Austin360 blogs > TV Blog > Archives > 2004 > June > 25 > Entry
Buzz and ratings not the same
Funny how buzz and critical babbling often have no correlation to Nielsen ratings. It’s a case of decibel level versus actual viewing. This seems to be especially true with cable, where independent-minded viewers have hundreds of choices and enjoy finding their own favorites.
Take the latest cable Nielsens, for example. The No. 1 program for the week ending June 20 was Rob Lowe’s two-part movie “Salem’s Lot,” which was mostly panned by critics and ignored in pop mainstream media outlets such as “Entertainment Tonight.” The TNT flick was seen in more than 4 million homes.
The week’s buzz and critical praise went to FX’s “Nip/Tuck.” Although difficult to watch at times due to the surgical gore, this series is the darling of critics (including me) for its intense drama and dark humor. But fewer than 2 million households tuned in for the Tuesday episode.
Other cable viewer favorites include the 15-year-old drama “Law & Order,” which has a gazillion reruns almost every night on TNT, and “WWE Raw Zone,” the pro wrestling extravaganza on Spike TV that is a favorite among certain segments of the macho population.
The return of USA’s “Monk” was the No. 2-rated cable program, and the neutered syndicated reruns of “Sex and the City” were a hit on TBS.
But Bravo’s brand-new reality show “Blow Out” was a bust even though just about every newspaper in the country gave it a positive nod.
Here’s the Cable Top 15 according to Nielsen Media Research: 1. ”Salem’s Lot” (4.02 million homes) 2. ”Monk” (3.91 million homes) 3. ”Law & Order” (3.41 million homes) 4. ”WWE Raw Zone” (3.31 million homes) 5. ”Sex and the City” (3.2 million homes) 6. ”Sex and the City” (3.01 million homes) 7. ”WWE Raw” (2.98 million homes) 8. ”Sex and the City” (2.89 million homes) 9. ”Law & Order” (2.83 million homes) 10. ”Sex and the City” (2.8 million homes) 11. ”SpongeBob SquarePants” (2.77 million homes) 12. ”Fairly Odd Parents” (2.75 million homes) 13. ”Law & Order” (2.74 million homes) 14. ”SpongeBob SquarePants” (2.72 million homes) 15. ”Real World XIV” (2.72 million homes)
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