James Hibberd

I'm on vacation until Monday Sept. 10.

CBS’ “Power of 10” ratings roller-coaster hit a bump Wednesday night. After a season-high 2.8 among adults 18-49 for its Tuesday night “Big Brother” tie-in episode, “Power” dropped to a 2.1 last night, which is about average for the show.

Still, “Power” won its 8 p.m. time period and, along with a pair of procedural repeats, CBS had three of the top four shows last night.

NBC was second with “Last Comic Standing,” which won the 9 p.m. hour with a 2.5, but was down 17 percent from last week’s season high. The network also had a repeat and “Dateline” (1.9).

ABC and Fox tied for third, with ABC sporting repeats and “NASCAR in Primetime” (1.4) while Fox had repeats. The CW was fifth with repeats.

CBS’s “Power of 10” matched its highest rating to date aided by a pair of “Big Brother” houseguests appearing on the show. “Power” had a 2.8 rating, matching its premiere, followed by a similarly strong “Brother” (3.2) that also matched its highest rating this summer.

NBC and Fox were tied for second in the preliminaries. NBC re-ran their “First 5 Years of Saturday Night Live” special for a 2.1 rating, followed by a procedural repeat. Fox had repeats.

ABC was third with a “Just For Laughs” hour (1.9 and 2.2), “I-Caught” (1.7) and “Primetime: Crime” (1.7). The CW was fourth with repeats.

This is sad. After Nielsen processing delays made everybody wait yet again for overnight ratings, the result is terribly anticlimactic. A repeat of “Two and a Half Men” won Monday night in the 18 to 49 demographic with a 3.4 rating.

That gave CBS first place with repeats. ABC was second with reality repeats and an on-par “Fat March” (1.8). NBC came in third with repeats plus “Dateline” (1.6). Fox was fourth and The CW fifth with repeats.

Meanwhile, on cable, TNT’s “The Closer” matched last week to post a 5.6 rating among household metered markets.

They didn’t want this much buzz.

Ever since the “Kid Nation” storm began, industry insiders have declared over countless lunches: “All this press is playing right into CBS’ hands. This is exactly what the network secretly wants.”

But in recent weeks, the “Kid Nation” controversy crossed the threshold from worrisome-yet-helpful publicity to red-alert overload. The network is, most assuredly, not happy. There’s corporate-approved edgy “Viva Laughlin” buzz … and then there’s kids drinking bleach and state attorney general investigations.

There seem to be few organizations connected to “Kid Nation” left to express their outrage that reality show contestants might possibly have been underpaid or mistreated. It’s a problem that, as the Writers Guild of America notes today, has been common on both sides of the camera for years, but is only getting tough media scrutiny now that the reality production funhouse involves kids. How much of a difference that distinction makes is a question for the attorneys, psychologists, child development experts, concerned parents, fellow bloggers and others weighing in.

At the eye of this media hurricane is an editing bay, where executive producer Tom Forman continues to work on “Nation.” He claims nothing about the controversy will change the way he shapes his program. The on-set accidents -- a minor kitchen grease burn first reported in TelevisionWeek that somehow manages to get more horrific with each telling, the instantly infamous group bleach-drinking first reported in the New York Times -- were not directly captured on camera, he says, and will not be in the show.

“I’m horrified and frankly disgusted people are throwing around phrases like ‘child abuse,’” he says, sounding characteristically upbeat despite the recent succession of headlines. “We got a lot of column inches devoted to a show nobody has seen yet. I encourage people to watch it Sept. 19 and make up their own minds.”

Forman says he’s particularly bothered by the media criticism of “Nation” parents, which hit a fever pitch after The Smoking Gun last week published the show’s 22-page participation agreement.

At first blush, the contract reads as if parents are selling their kids into servitude in a coal mine by day, bordello by night. But it’s not much different from the agreements signed by reality participants every day. The only difference, as the chorus goes, is that the participants are kids.

“I look at that contract and I think I agree to most of that stuff on the back of my ticket to Disneyland,” Forman says, giving one of those quotes that, intentionally or not, tend to get readers riled up. “I’m not sure anybody who ever sent a kid to summer camp and signed a contract is all that surprised by what they read in there. What sort of parent wouldn’t want me to be able to call an ambulance if their kid needed one?

“Not every parent,” he concludes, “is a ‘Kid Nation’ parent.”

Preseason football is starting to gain some ratings steam, with NFL games dominating Friday and Sunday night on broadcast TV.

