• by Wayne Friedman , April 8, 2010

The 2009-2010 TV season has had its share of lumps, and syndicated programming has been no exception. But the platform has fared better than other broadcast outlets so far.

Through late March, national syndicated programming has seen lower viewership than the previous year -- down 3% to 2.79 million on average from 2.88 million.

"That's not so horrible for broadcast," says Brad Adgate, senior vice president and corporate media director for Horizon Media. Broadcast ratings erosion over the last two decades has been anywhere from 4% to 10% annually.

"The change is not as dramatic as with [network] prime time," adds Adgate. "Part of this has to do with the fact these shows have been on the air a long time. People know what they are."

Industry leader "Wheel of Fortune" is off 2% to 11.3 million average viewers; "Two and a Half Men" also has drifted back 2% to 10.3 million. "Jeopardy" also has been squeezed 2% to 9.3 million viewers, while "Oprah Winfrey" went south a bit, 1.5%, to 6.6 million.

Some of the off-network comedies have pulled back: "Family Guy" slipped 16% to 6.1 million viewers; "Seinfeld" is down 22% to 4.3 million; and "Everybody Loves Raymond" took it on the chin, down 20% to 4.8 million.

Some of the select gainers include third-place "Judge Judy" climbing 3% to 9.9 million viewers. "Entertainment Tonight" also gained 3% to 6.6 million. Another magazine show, "Inside Edition," was 5% higher to 4.6 million average viewers.

A couple of veteran afternoon talkers also grew: "Ellen DeGeneres" improved 6% to 3.2 million and "Maury" put on 18% to 3.3 million.

Other season losers: "Dr. Phil" lost 17% to 3.9 million; "House of Payne" went down 27% to 3.2 million; "Friends" sank 14% to 3.7 million; "Judge Joe Brown" was 4% below last year to 4.4 million. and "Live with Regis & Kelly" dropped 6% to 3.4 million.

New shows this season in syndication: "The Office" is at a healthy 5.4 million viewers; "Dr. Oz" is at a modest 3.7 million; and "Wendy Williams" saw 1.7 million viewers.

It's been a mixed bag for hour-long shows: "CSI: New York" dropped 5% to 5.6 million; "CSI: Miami" grew slightly, 3% to 3.7 million; "Law & Order: SVU" sank 20% to 3.8 million; "House" went 13% below a year ago to 3.4 million.

Adgate says there are many factors that can cause syndication shows to lose or gain ground, including local-station time period changes, lead-in changes and moving to new stations.

Many shows have also had cable airings, which can affect their syndication ratings, he says.