Syndication settled down in the week ending Jan. 18, with most shows steady for the week.
CBS Television Distribution’s Dr. Phil, however, returned to the top of the talkers with a 3.3 live plus same day national household rating, according to Nielsen Media Research. That was up 3% for the week and the year. Phil also finished first in talk among women 25-54, improving 6% to a 1.7 in daytime’s key demographic.
Disney-ABC’s Live with Kelly and Michael, which had been the talk leader for the past three weeks, eased 3% to a 3.2 in households but was still up 7% from last year at this time.
Warner Bros.’ Ellen was third with a 2.9, up 4% for the week but flat year to year. NBCU’s Steve Harvey continued to move up the chart with a 5% advance to a 2.0 to tie NBCU’s steady Maury for fourth place.
Debmar-Mercury’s Wendy Williams, Sony Pictures Television’s Dr. Oz, NBCU’s Jerry Springer, CTD’s Rachael Ray, NBCU’s Steve Wilkos, CTD’s The Doctors and SPT’s soon-to-depart Queen Latifah all were steady at a 1.8, 1.5, 1.4, 1.4, 1.4, 1.1 and 1.0, respectively.
Meredith’s The Better Show, which will end its run after this season, inched up from a 0.1 to a 0.2.
Elsewhere in daytime, CTD’s Judge Judy ruled the court shows with a 7.4, up 1% from the previous week and that show’s highest rating since the November sweep. In addition, Judy was syndication’s top-rated first-run strip for the 36th time in the past 40 weeks.
Warner Bros.’ People’s Court and Twentieth’s Divorce Court each were flat at a 1.8 and 1.6, respectively. Warner Bros.’ Judge Mathis sank 7% to a 1.4. MGM’s sophomore Lauren Lake’s Paternity Court improved 9% to a 1.2.
CTD’s Hot Bench continued to lead the first-run rookies. After hitting a new series high in the prior week, the panel court show gave back 11% to a first-place 1.7 in households. Debmar-Mercury’s Celebrity Name Game was flat at a 1.3. Warner Bros.’ The Real hit a new season high 1.2, up 9% from the prior week. NBCU's Meredith Vieira slipped 8% to a 1.1, while Trifecta’s recently renewed Judge Faith was unchanged at a 0.7.
Among women 25-54, The Real was on top with an unchanged 0.9, followed by Hot Bench at a steady 0.8. Celebrity Name Game dropped 13% in the demo to a 0.7. Meredith Vieira was flat at a 0.6, as was Judge Faith at a 0.4.
All of the game shows were down, except for Disney-ABC’s Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, which appreciated 6% to hit an eight-week high 1.9. CTD’s Wheel of Fortune lost 10% to a 7.2, while CTD’s Jeopardy! declined 7% to a 7.1 and Debmar-Mercury’s Family Feud flagged 1% to a 6.6. Those three shows ranked second, third and fourth in overall syndication, respectively.
Elsewhere, MGM’s video variety show RightThisMinute slid 6% to a 1.6.
Magazines were mostly down after two strong weeks. Only NBCU’s Access Hollywood managed to gain, improving 5% to a new season high 2.0 with its next-day coverage of the Golden Globe Awards. CTD’s leader Entertainment Tonight yielded 8% to a 3.6. CTD’s Inside Edition softened 3% to a 3.3. Warner Bros.’ TMZ slumped 9% to a 2.0 to tie Access Hollywood. Warner Bros.’ Extra dipped 6% to a 1.6, while The Insider was down 7% to a 1.3.
Twentieth’s Dish Nation was flat at a 1.1, while Trifecta’s OK! TV tumbled 33% from a 0.3 to a 0.2.
Warner Bros.’ The Big Bang Theory cooled off a bit, falling 2% to a 6.4. Meanwhile, Twentieth’s Modern Family climbed for the third straight week, adding 2% to a new season high 4.5. Warner Bros.’ Two and a Half Men dropped 3% to a 3.1. Twentieth’s Family Guy gained 4% to a 2.6. Warner Bros.’ rookie Mike and Molly declined 12% to a 2.3, tying Twentieth’s How I Met Your Mother, which was unchanged. SPT’s Seinfeld stayed at a 2.2. Warner Bros.’ The Middle finished 5% lower at a 1.8. Twentieth’s The Cleveland Show was off 11% to a 1.7, while Twentieth’s King of the Hill declined 6% to a 1.6.
