Syndication Ratings: Rookie Talkers Hold Their Own in Face of Hurricane Ian

Rookie talker 'Jennifer Hudson' hosts TV's first Black paranormal investigation team, Ghost Brothers.
Rookie talker 'Jennifer Hudson' hosts TV's first Black paranormal investigation team, Ghost Brothers. (Image credit: Warner Bros./'The Jennifer Hudson Show')

Rookie talkers Sherri, Jennifer Hudson and Karamo all held steady in the week ended October 2, which was also the first full week of fall. Debmar-Mercury’s Sherri, starring Sherri Shepherd, Warner Bros.’ Jennifer Hudson and NBCUniversal’s Karamo, starring Karamo Brown, all stayed put at a 0.7, 0.6 and 0.3, respectively.

None of those shows were impacted too heavily by news coverage of Hurricane Ian, although the storm created heavy pre-emptions, especially in Florida and other southeastern coastal states. Among the most negatively impacted markets were Florida’s Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando and Tampa.

At the top of the talkers, Disney’s Live with Kelly and Ryan rose to its highest ratings since May, leading the genre for the 19th straight week, including eight ties with CBS Media Ventures’ Dr. Phil. Now in its 35th year, the morning franchise was up 7% to a first-place 1.6 live-plus-same-day national household rating, according to Nielsen. Live’s highest rating of the week came on Monday, September 26, which featured an interview with Kim Kardashian. That episode grew 20% from the prior week’s average to a 1.8, Live’s highest single-day number since its after-Oscar show in March. 

Among daytime’s key demographic of women 25-54, Live led with a 0.6 followed by Dr. Phil at a 0.5.

Back in households, Phil, NBCU’s Kelly Clarkson and CBS’s Drew Barrymore, which is now a half-hour that often runs as two episodes in many markets, all maintained a 1.4, 0.9 and 0.8, respectively. 

CBS’s Rachael Ray rose 17% to a 0.7, tying Disney’s Tamron Hall, which stayed put. NBCU’s Steve Wilkos slipped 17% to a 0.5, while NBCU’s Maury reruns and its Jerry Springer talk-and-court combo remained at a 0.4 and a 0.3, respectively. 

At the top of the overall chart, Debmar-Mercury’s Family Feud improved 4% to a 5.0 and finished in a tie with CBS’ Jeopardy!, which was flat. Jeopardy! had eked out narrow wins in the prior two weeks after trailing Feud for seven straight sessions. CBS’ Wheel of Fortune inched up 2% to a 4.7. 

Fox First Run’s You Bet Your Life with host Jay Leno recovered 14% to a 0.8. Fox’s 25 Words or Less locked on a 0.7 for a 14th straight week. CBS’ new game-show entry Pictionary, hosted by Jerry O’Connell, backtracked 20% to a 0.4, which remained on par with its premiere week. That tied Entertainment Studios’ Funny You Should Ask, which added 33%.

CBS’s Inside Edition and Entertainment Tonight each added 5% to a 2.3 and a 2.1, respectively, to lead the magazines, with ET hitting its highest rating in 20 weeks. NBCU’s Access Hollywood stood pat at a 0.8. Fox’s TMZ grew 17% to a 0.7. Warner Bros.’ Extra preserved its 0.6. Fox’s Dish Nation notched a 0.2 for the 26th week in a row.

Evergreen episodes of CBS’s Judge Judy led the court shows at a steady 4.2. CBS’s Hot Bench and Warner Bros.’ People’s Court both were consistent at a 1.2 and a 0.7, respectively. Warner Bros.’ Judge Mathis rebounded 20% to a 0.6. Fox’s Divorce Court settled for a third-straight 0.5, while Wrigley Media’s sophomore Relative Justice remained at a 0.3. 

Rookie courts Trifecta’s iCrime with Elizabeth Vargas and Entertainment Studios’ We the People with Judge Lauren Lake lingered at a 0.5 and a 0.3, respectively, in their third weeks.

Warner Bros.’ The Big Bang Theory expanded 6% to a 1.9. Disney’s Last Man Standing skidded 10% to a new series-low 0.9. Disney’s Modern Family, Warner Bros.’ Two and a Half Men and Warner Bros.’ Young Sheldon all stayed at a 0.7. Disney’s Family Guy gave back 14% to a 0.6, tying Sony Pictures Television’s The Goldbergs and Sony’s Seinfeld, both of which were steady. CBS’ The Neighborhood welcomed a 0.5 for the third consecutive week. Finally, Disney’s rookie entry American Housewife hammered out a 33% increase to a 0.4 in its third week, tying Disney’s Black-ish, which stayed put for the eighth straight week. ▪️

Paige Albiniak

Contributing editor Paige Albiniak has been covering the business of television for more than 25 years. She is a longtime contributor to Next TV, Broadcasting + Cable and Multichannel News. She concurrently serves as editorial director for The Global Entertainment Marketing Academy of Arts & Sciences (G.E.M.A.). She has written for such publications as TVNewsCheck, The New York Post, Variety, CBS Watch and more. Albiniak was B+C’s Los Angeles bureau chief from September 2002 to 2004, and an associate editor covering Congress and lobbying for the magazine in Washington, D.C., from January 1997 - September 2002.