Posted on 01/26/2006 1:44:54 PM PST by LdSentinal
ABC news show is down 15 percent in 18-49s
The post-Ted Koppel “Nightline” has faced questions about its viability since its debut two months ago, but those questions are hardly new. Koppel faced them for much of the time he anchored the show.
What is new is a hefty decline in ratings. Will ABC continue to stand behind the late-night news show, and for how long? The question would seem to gain urgency with the network's improved primetime ratings, making a makever of the 11:30 p.m. timeslot all that more attractive.
For the week ended Jan. 15, “Nightline” averaged 3.6 million viewers, its highest viewership since the triumvirate of Cynthia McFadden, Martin Bashir and Terry Moran took over as hosts in late November. But that's down 8 percent from the comparable week last year, when Koppel averaged 3.9 million viewers.
The show's decline is sharper among 18-49s. “Nightline” drew a 1.1 rating for the week ended Jan. 15, off 15 percent from last year’s 1.3.
Season to date, “Nightline” is down 8 percent in total viewers, from 3.8 million to 3.5 million, and 8 percent in 18-49s, from a 1.2 to a 1.1.
Officially, ABC says it's committed to the new show, but the sense among observers is that it is giving the revamped format a tryout and will drop it if it doesn't pull viewers.
“‘Nightline’ is definitely under the microscope,” says Jeff Alan, author of the book “Anchoring America: The Changing Face of Network News.”
“The show has to exceed, or at least match, what ‘Nightline’ was rating with Ted Koppel there,” Alan says. “If it doesn’t do either of those, then I think “Nightline’ is in jeopardy.”
The show’s biggest challenge is finding the right set of topics to draw and hold viewers each night, and that becomes harder and harder with so many more outlets for information. Of the new “Nightline,” critics say what it offers isn't much different from the cable news networks.
Ultimately, the network must decide whether entertainment would make better sense in that timeslot, putting it in direct competition with NBC and CBS. Koppel, in his last broadcast, warned that the network might replace “Nightline” if viewers drifted away.
ABC a few years back had courted David Letterman to takeover the time period, and a talk show remains a possibility. Another option that's been suggested is a late-night sports show as counter-programming to CBS's Letterman and NBC's Jay Leno.
But all this may not be decided for months yet, until after the May sweeps, suggests Alan. He says February sweeps results won't be a solid indicator because of competition from the Winter Olympics.
ABC, it's time to stop admiring it and flush.
This next Disney layoff is gonna cost a lot of hippies their jobs.
If they're serious about helping ratings, a conservative would do the trick very quickly.
Naw, keep Nightline on. I want these b*stards to go down HARD!
How about a strong, hard hitting, fair and balanced political program with both sides being represented. Chrissy mathews and al franken would seem to be fair and balanced to abc. This duo would create strong ratings and would blow letterman and leno away. I can't go on. s/off
Buhbye, NightLeftists.
Hey Nightline. You might try telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
Don't know what's worse, Nightline or the dreadful "Jimmy Kimmel Live" which follows it. ABC has no clue when it comes to late night.
3 stooges reruns would fit the bill for abc.
Nah, the Three Stooges are too intellectual.
Heck's bells, I stopped watching Koppel a decade or more ago. It's amazing how little socialist "news" I watch while Brit Hume is available. Plus, I get my fill with Rush Limbaugh, Hugh Hewitt and Laura Ingram. About once or twice a week, Rush gets involved with some subject that is about talked out. On those days we thankfully have Dennis Prager to take up the slack.
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