`Idol' ratings down from last year
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Fox's "American Idol" returned as the nation's most popular TV series, but with 4 million fewer viewers than the 2007 season premiere.
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U.S. television's top show,  "American Idol," returns to the Fox network on Tuesday, poised  to stand taller than ever in the ratings as it arrives in a  prime-time landscape clouded by the Hollywood writers strike.
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"American Idol" slimmed down the competition Thursday night, leaving 12 finalists to compete for the ultimate prize &#151; a record contract. Antonella Barba, Sabrina Sloan, Jared Cotter and Jason "Sundance" Head were voted off Thursday in phone voting, which drew about 37 million calls and text messages from viewers.
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LOS ANGELES - When cable channel HBO tried to woo the Emmy Awards away two years ago, the networks fought back and won. Network executives could be rethinking the victory in light of the poor ratings posted by Sunday's ceremony, watched by the smallest audience since 1990...
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More than half the population trusts TV producers less than it did a year ago, a poll suggests.
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U.S. television's top show, "American Idol," returned to prime time with 33.4 million viewers, down sharply from last year's record season debut but still more watched than the four other major networks combined, according to ratings on Wednesday.
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LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - "American Idol" is poised to set ratings records when Fox's talent show returns to the airwaves with a four-hour season premiere on Tuesday and Wednesday.
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The Stanley Cup finals have brought record low ratings to NBC for a prime-time program, sports or otherwise.
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Fox dominated the ratings on Tuesday, thanks to two popular shows, âAmerican Idolâ at 8 p.m. and âHouseâ at 9. Those shows delivered 28.1 million and 22.5 million viewers, Nielsen estimated. A repeat of CBSâs âNCISâ at 8 attracted the nightâs third-largest audience (11.7 million). CBSâs all-rerun lineup tied NBC for runner-up on the night, but NBC fared better among adults 18 to 49 with âThe Biggest Loserâ at 8 (8.3 million) followed by âLaw & Order: Special Victims Unitâ at 10 (9.4 million). ABC finished fourth overall. On Monday President Bushâs final State of the Union address attracted the smallest audience of his two terms, 37.5 million viewers. That tally was 8 million fewer than a year ago, but 6 million more than President Clintonâs last State of the Union address in 2000. The speech was broadcast live at 9 p.m. on a total of nine network and cable channels.
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Fox ruled prime-time television  ratings last week as the combination of "American Idol" and a  closely-fought football playoff game trumped everything  broadcast by the other major networks.
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The two-month-old writers strike took a significant toll on the âPeopleâs Choice Awardsâ on Tuesday as the taped, scaled-down version of the awards show on CBS lost nearly half its audience compared with a year ago, attracting just 6 million viewers from 9 to 11 p.m., Nielsen reported. A year ago, the showâs live broadcast averaged 11.3 million. For the night, CBS ranked third overall, trailing second-place Fox with its all-repeat lineup. NBC finished first, leading every hour of the night among adults 18 to 49 with a two-hour episode of âThe Biggest Loserâ (10.2 million), followed by âLaw & Order: Special Victims Unitâ at 10 (15.2 million). CW delivered its best Tuesday ratings since March thanks to âOne Tree Hill,â which averaged 3.5 million viewers from 8 to 10 in its fifth-season debut. ABC trailed CW in last place among adults 18 to 49.
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Disappointed TV viewers are watching fewer sitcoms and spending more time with DVD movies and video games.
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CBS and ABC fell to their  lowest ratings among the coveted adults 18-49 demographic in  two decades last week, as reruns and summer alternatives drove  viewers from their couches.
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Game 2 of the NBA finals lost nearly one-third of its television audience from last year.
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Fox's "American Idol" returned as the nation's most popular TV series, but with 4 million fewer viewers than the 2007 season premiere. Tuesday's debut was seen by 33.4 million viewers, down 11 percent from the 37.4 million who watched the first show, according to preliminary ratings by Nielsen Media Research.
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By David Bauder THE ASSOCIATED PRESS  NEW YORK -- As anticipated, the Super Bowl and "American Idol" overshadowed everything on television last week.
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NEW YORK  - Whether it was competition with Tony Soprano's farewell or some other factor, Sunday night's Tony Awards fell to the lowest ratings since at least 1992.