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Grammys Win Big In Ratings, But Avoid Cautionary Tale

The Grammys pulled in record (pun intended) ratings last night, tracking 39 million viewers and a 14.1 rating in adults 18-49 -- numbers second only to 1984's broadcast. (And what happened that year? Michael Jackson won big for his landmark "Thriller" album. We Googled around to see if that ceremony also marked his first big televised moonwalk, but couldn't find any conclusive videos.)

Such numbers will probably bump up the ad rates for next year's broadcast; average for this year was close to $800,000 per 30-second spot, according to one report.

No doubt the huge audience turn-in was triggered in part by curiousity about how the ceremony would mark the death of musical diva Whitney Houston. Tim Goodman argues that while the broadcast did a lot right in paying tribute to Whitney, there was one thing missing: "It might have been cause for applause to hear even one artist use that death as a cautionary tale to every future music superstar recording American Idol, The Voice or The X Factor and dreaming of their own chance."

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