Sunday’s game between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh was up 28 percent from last week’s similarly slotted game, giving NBC a first-place victory for the night. The game scored a 3.2 rating among adults 18 to 49 in the preliminary Nielsens, largely up against a wasteland of repeats, with a few unscripted exceptions.

CBS was second with “60 Minutes” (1.5), an on par “Big Brother” (2.8) and repeats. ABC was third with reruns. Fox was fourth with “Teen Choice Awards 2007” earning 1.7, down 19 percent from last year.

Fox’s reality crime lineup took Saturday, followed by CBS’s “Crimetime Saturday” block, NBC’s repeats and ABC’s movie. ABC also aired the season (and undoubtedly series) finale of “Masters of Science Fiction” (1.0).

Friday was ruled by CBS’s presentation of the New England Patriots at Carolina Panthers (1.6), followed by ABC and NBC tied for second place and The CW coming in third, with Fox fourth.

Two pieces of news: CBS’ “Power of 10” reversed its rating decline and Fox’s “Anchorwoman” premiere stumbled out of the gate.

“Power” pulled a 2.2 preliminary rating among adults 18 to 49, its best Wednesday yet and its highest rating since its premiere.

Granted, we’re not talking a massive comeback here (“Power’s” lowest rating was a 2.0). But Wednesday night’s performance was a key step in the right direction that enabled CBS to win the 8 p.m. time period. Perhaps “Power” was aided by “Big Brother” viewers checking out the show.

Fox’s “Anchorwoman,” about a bikini model hired at a small-town Texas newsroom, showed once again that reality/scripted hybrids are a tough sell to wide audiences. “Anchorwoman” opened with a 1.0 and tied a repeat on The CW for fifth place in its time period. Hard to see Fox showing the same patience with “Anchorwoman” as it has for the power-player-stuffed “On the Lot.”

Wait, better make that three pieces of news: NBC won the night with “Last Comic Standing” (3.1), “Dateline” (2.1) and a repeat.

CBS was second with “Power” and repeats. ABC was third with repeats, “NASCAR in Primetime” (1.4) and “Primetime: The Outsiders” (1.2). Fox was fourth with “Anchorwoman” and a repeat. The CW was fifth with repeats.

UPDATE: That was fast. Fox canceled "Anchorwoman" and will stream remaining episodes on Fox On Demand on Fox.com. The network will air repeats of "Til Death" in the slot instead.

Updated at 3:07 p.m.

Imagine this: You’re a contestant on a new network game show, you beat the odds to win hundreds of thousands, then you don’t get your money. Why? Because your episode never aired.

On broadcast network game shows, contestants are routinely told they will receive their winnings only if home viewers see them win. Otherwise, hey, what happened on a soundstage in Culver City was all in good fun. As a result, contestants on freshly hatched game shows rushed into production “win” … then nervously pace for weeks or months hoping their episode makes it to air.

It all sounds kinda cruel, but industry sources say the worst-case scenario rarely comes to pass. Winnings are “almost always” paid out. The potential negative publicity of having a contestant going to his local paper (or local lawyer) with a tragic tale of losing his game show winnings because the network’s show tanked just isn’t worth the aggravation.

For instance, Fox’s “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader” officially has the payout-only-on-airing policy. But a network representative says historically Fox pays all winners regardless of the show’s fate.

Non-cash payouts, however, are more dicey. Vacations, cars, boats and other such prizes are typically promotional trades with advertisers. If the episode doesn’t air, the advertiser rarely feels inclined to pony up the Dodge Caliber.

The lesson: Try out for a freshman game show with confidence. But given the choice between a week in Maui or cash, take the cash.

NBC’s two-hour finale for “America’s Got Talent” easily led Tuesday night with a 4.1 rating among adults 18 to 49, lifting the Peacock to first place for the night. NBC followed it with an outing of “The Singing Bee,” which scored a 3.3.

ABC and CBS were tied for second place, with ABC airing two episodes of “Just For Laugh” (2.0 and 2.5), then “I-Caught” (2.0) and “Primetime Crime” (2.4). CBS had “Big Brother” (3.1) and repeats.

Fox was fourth with the season finale of “On the Lot” (1.2) and a repeat. The CW, in fifth, had repeats.

A big piece of the "Power of 10" puzzle falls into place.

After writing yesterday about CBS’s mysterious “Power” double-down, last night’s episode of “Big Brother” cleared things up. CBS revealed that a pair of challenge-winning contestants get to leave the “BB” house, fly to New York City and appear on a “Power” episode.

The series crossover between the popular reality series and the modest-performing game show is sneakily synergistic and helps explain why the network ordered additional episodes: If you're going to reassemble a game show production, there's little point in taping only one episode. Smart-smart.

