ABC Ends Low Year With Win

After a trying season, ABC closed the 2001-2002 broadcast year with a rare ratings victory, fueled by “Monday Night Football,” the “Miss America” pageant, and previews of its Tuesday comedies “8 Simple Rules” and “Life With Bonnie,” based on viewing estimates issued Tuesday by Nielsen Media Research.

Last week saw a mix of series premieres and reruns in advance of the new TV season that officially began Monday, as CBS’ latest “Survivor” capitalized on a “Friends” rerun to top all programs and help lift “Big Brother 3” to its biggest audience of the summer. The question is how well the fifth edition of “Survivor” will hold up against new “Friends” episodes, which start Thursday.

NBC also received a boost from the Emmy Awards, which delivered the ceremony’s second-biggest audience of the last six years. The telecast faced HBO’s “The Sopranos,” which averaged 11.2 million viewers--a drop of 2.2 million versus its record-setting fourth-season premiere the week before.

The bronze medal went to the WB, with the two-hour season premiere of “Charmed,” on its new night, playing against the Emmys and posting the network’s highest ratings ever for a Sunday--a night where the WB has traditionally struggled.

Fox introduced four series, scoring the best results relative to the time period with “John Doe,” its most-watched Friday premiere in five years.

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National Nielsen Viewership

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