• by Paul Gough , May 9, 2003

President Bush's war-ending speech aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln topped the week's top cable programs according to Nielsen Media Research.

Coverage of the address at 9 p.m. Thursday on the Fox News Channel was the most-watched telecast on cable, with a 3.3 household rating and 4.86 million people tuning in. That put it just ahead of TNT's NBA playoff game Tuesday night between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves (3.3, 4.5 million) and TNN's WWE Entertainment/WWE Raw Zone on Monday night (3.3, 5 million). The Kentucky Derby on May 3 was the week's most watched sports telecast, with a 7.6/20 with 11.7 million people watching NBC for the race. The top pay-cable program was a new episode of Six Feet Under, which earned a 3.3 household rating with 5.1 million people watching and second was HBO's Saturday night telecast of Spiderman, with a 3 household rating and 4.5 million watching.

The remainder of the top 10 cable network programming for the week April 28 through May 4:

4. NBA Playoffs-Timberwolves/Lakers, TNT, Thursday, 3.1, 4.2 million.

5. Winston Cup Race (FX), Saturday, 3.1/5.3 million.

6. Presidential Address/Analysis (Fox News Channel), Thursday, 3.1, 4.5 million.

7. Spongebob (Nick), Sunday, 3.0, 4.7 million.

8. WWE Entertainment/WWE Raw (TNN), Monday, 2.9, 4.8 million.

9. Spongebob (Nick), Saturday, 2.9, 4.3 million.

10. Fairly Odd Parents (Nick), Sunday, 2.8, 4.2 million.

Another edition of Fairly Odd Parents (Nick), Trading Spaces (TLC), the Kings/Jazz playoffs on TNT and two episodes of Spongebob (Nick) rounded out the top 15 cable programs for the week.

Among syndicated programs, Wheel of Fortune was by far the top-rated program in total households and Seinfeld won in males 25-54. The top 10 syndicated programs for the week ended April 27:

1. Wheel of Fortune, 8.8 household rating, 9.4 million.

2. Jeopardy, 7.0, 7.4 million.

3. Friends, 6.6, 7 million.

4. Everybody Loves Raymond, 6.4, 6.7 million.

5. Seinfeld, 6.3, 6.7 million.

6. Seinfeld (Weekend), 6, 6.3 million.

7. The Oprah Winfrey Show, 5.9, 6.2 million.

8. Entertainment Tonight, 5.5, 5.8 million.

9. Wheel of Fortune Weekend, 5.1, 5.4 million.

10. Dr. Phil, 4.8, 5.16 million.

Among men 25-54, the top syndicated programs were Seinfeld and Seinfeld weekend; Friends; Everybody Loves Raymond; Wheel of Fortune; Jeopardy; That 70s Show; Entertainment Tonight; Friends Weekend; King of the Hill; and Will & Grace.