While Fox successfully landed its own “American Idol” personality Ryan Seacrest to host the Primetime Emmy Awards, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences had other ideas.

The academy’s wish list included veteran comics such as Billy Crystal, Ray Romano and Jerry Seinfeld, a source close to the process says.

Fox’s president of alternative entertainment Mike Darnell, asserting his newly increased muscle over the unscripted division, wanted the “Idol” host. Some of the ensuing conversations with ATAS concerned Seacrest’s lack of comedic experience, but Darnell maintained that an Emmy host needs to be a reliable emcee, not a comedian. After all, non-comics Dick Clark, Bryant Gumbel, Frank Sinatra and Merv Griffin have hosted the Emmys. (Fox and ATAS had no comment.)

So to recap: First the academy vetoed Fox’s plan to have a green/blue/teal/aquamarine carpet in favor of traditional red, then it wanted a Billy Crystal-style host. Very 2004. Next thing you know, they’ll be nominating “Boston Legal” for best drama series (oh, wait…).

Seacrest’s other freshly announced Fox gig—hosting the entertainment portion of the Super Bowl—came so close to the Emmy announcement that they seem connected. But all sides insist the deals were separate, and there was no quid pro quo.

Some have seemed surprised that Seacrest landed both jobs, just as they were back when he landed the E! red-carpet gig. But Seacrest has managed to build a hosting empire by remaining a baggage-free professional and dominating a high-wire-act industry niche. He’s not an edgy choice, sure, but that’s partly what networks like about him. He’s all business, relatively free of the creative and personal roller coasters that attend other entertainers. A network hires Seacrest and knows exactly what it’s getting. And Fox has the key bonus benefit of Seacrest effectively promoting “Idol” on two of the biggest television events of the year.

Fox practically stole Monday night with a repeat of a two-hour “TV’s Funniest Moments” special, which is the network equivalent to finding a well-timed coupon in the back of your wallet. “Funniest” got a 2.5 rating among adults 18 to 49 to win the night, compensating for the loss of former time-period titan “Hell’s Kitchen.”

After spending most of the summer in third and fourth place on Mondays, ABC climbed into second place with its reality repeats and a new “Fat March” episode. “March” posted a sharp weekly gain of 38 percent to earn a 2.2, though was helped by a larger “Wife Swap” repeat lead-in and decreased competition from Fox.

CBS was third with repeats. NBC was fourth with repeats and “Dateline” (1.6). The CW was fifth with repeats.

CBS took the unusual step today of announcing additional episodes and a second night for a show that’s losing viewers.

The 18-to-49 rating for the Drew Carey-hosted game show “Power of 10” has gone from a 2.7 premiere, to a 2.1, to a 2.0. So why is CBS ordering four more episodes and adding the show to Tuesday nights in addition to its regular Wednesday slot?

A CBS representative’s official answer is “because we like the show.” The representative also pointed out the most recent and lowest-rated episode was up against Fox’s popular “So You Think You Can Dance” finale, but it’s tough to argue there’s too much broadcast competition in mid August.

Maybe CBS ordered more “Power” because it will replace “NCIS” repeats, which have only averaged a 1.9. Maybe the network figures more exposure will help the show. Maybe CBS is trying to boost Carey’s game show presence before he takes over “Price Is Right.” Or, heck, maybe CBS really does like “Power of 10” and simply figured four more episodes isn’t going to hurt anybody.

(3:45 p.m. Trimmed third paragraph)

“Big Brother 8” was the highest-rated program Sunday night, but that’s sort of like getting the best parking space at a store that’s closed. Competitors ran repeats, except for NBC’s presentation of an NFL preseason game between the New York Giants and Baltimore Ravens.

Overall, CBS tied for the night with Fox due to “Brother” (2.9 rating among adults 19 to 49), “60 Minutes” (1.8) and repeats. Fox had animated repeats. NBC’s NFL game was second (2.3, but that may change in the nationals). ABC was fourth with repeats.

On Saturday, CBS once again tied Fox in the preliminary ratings. This time, CBS had the preseason game, with San Diego Chargers at St. Louis Rams posting a 1.7. Fox ran its usual reality crime shows. NBC was third with “US Gymnastics Championship” (1.0) and repeats. On ABC, “Masters of Science Fiction” flopped back down to a 0.9 after last week’s spike.

On Friday, Disney Channel ruled the night with "High School Musical 2." But among broadcast networks, ABC had a rare victory thanks to "Set For Life" climbing 33 percent to post its best rating to date (1.2), which in turn helped boost "George Lopez" repeats that followed.

