TV Ratings : Clarifying the Nielsens

The Nielsen Top 10 can sometimes be misleading. ABC and CBS each had four shows place there last week; NBC, however, was the highest-rated network for the third week in a row. According to figures released Tuesday, NBC averaged a 13.3 rating in prime time, compared to 13.1 for ABC and 12.3 for CBS (each point represents 921,000 households). CBS continues to lead in the season-to-date standings, but it has been running third since the World Series ended. The debut of “Walter and Emily” on NBC Saturday night failed to hold all of “The Golden Girls” viewers, but the network said that the comedy still registered a 29% improvement over what NBC had been averaging in that time period this season. Meanwhile, Michael Jackson’s 11-minute video last Thursday ranked No. 22 among the week’s 95 prime-time programs, reaching about 14.4 million homes via Fox, and more on the MTV and BET cable channels. The full list of ratings is on F11.

* Roseanne Barr Arnold scored a double coup. Not only was her sitcom “Roseanne” the No. 2 show of the week, but her TV movie “Backfield in Motion” was No. 26, winning its two-hour time slot.

Show Points Share 1. “60 Minutes” (CBS) 23.7 38 2. “Roseanne” (ABC) 22.9 33 3. “Full House” (ABC) 21.4 32 4. “Murphy Brown” (CBS) 19.7 28 5. “Coach” (ABC) 19.4 29 * “Backfield in Motion” (ABC) 15.0 24