Dr. Phil McGraw's live appearance on The Late Show with David
Letterman brought Dave the best ratings he's had since his show after Sept.
11, 2001, which aired Sept. 17 of that year.
The Late Show scored a 6.3 rating/15 in the 55 Nielsen Media Research metered markets,
beating out The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on a head-to-head basis for
the first time since Feb. 21, 2000, when Letterman returned to the air
after undergoing heart surgery.
With Dr. Phil, whom Letterman has been making fun of all season, the show
jumped more than two ratings points and 54 percent from its Monday-night average
of 4.1/10.
It was two-and-a-half ratings points and 66 percent higher than the show's
Monday-through-Friday average.
That lead-in also gave The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn its
highest ratings so far this season with a 2.2/8.
Those were also Kilborn's highest ratings since his post-Sept. 11 show.
McGraw's self-help talk show is the highest-rated new syndicated show to hit
TV since Oprah herself debuted in 1986.
Dr. Phil's ratings steadily increase, hitting a 5.4 national Nielsen
rating during this February sweeps.
