This is the second time in the last three ratings periods that NBC 10 has beaten the once-invincible 6ABC at 11 p.m.

By LAURA NACHMAN
Courier Times
E-mail

Despite declarations of victory at 11 p.m. from both NBC 10 and 6ABC, the winner of the Nielsen ratings for November sweeps was NBC 10 news with an 11.23 rating and a 19.8 share. Hampered by a dreadful network lineup, 6ABC was a close second with an 11.17 rating and a 19.7 share. Each rating point equals 28,010 homes.

This is the second time in the last three ratings periods that NBC 10 has beaten the once-invincible 6ABC at 11 p.m. Though 6ABC continues to be the ratings winner at 6 a.m., noon, 5 p.m. and 6 p.m., NBC 10 cut into its lead in every newscast. At 4 p.m., NBC 10's news is starting to give "Oprah" some competition. A year ago, "Oprah" led with a 9.0 rating compared to a 5.8 rating for the "NBC 10 News at 4." Now "Oprah" has dropped to a 7.4 rating while NBC 10 has moved up to a 6.1 rating.

Also at 5 p.m., forget about Dawn or Pat. KYW-3 should hire Judy to anchor the news ... as in "Judge Judy." The syndicated show on Fox-Philadelphia continues to beat "Eyewitness News" at 5 p.m. And so far, adding Denise Saunders to the 11 p.m. news isn't adding any more viewers, as ratings are down a point for KYW-3. In the 10 p.m. news battle, Fox-Philadelphia led with a 4.6 rating, more than doubling the audience of WB17, which had a 2.2 rating. In other good news for Fox-Philadelphia, its "Good Day Philadelphia" edged "The CBS Early Show."

In more ratings tidbits, not many people are crossing over to "John Edward" as ratings are down for KYW-3 from a year ago, and "Ananda Lewis" is getting crushed at 2 p.m. in "Jerry Springer's" old time slot on NBC 10. Newcomer "The Other Half" has less than half the audience of "The View" and "The Price is Right" at 11 a.m. And once again, more Philadelphians would rather watch "The Simpsons" than Dan Rather and "The CBS Evening News" at 6:30 p.m.

SMERCONISH WEIGHING OPTIONS

So what's next for Michael Smerconish, now that he is no longer talking for "The Big Talker," WPHT 1210-AM? The former 5-7 p.m. host, whose last day on the air was the day before Thanksgiving, said he has not made any commitments yet, but he's talked to a few other stations in town.

However, he emphasized that WYSP-FM, which many believe will switch from rock to "hot talk," is not on the list. Smerconish, whose acrimonious relationship with WPHT general manager Sil Scaglione was a major factor in his decision to leave the station, can afford to be choosy. Besides his full-time Center City law practice, he is a commentator for NBC 10 and recently began a column for "The Philadelphia Daily News."

"It's never been about the money," said Smerconish, who turned down a $300,000 a year offer from WPHT earlier this year to work from 3-6 p.m. "Those hours would have crippled my law practice."

Another offer was for the 6-8 p.m. shift, but Smerconish, who has four children, said that would have been unacceptable for family life.

Visit Laura's Web site / Laura appears on WBCB 1490-AM Monday and Friday at 8:45 a.m. e-mail: [email protected].

Saturday, December 8, 2001