• by March 13, 2001

By Anya Khait

Not only has teen and kids viewing of prime time ad-supported cable increased significantly over the past decade, it now surpasses their viewing of the Big 4 broadcast TV networks, according the Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau (CAB). CAB analysis of Nielsen data revealed that ad-supported cable had an 11 rating and 38 share of teen viewers (age 12-17) in primetime for the first 21 weeks of the 2000/2001 season, compared to a 7 rating and 22 share in 1992/1993.

ABC/CBS/NBC/FOX affiliates, on the other hand, recorded a 10.4 rating and 35.9 share of primetime teen viewers for the first 21 weeks of 2000/2001, down from a 22 rating and 68.4 share in 1992/1993.

Among kids 2-11 during the same period, ad-supported cable garnered a 10.5 prime time rating and 44.1 share, versus a 6.1 rating and 23 share only eight years before. In contrast, ABC/CBS/NBC/FOX affiliates recorded a 7.2 primetime share and 30.3 share among kids, a decline of 10.4 rating points and 36.2 share points from 1992/1993.

Fox and ABC split the Sunday night primetime race, as Fox substituted its new Lone Gunmen for one of its biggest guns. The Lone Gunmen, spun off from The X-Files, supplanted its source series and scored a 4.3 rating, 9 share among adults 18-49 with 8.9 million viewers in Nielsen fast national numbers. Fox hit a 5.3 to ABC's 4.4 among 18-49ers, while ABC won in total viewers with 14.3 million to CBS's 13.3 million.

"The Simpsons" was Fox's top scorer with a 7.5/19, drawing 15.9 million viewers. "Malcolm In the Middle" hit a 6.9/16 with 14.8 million viewers. ABC's "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?" drew 18.1 million viewers, and "The Practice" drew 19 million viewers with a 6.7/17.

Meanwhile, CBS's "60 Minutes" drew 14.9 million viewers and "Touched By An Angel" tapped 12.1 million viewers.

In other TV news, "Survivor: The Australian Outback" will be on for one more week than previously planned. CBS has pushed the season finale from April 26 to May 3, giving the show one more week during May sweeps. The ratings period, which is used to determine advertising rates, runs from April 26-May 23. The show will also air at 8 p.m. EST Wednesday and again on March 21 instead of its usual Thursday time slot to make room for CBS' coverage of the NCAA men's basketball tournament. "Survivor" returns to Thursdays on March 29. The reality series helped the network dominate prime-time ratings during the February sweeps period. Last week's episode came in first place in the Nielsen ratings, with an estimated 31.3 million viewers.

- Anya Khait may be reached at anya@mediapost.com