Kardashian Wedding A Nice Present For Mags

News coverage of the East Coast earthquake and Hurricane Irene caused numerous preemptions of syndicated shows in the week ending Aug. 28. Still, ratings for several magazines sparkled with reports on the Kim Kardashian-Kris Humphries celebrity wedding of the year.

Magazine Shows

TMZ (WBDTD) was the only one of the six magazines to lose ground from the week before, slipping 5% to a 1.8. Magazine leader Entertainment Tonight (CTD) jumped 6% to a 3.5 in households, and grew 6% in the women 25-54 demo to a 2.0.

Also moving up were Inside Edition (CTD), which added 7% to a 2.9, and Extra (WBDTD), which surged 17% in the women 18-49 demo and 7% in households to a 1.6, its highest rating in 14 weeks. Access Hollywood (NBCU) and The Insider (CTD) held steady at 1.7 and 1.5, respectively, even though they did not air in several markets due to storm coverage.

Talk Shows

Among talk shows, Dr. Phil (CTD) stayed even week to week at a 2.2 and moved into a tie for first place with Maury (NBCU), which fell 4% to a 2.2. Year-to-year, Phil was up 16%, the most of any talker, while Maury was up 10%.

Live with Regis and Kelly (Disney-ABC) weakened 9% to a third-place 2.1; Dr. Oz (Sony) dropped 5% to a 1.9; and Oprah (CTD) remained at its all-time low 1.9 for a fifth consecutive week.

Court Shows

Judge Judy (CTD) continued to be the highest-rated court show and tied Wheel for the overall No. 1 spot in syndication, despite dipping 5% to a 6.1.

Among the other courtrooms, Judge Joe Brown (CTD) eased 7% to a 2.5; People’s Court (WBDTD) lost 6% to a 1.7; Judge Alex (Twentieth) sank 6% to a 1.5; Judge Mathis (WBDTD) and Divorce Court (Twentieth) were both unchanged at a 1.5; and Judge Jeanine Piero (WBDTD) faded 13% to a new season low 0.7.

Game Shows

Game shows were mixed, Wheel of Fortune (CTD) ticked up 2% to a 6.1; Jeopardy (CTD) recovered 6% from its season low in the prior frame to a 5.1; Family Feud (Debmar-Mercury) increased 4% to a 2.4; Who Wants to be a Millionaire (Disney-ABC) declined 4% to a 2.2; and Are You Smarter Than a 5^th Grader? (Twentieth) drooped 10% to a 0.9.

First-Run Freshmen

Swift Justice with Nancy Grace (CTD) made it an even 50 weeks in a row as the top-rated rookie, although it was off 7% to a 1.4. Nate Berkus (Sony) and Don’t Forget the Lyrics (Twentieth) were both flat at a 0.9 and a 0.7, respectively; Judge Karen’s Court (Litton) stumbled 14% to a 0.6; while America’s Court with Judge Ross (Entertainment Studios) was unchanged at a 0.5.

Dish Nation (Twentieth), an entertainment news program, posted 0.9 rating/2 share metered market average for its full six-week test run. This was down 36% from its lead-in and 44% from its year-ago time period average. The show improved on its first-week household delivery by 11% at the end of the run.

Off-Net Sitcoms

Off-net sitcoms were fairly quiet, although My Wife and Kids (Disney-ABC) shot up 21% from the week before to a new season high 4.0. Two and a Half Men (WBDTD) held onto the lead, but was off 2% to a 5.9; Family Guy (Twentieth) gave back 4% to a 4.3; Seinfeld (Sony) was unchanged at a 2.7; while The Office (NBCU) picked up 4% to 2.6.

Off-Net Weekly Hours

Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBCU) tumbled 14% to a 3.1, but still ruled the off-net weekly hours. Criminal Minds (CTD) softened 7% to a 2.8; Without a Trace (WBDTD) erased 10% to a 2.7 and landed in a tie with Monk (NBCU), which fell 4% to a 2.7; and The Closer (WBDTD) was down 8% to a 2.3.