The new year started on a high note for syndication as newsmagazines, game shows and relationship strips began 2004 with a bang, according to Nielsen Media Research figures for the week ending Jan. 4.
Rebounding from a typically slow Christmas week, three of the five newsmagazines had double-digit gains and all five were up week to week. Paramount’s “Entertainment Tonight” grew 16 percent to a 5.2, NBC’s “Access Hollywood” bloomed 12 percent to a 2.8 and Telepictures’ “Extra” jumped 14 percent to a 2.4. King World’s “Inside Edition” was up 6 percent to a 3.4 and Telepictures’ “Celebrity Justice” rose 9 percent to a 1.2.
Among game shows, King World’s “Wheel of Fortune” rose 13 percent to an 8.9, “Jeopardy!” moved up 19 percent to a 7.4 and Buena Vista’s “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” jumped 3 percent to a 3.7 for first, second and third in the genre, respectively. King World’s “Hollywood Squares” and Tribune’s “Family Feud” both rose 15 percent to 2.3, while Sony’s “Pyramid” added 5 percent to a 2.1.
Perhaps the most momentum, however, was in relationship shows. Universal’s “Blind Date” continued to roll, leading the genre with a 6 percent jump to a 1.9. That score is up 27 percent in the past three weeks. Meanwhile, Telepictures’ “Elimidate” grew 14 percent to a 1.6.
Twentieth’s “Ex-treme Dating” hit an all-time high, growing 17 percent to a 1.4 for the week, edging out Universal’s “Fifth Wheel,” which had a season high of its own at 1.3. “Wheel” was up 30 percent for the week.
All the rookie shows were higher, with the exception of King World’s “Living It Up! With Ali & Jack,” which slid 15 percent to a 1.1 score. Telepictures’ “Ellen DeGeneres” gained 6 percent to a 1.7, “Sharon Osbourne” grew 8 percent to a 1.4 and NBC’s “Starting Over” rose 11 percent to a 1.0.