• by Wayne Friedman , May 11, 2006

NBC may suffer this upfront--but apparently still hot among households with big incomes.

Looking at the average median U.S. income of $53,000, NBC dominates with seven of the top ten shows in adults ages 25-54 with the highest-index shows--"The West Wing" and "The Apprentice 4" each scored a 132 index, says media agency Magna Global USA, in a special report analyzing prime-time programs and median incomes.

Next is NBC's "The Apprentice: Martha Stewart" with a 128 index, and Fox in third place for "24" with a 125 index. The next shows, in order, are: "The Apprentice 5," "Law & Order," "Grey's Anatomy," "ER," "The Office," and "Desperate Housewives."

Overall, NBC averaged a $62,000 median income; ABC was next with $60,000; CBS was third with $57,000; Fox averaged $55,000; The WB averaged $49,000; and UPN was at $40,000.

In terms of actual media income, "West Wing" and "The Apprentice: 4" had the highest median income with $70,000. Of the top 20 shows: NBC had 12 shows; ABC had four shows; CBS had three; Fox had one.

Magna Global notes that this data should not be looked at in a vacuum.

Indexes and median incomes only show how upscale the composition of an audience is--regardless of how many actual people are watching. Naturally, "The Apprentice": Martha Stewart" wasn't a high-rated show--only a 2.9 among adults 25-54--but those who watched it had high incomes.

"Stewart" median income was $68,000, which put it in third place. By comparison, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" was tied for sixth place at $65,000. But "Housewives"' 25-54 rating was almost three times that of "Stewart," with a 10.8 rating.

Here's another comparison: While "Grey's Anatomy" and "Law & Order" have identical average median incomes, and similar household sizes, "Grey's Anatomy"'s adult 25-54 rating is more than twice as high. (9.8 to 4.4).

For TV national advertisers, all the upper-income data is still a big deal. Generally, higher-income viewers are light TV viewers--which means they are much more difficult to target. A network that has high-income numbers can typically charge advertisers more money than shows that have viewers who make less income.

Magna also notes that Nielsen only measures household income--therefore, actual individual viewers' income may be lower. A household income of $65,000 in a two-person household is more upscale than a household income of $65,000 in a five-person household.

For instance, "West Wing" and "The Apprentice" have the highest median incomes--$70,000. But 46 percent of "West Wing"'s adult 25-54 audience is in 1-2 person households, compared to 40 percent for "The Apprentice." Magna says this makes "West Wing" seem more upscale.

As far as cable is concerned, HGTV had the highest median income of $69,000. Four others tied for fourth place at $65,000: CNN, ESPN, Fox News, and MSNBC. ESPN2 was next at $64,000. Tied for eighth were five networks: Bravo, E!, History, Headline News, and Travel Channel, at $60,000.

Magna said that seven ad-supported cable networks had higher median incomes than NBC or ABC. Bravo and E! were the only entertainment networks to top CBS' numbers.