Posted on 02/09/2006 12:48:00 PM PST by SirLinksalot
Thursday, February 9, 2006 · Last updated 10:03 a.m. PT
'American Idol' crushes Grammys in ratings
By DAVID BAUDER
AP TELEVISION WRITER
NEW YORK -- Some humbling news for the pros: By a wide margin, TV viewers prefer the amateurs.
Nearly twice as many people watched "American Idol" than the Grammy Awards Wednesday when the two music programs went head-to-head in prime time, according to preliminary estimates by Nielsen Media Research.
The "Idol" audience on Fox was 28.3 million while the Grammy Awards were being watched by 15.1 million people from 8 to 9 p.m. EST, Nielsen said.
Within that hour, featured performers on "music's biggest night" included Madonna, John Legend, Coldplay and U2. The Irish rockers were the big Grammy winners, earning album of the year and song of the year for "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own."
After "Idol" went off the air, the Grammys picked up a little steam. Overall, from 8 to 11 p.m., the show averaged 17.6 million viewers. The final viewership figure for the show, which lasted until 11:30 p.m., was not immediately available, but was likely to be slightly lower than 17.6 million.
The least-watched Grammy telecast since Nielsen began keeping records was the 17.2 million who watched in 1995. Last year's show was seen by 18.8 million people, with 26.3 million viewers in 2004.
Former "American Idol" winner Kelly Clarkson won two Grammys, but didn't mention the Fox show in her tearful acceptance speeches.
The music pros can take a little comfort in at least slowing the "American Idol" momentum. It was the first time in seven telecasts this season that "Idol" was seen by fewer than 30 million people.
snicker
I'm with you on that...
BB RULES - P. DIDDY DROOLS!
Say what you want about American Idol, but at least it requires its singers to perfrom live, night after night. That's where the chops come in, and that's why American Idol is more compelling than the Grammys. Having said that, Clarkson's shelf-life will only be as long as the producer/songwriting teams responsible for her hits stay interested, which typically isn't much past 2 albums. (There's a reason Avril Lavigne now says she wants to branch out into acting).
I was amazed Kelly Clarkston gave no recognition to american Idol what a loser she would be a nobody without them... Goofy wench!
I'm happy to say that I'm one of those who opted to watch American Idol. On one commercial break I flipped it over to the Grammy Awards but was repulsed so I quickly went back to A.I.
I'm goign to ask the obvious question..which I have yet seen addressed anywheres..since 99.99% of American hosueholds own at least one VCR, DVDR, or TIVO...how do they figure out which show was being watched, as opposed to being recorded for later viewing..
I actually switched to the Grammies during AI commercial break and here are the things I saw :
1) Sir Paul McCartney performing for the first time at the Grammies. At social security age, this guy looks good.
2) Third year winner, Fantasia, had the distinct honor of being nominated for four Grammy's, but lost each time to Mariah, John Legend, and others. Better luck next time, and remember . . . Kelly's first album (Thankful) only got one nomination (Miss Independent)!
3) Fantasia got to jam a little with a montage of musicians and singers during a tribute to Sly and the Family Stone. Guess who was playing the bass strings on that very same tribute? American Idol's own Randy Jackson !
How do they know you didn't just leave the TV on for the dog?
Seriously, Nielsen meters are supposed to have buttons on them that family members or other guests are supposed to "log in" and "log out" from viewing. How they handle taping stuff, I don't know.
If my Dish network people are gathering data on me (and I don't doubt it), they must have some way of figuring out that the receiver that gets left on one station for hours at a time must be pre-set to tape something.
SD
I've heard that they have a button or something on their remote they are supposed to press every 15 minutes. That way they can be sure someone is actually watching the show and didn't just leave the tv on in an empty room.
I like watching gay strangers, more than gay celebrities.
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