Schwarzenegger Love Child Propels Mags

All of the already hot syndicated magazines continued to surge in the week ending May 22 as former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger admitted fathering a love child with a member of his household staff.

Magazine leader Entertainment Tonight (CTD) scored its highest ratings since March with an 8% spike from the week before to a 4.2 after getting a 15% spurt to a 4.5 on the day of the Schwarzenegger bombshell.

Inside Edition (CTD) tacked on 7% to a 3.2; TMZ (WBDTD) added 5% to a 2.2; Access Hollywood (NBCU) hit its best ratings in nine weeks, climbing 5% to a  2.1 in households and 22% in the women 18-49 demo.

The Insider (CTD) had the sharpest increase of any magazine strip, jumping 12% both week to week and year to year to a 1.9, its strongest performance in 13 weeks. And Extra (WBDTD) grew 6% to a 1.7, its highest showing in 4 weeks, and rose 22% among women 25-54.

Talk Shows

The ratings for Oprah (CTD) were flat at a 5.4 in its next-to-last week. Dr. Phil (CTD), the second-highest-rated talker after Oprah, had its biggest week since early February, improving 6% to a 3.3. Phil’s strongest draw was a show on bullies, which took ratings up 19% to a 3.7 on May 17. Live with Regis and Kelly (Disney-ABC) picked up 4% to a 2.5; Maury (NBCU) advanced 9% to a new season high 2.4; Dr. Oz (Sony) inched up 5% to a 2.3; and Ellen DeGeneres (WBDTD) was also up 5%, to a 2.1.

Court Shows

At the top of the syndicated ratings chart, Judge Judy (CTD) continued to rise, clocking a 7.0, its highest rating since March and up 1% from the week before. Judy also scored a new season high among women 25-54, growing 7% in the key demo to a 3.1.

Among the court shows, Judge Joe Brown (CTD) was the only one to achieve a new season high, gaining 4% to a 2.8. People’s Court (WBDTD) was up 6% to a 1.9; while Divorce Court (Twentieth) and Judge Alex (Twentieth) were both flat at a 1.7.

First-Run Freshmen

The season’s rookie champion, Swift Justice with Nancy Grace (CTD), widened its lead over the freshmen field with a 12% leap to a 1.9. Nate Berkus (Sony) picked up 11% to a 1.0; Judge Karen’s Court (Litton) jumped 14% to a 0.8, tying Don’t Forget the Lyrics (Twentieth) which was unchanged at a 0.8; and America’s Court with Judge Ross (Entertainment Studios) was up 33% to a 0.4.

In 14 metered markets, slow rollout Access Hollywood Live (NBCU) averaged a 0.9 rating/3 share, which 3was up 13% from its year-ago time periods. The show also increased 100% among women 18-49 and 75% among women 25-54.

Game Shows

Ratings for most game shows were sluggish. The exception being Who Wants to be a Millionaire (Disney-ABC), which got a 9 ratings bonus to a 2.5. Top game Wheel of Fortune (CTD) remained stalled at a 6.6; Jeopardy (CTD) was flat at a 5.6; and Family Feud (Debmar-Mercury) and Are You Smarter Than a 5^th Grader? (Twentieth) were both unchanged at 2.4 and 1.1, respectively.

Off-Net Sitcoms

Off-net sitcoms also did little. Two and a Half Men (WBDTD) and Family Guy (Twentieth) were both flat at 6.5 and 4.6, respectively; My Wife and Kids (Disney-ABC) sank 10% to a 2.8; George Lopez Show (WBDTD) also fell 10% to a 2.7; while Seinfeld (Sony) gained 4% to a 2.7, tying Lopez.

Off-Net Weekly Hours

Among off-net weekly hours, Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBCU) rose 2% to a new season high 4.3; Criminal Minds (CTD) slipped 3% to a 3.1; Bones (Twentieth) weakened 7% to a 2.7; Numbers (CTD) added 4% to a 2.4; The Closer (WBDTD) skidded 12% to a 2.2 and landed in a three-way tie for fifth place with Monk (NBCU), which dropped 8% to a 2.2, and Without a Trace (WBDTD), which was unchanged at a 2.2.