Networks Get a Little Relief From Case of the Fall Blahs

In the six weeks it’s taken to launch three dozen new prime-time TV shows, the 1997-98 season’s theme song shifted from “High Hopes” to “High Anxiety.”

For the second consecutive year, few new series appear to be catching on with viewers, and the major networks as a whole face an overall ratings decline.

Record lows are set in one time period or another almost weekly, and--perhaps most troubling to programmers--on some nights mediocrity reigns all around, indicating more people are selecting options that don’t include ABC, CBS, NBC or Fox.

No wonder the networks seemed to breathe a collective sigh of relief this week, when “Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella” vastly exceeded ratings expectations after a period in which most similarly hyped made-for-TV events fizzled.

The general malaise surrounding the current season appears to stem from misguided network strategies as well as increased competition from various sources, including the sometimes-overlooked WB and UPN networks.

Programs that would have been dismissed as flops a few years ago, meanwhile, can now be deemed preferable to risking a scheduling change, largely because the bottom has virtually dropped out in terms of potential failure.

“There’s a sense of weightlessness about the falling numbers. You say to yourself, ‘When is this going to stop?’ ” said Peter Tortorici, an executive at the Carsey-Werner Co. and a former head of CBS Entertainment.

Yet Tortorici added that there are “signs of more-than-abundant life,” citing the consistent reminder that NBC’s “Must-See TV” Thursday provides as to the possibility of attracting a huge audience.

Another ray of hope broke through the gloom Sunday. Not only did “Cinderella” deliver in spectacular fashion, but the Oprah Winfrey movie that followed, “Before Women Had Wings,” coupled with the season premiere of Fox’s “The X-Files” and a “Murder, She Wrote” movie on CBS, also dramatically increased overall viewing of the major networks.

Including NBC’s disappointing “House of Frankenstein,” the four leading broadcasters peaked with a 78% share of the available audience from 9-10 p.m. Sunday. For the season, NBC, CBS, ABC and Fox have combined for just 62% of the prime-time viewing pie.

“Cinderella’s” big-name stars and multiethnic cast probably contributed to reaching a wider audience, as well as its imprimatur as a Disney classic. The movie scored a bull’s-eye with women, according to ABC research, commanding more than 60% of girls between the ages of 6 and 11 watching TV in those hours, and nearly four in 10 women between the ages of 18 and 49.

“Clearly, this was young women watching with their younger children, and [with] their daughters a bit more than their sons,” said Larry Hyams, ABC vice president and director of audience analysis. “It gave us a sizable 18-49 female audience that stayed tuned for Oprah. . . . [And] the Oprah name brought some older viewers as well.”

That CBS roughly equaled its Sunday night average this season--despite ABC’s highest rating that night in more than a decade and “The X-Files’ ” big premiere--indicates to some that people can be lured back to network television if provided with appealing and well-defined choices.

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“It’s all driven by shows,” said producer Fred Silverman, who ran the entertainment divisions at all three elder networks. “If they put something on and the people want to see it, the numbers come right back. . . . If it happens with a one-shot [movie], it can also happen with series.”

How to do that remains another matter, though most would argue patience will play a part. Despite heightened pressure on programmers to deliver ratings, the networks have found that they can do even worse by replacing an under-performing series.

NBC, for example, struggled on Wednesday nights last season but soon discovered how bad things can get this fall when a new sitcom, “Built to Last,” finished sixth in its time slot, behind UPN and WB.

Similarly, all five new dramas ABC scheduled this September have averaged less than 10% of the available audience on the nights they air, when less than 20% was considered possible grounds for cancellation as recently as the start of this decade. (ABC has yanked one of those shows, “Timecop,” and another, “Total Security,” is teetering.)

Several current network mainstays, including “Seinfeld,” “Touched by an Angel,” “The Drew Carey Show” and “The X-Files,” floundered initially before gradually developing loyal followings.

In similar fashion, some shows appear to be blossoming in their second year, especially NBC’s “Just Shoot Me,” which is doing unexpectedly well following “Frasier.” CBS’ “JAG” and “Promised Land” are also holding their own as alternatives to hit comedies Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, while ABC’s “The Practice” has performed reasonably well Saturdays.

The WB network has also watched its Monday and Wednesday ratings gradually inch upward behind such programs as “7th Heaven,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “The Wayans Bros.” Chief executive Jamie Kellner acknowledged that lower overall ratings may be a hidden asset, allowing WB to exercise more patience than the better-established networks.

“If a show’s not creatively gelling yet, but you believe in it, you certainly can stay with it longer,” he said, noting that his network’s ratings gains appear to be “coming out of the networks’ hides.”

Some within the industry say Sunday’s results demonstrate that the networks must better differentiate themselves from one another, as opposed to pursuing in lock-step the same younger age groups most prized by advertisers.