Looks like HD DVD has decided to fight. The Toshiba format has swung Paramount into its studio camp. Movies released by Paramount and several subsidiaries—including DreamWorks and MTV Films—will be released exclusively in HD DVD format.

The exclusivity deal starts with the upcoming releases of “Blades of Glory," followed by "Transformers" and "Shrek the Third." Paramount joins Universal as the only studio releasing titles exclusively on HD DVD

According to the press release, the deal came about because “the companies each said that the decision to distribute exclusively in the HD DVD format resulted from an extensive evaluation of current market offerings, which confirmed the clear benefits of HD DVD, particularly its market-ready technology and lower manufacturing costs.” According to Nikki Finke, the real reason was Toshiba gave Paramount $50 million and DreamWorks Animation $100 million (a Toshiba rep did not returned a request for comment).

Regardless of the reason for the collaboration (tough to imagine Blu-ray’s army of backers aligned under the Sony banner without some financial incentives of their own along the way), this is a significant victory for HD DVD and exactly what they need to try and reverse the stench of doom hanging over their format.

Unfortunately for consumers wanting a decisive victory in time for their holiday shopping, this is a format war Groundhog Day. HD DVD’s deal ensures at least six more months of active fighting between Sony and Toshiba.

Expect Sony, which has not been shy about generating headline victories of their, to retaliate soon. Bet there’s some Wal-Mart executives tied to chairs in a warehouse filled with Blu-ray players somewhere, with Sony henchmen strongly urging they consider ditching those pesky Toshiba titles from their shelves.

UPDATE at 4:25 pm: Responding to Finke's reporting of the $150 million payout, Paramount issued this statement: "The reason we made this decision is simple. After a year of fully experiencing and exploring both formats, we decided to exclusively support HD DVD because of the quality, value and potential the format offers. Beyond that, whenever we conduct co-marketing, production deals or other agreements, we never discuss business terms."

So, that sounds like a big yes, huh?

Disney Channel’s “High School Musical 2” broke records Friday night to become the most-watched basic cable television event of all time.

The much-anticipated sequel to Disney Channel’s enormously successful 2006 movie drew 17.2 million viewers, besting previous record holder, TNT’s Western “Crossfire Trail,” by 38 percent. “HSM2” is also the most-watched television telecast on record for kids 6 to 11 and TV’s most-watched Friday telecast in total viewers in more than five years.

Compared to broadcast network programming, the “HSM2” audience was equivilent to last season’s average viewership for an episode of CBS’s “CSI” or ABC’s “Desperate Housewives.” Disney Channel took advantage of the anticipated turnout by following the movie with a preview of its upcoming series “Phineas and Ferb,” which drew 10.8 million viewers.

The original “HSM” was Disney’s most-successful movie when it debuted to 7.8 million viewers last year. Since, it’s become a cash machine for the network, spawning a best-selling album, DVD, book series, video game, concert tour and upcoming ice show.

The CW is prepping an online game for its critic-favorite fall show “Reaper.”

In the game, users play Sam, a bounty hunter for the devil capturing evil souls who have escaped from hell. The more souls captured, the closer Sam gets to a date with Andi, his love interest on the show.

The CW plans to roll out the game on Sept. 11 to a host of sites, including Yahoo, MSN, GameSpot, IGN, The Onion and FaceBook.

Earlier this month, NBC announced that game company Ubisoft is creating a full-fledged PC and next-generation counsel game for “Heroes.”

While competitors largely cleared the decks with repeats, Fox’s “So You Think You Can Dance” finale took the lead last night and gave Fox its 13th consecutive Thursday-night victory.

The two-hour “Dance” tallied a 3.5 rating among adults 18 to 49 as viewers tuned in to see Sabra Johnson best a trio of finalists to win the third season title.

The only other original program on broadcast was on CBS, which aired “Big Brother” (2.7) and came in second place for the night. ABC and NBC tied for third; The CW was forth.

Rockwell Billiards pulled its controversial “Cue to Die For” from its Web site Thursday after HBO sent the company a cease-and-desist letter.

The network accused the billiard company of copyright infringement following a protest by The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. Earlier this week, GLAAD condemned the product, which is endorsed by former “Sopranos” cast member Joseph Gannascoli.

Gannascoli’s character “Gay Vito” Spatafore was killed and sodomized with a pool cue in the show’s sixth season. Gannascoli has apologized for the uproar, noting he has other “to Die For”-branded products, and called his endorsement of the pool cue “a coincidence.”