieth) fell 8% to a 3.6; Everybody Loves Raymond (CTD) receded 3% to a 3.0; My Wife and Kids (Disney-ABC) unchanged at a 3.0; Seinfeld (Sony) slid 4% to a 2.5; and George Lopez Show (WBDTD) lost 15% to a 2.3.

Off-Net Freshmen

Among the new off-net and off-cable strips, How I Met Your Mother (Twentieth) slipped 4% to a 2.4; Meet the Browns (Debmar-Mercury) and The New Adventures of Old Christine (WBDTD) unchanged at a 1.4; while True Hollywood Stories ratcheted up 25% to a 1.0.

Off-Net Weekly Hours

Criminal Minds (CTD) held onto the lead among weeklies, despite a 3% decline to a 3.0. Right behind, CSI: NY (CTD) added 4% to a 2.9; Without a Trace (WBDTD) was flat at a 2.3; while Numb subtracted 13%, down to a 2.0, landing in a tie with The Closer (WBDTD), which was unchanged; and Bones (Twentieth) lost 14% to a 1.9.